Words of Wisdom 2

[Turkbear]

I hope to start this thread as a place to post speech excerpts, essay segments, etc showing the use of words to have an impact or to express important thoughts - please post your favorites.
To start,
From George Carlin:


The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings
but shorter tempers, wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We
spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have
bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less
time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less
judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less
wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too
little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too
tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk
too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added
years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon
and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new
neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done
larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the
atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan
more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait.
We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more
copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and
small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are
the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken
homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway
morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do
everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is
much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time
when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you
can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete...
Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not
going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe,
because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is
the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a
cent.

Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones,
but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when
it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that
person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the
precious thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the
moments that take our breath away.

If you don't send this to at least 8 people....Who cares?

George Carlin







To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[Turkbear]

Hi,
A more positive translation of the Categorical Imperative
is:
'Do only that which you can rationally will all men to do'..


Very tough to live by however, since is allows no 'Except when..' clauses ( hence, Categorical )







To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[jsaxe]

Until Lewis Black comes up with words to live by (which probably will have something to do with a freshly sharpened pencil), I'll let Mrs. Parker (Dorothy) have her say:

Razors pain you;
Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you;
And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren't lawful;
Nooses give;
Gas smells awful;
You might as well live.

My kinda gal

jsaxe



Mundus Vult Decipi

 

[Turkbear]

Hi,
a star for anyone who quotes Dorothy..

Any Noel Coward, Benchley or Kauffman bon mots out there?





To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[SilentAiche]

Not to Forte Brag, but Mr. Lewis Black is currently teaching a course at UNC-CH.

One of the funniest, brightest comics who ever drew a breath and let us breathe it.

And that's a compliment from a local "conservative" to a liberal who happens to make me laugh my donkey off.

ROFLMDO!

Tim

[blue]___________________________________________________________________________
"To be rather than to seem" [green](as stated in plain English)[/green] - Official Motto of the State of North Carolina[/blue]

 

[jsaxe]

Thanx for the star, Turkbear!

SilentAiche, I don't believe Black is a "liberal" - to me he seems to be a good old-fashioned American native anarchist like Will Rodgers, Mark Twain, or Edward Abbey. An equal-opportunity gadfly, in other words.

I seem to be wandering off-topic, so just let me add an obligatory "words of wisdom" from another literary hero of mine, Hunter S. Thompson: "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro."

jsaxe



Mundus Vult Decipi

 

[gbaughma]

Some of my favorite quotes are ones that I've come up with myself.

Perhaps they've been said before; but I hadn't heard them when I came up with them. So, here they are:

"In order to achieve harmony, one must first know which strings to tune."

"In order to start solving a problem, one must first identify its owner."

"It's all right to be up sh** creek without a paddle, if your destination is downstream."

My personal mission: "To love, to listen, to learn, to laugh, to live."



Just my 2¢

"In order to start solving a problem, one must first identify its owner." --Me
--Greg

 

[Turkbear]

Hi,
Tony Soprano, when talking to his therapist, supplied my latest favorite:

OK, I get that every day is a gift, but does it have to be socks?





To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[BoxHead]

[tt]"Argue for your limitations
and they are yours."

- some writer in some book I read some years back.
[/tt]

 

[j0ckser]

"The first sacrifice of survival is conscience."

the first 3 words are the title of a book by thomas gifford. the rest are included somewhere in the book as a sentence. 'how true,' i thought.

words of wisdom

per ardua ad astra

 

[Olaf Doschke]

Douglas Adams has written some wise or at least funny things:

[ul]
[li]There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. - There is another theory which states that this has already happened.[/li]
--------
[li]The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at or repair.[/li]
--------
[li]The world is a thing of utter inordinate complexity and richness and strangeness that is absolutely awesome. I mean the idea that such complexity can arise not only out of such simplicity, but probably absolutely out of nothing, is the most fabulous extraordinary idea. And once you get some kind of inkling of how that might have happened, it's just wonderful. And . . . the opportunity to spend 70 or 80 years of your life in such a universe is time well spent as far as I am concerned.[/li]
--------
[li]The fact that we live at the bottom of a deep gravity well, on the surface of a gas covered planet going around a nuclear fireball 90 million miles away and think this to be normal is obviously some indication of how skewed our perspective tends to be.[/li]
--------
[li]Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.[/li]
--------
[li]You live and learn. At any rate, you live.[/li]
--------
[li]The World Wide Web is the only thing I know of whose shortened form —

http://www —

takes three times longer to say than what it's short for.[/li]
--------
[li]First we thought the PC was a calculator. Then we found out how to turn numbers into letters with ASCII — and we thought it was a typewriter. Then we discovered graphics, and we thought it was a television. With the World Wide Web, we've realized it's a brochure[/li]
[/ul]

http://www.mythfolklore.net/calendars/adams/douglasadams.htm

Bye, Olaf.

