Mark Twain

In the first place, God made idiots. That was for practice. Then he made school boards.

Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities. Truth isn’t.

There is no sadder sight than a young pessimist, except an old optimist.

Wit and Humor – if any difference, it is in duration – lightning and electric light. Same material, apparently; but one is vivid, and can do damage – the other fools along and enjoys elaboration.

Only one thing is impossible for God: To find any sense in any copyright law on the planet.

There isn’t a single human characteristic that can be safely labeled as American.

We had 10 years after the Cold War to build a new world order and yet we squandered them. The United States cannot tolerate anyone acting independently. Every US president has to have a war.

A shadow has fallen upon the scenes so lately lighted by the Allied victory. From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent.

Among the calamities of war, may be justly numbered the diminution of the love of truth, by the falsehoods which interest dictates, and credulity encourages.

We are not retreating – we are advancing in another Direction

The enemy is anybody who’s going to get you killed, no matter which side he’s on.

The strongest of all warriors are these two – Time and Patience.

There are no absolute rules of conduct, either in peace or war. Everything depends on circumstances.

Mine is the first generation able to contemplate the possibility that we may live our entire lives without going to war or sending our children to war.

When we went into World War II, I was a tractor driver then. I drove tractors on the plantation. So when they start calling people my age, 18, up, I was one they called.

People didn’t want war. We were forced in it. How fast we finish it depends on how free a hand our generals and admirals have. The less interference they get from the politicians the quicker they’ll end it.

World War II was fought for the abolition of racial exclusiveness, equality of nations and the integrity of their territories, liberation of enslaved nations and restoration of their sovereign rights, the right of every nation to arrange its affairs as it wishes, economic aid to nations that have suffered and assistance to them in attaining their material welfare, restoration of democratic liberties, and destruction of the Hitlerite regime.

In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.

On the fields of friendly strife are sown the seeds that on other days, on other fields will bear the fruits of victory.

Wars are necessary to teach us lessons we seem unable to learn any other way.

Sometimes by losing a battle you find a new way to win the war.