 

[j0ckser]

..Ash nazg durbatuluk, ash nazg gimbatul,
Ash nazg thrakatuluk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul..

i promised one more, but this isn't it (see next thread). don't know about words of wisdom per se, but certainly memorable.

per ardua ad astra

 

[j0ckser]

Desiderata
(something desired as essential)

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline be gentle to yourself.
You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars and you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

--Max Ehrmann, 1927. © Robert L. Bell​

per ardua ad astra

 

[Dollie]

Sometimes words of wisdom are found in the oddest places... this was on a bumper sticker, and it has been stuck in my mind for several years:

Well behaved women rarely make history.

 

[SantaMufasa]

I agree, Dollie, that "misbaving" men and women can show up in history books, but it also depends upon the type of history that one chooses for one's self, whether male or female.

Some of the most important (personal) history that I have witnessed being made comes in the form of well-behaved moms and dads (oft-times single moms or single dads) quietly raising productive, otherwise well-behaved children. Can you imagine the sorry state of history if everyone was out making history by choosing to "misbehave", versus "behaving well" by quietly, unobtrusively choosing to equip the next generation with the skills necessary to "construct history"?

Just a thought...

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
[I can provide you with low-cost, remote Database Administration services: see our website and contact me via www.dasages.com]

 

[Turkbear]

Hi,
Historically, 'well behaved' , when applied to women, meant that they behaved in the way society ( actually, men) thought they should behave...





To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[SantaMufasa]

...And please don't get me wrong...I have always been an advocate of both women and men "thinking and acting outside The Box" (as defined by society/"culture") especially if such can better achieve worthwhile objectives.

I have never advocated "keeping" anyone "in their place". The greatest of all human rights (IMHO) is Self Determination. [My 6-year-old granddaughter's greatest dream right now is to become a Doctor...I've opened up her Med-School Savings Account already.]

Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
[I can provide you with low-cost, remote Database Administration services: see our website and contact me via www.dasages.com]

 

[Turkbear]

Hi,Never meant to imply that.
It was meant to be just a reminder of the historical context that some bumper-stickers expected readers to have ( we have a short memory sometimes)..





To Paraphrase:"The Help you get is proportional to the Help you give.."

 

[gbaughma]

BTW, if anyone cares, I'm celebrating the 19th anniversary of my 21st birthday today.

One of the most memorable "words of wisdom" just came to mind.

"When I die, I want to go peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather. Not screaming in terror like his passengers...."



Just my 2¢

"In order to start solving a problem, one must first identify its owner." --Me
--Greg

 

[Dollie]

A few things to ponder:

Women who were not "well behaved":

Joan of Arc
Rosa Parks
Madeline Murray O'Hair
Susan B. Anthony
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Marie Antoinette
Hillary Clinton

I'm well behaved when it is appropriate, but when I'm pressed against the glass ceiling, or am being forced off a glass cliff at sword-point, I can't honestly say that well-behaved is even a consideration at that point.



(Note that I did not state that I admire each and every woman I listed above)

 

[SantaMufasa]

But, Dollie, although we can make a list of "Women who were not 'well behaved' " that had varying degrees of impact on history, I believe it is inaccurate to leave the impression that "not being well behaved" is a pre-requisite for "making history" or having an impact thereupon. I believe we can make a "near-infinite" list of "Women who were 'well behaved' " that had profound impacts on history. (This list ignores the protests of MCPs that don't want to acknowlege any woman's successes or who believe that "Women should be seen and not heard.") A few that come to mind are:

Eleanor Roosevelt (Philanthropist, educator)
Marie Curie (Scientist, Discoverer)
Hon. Margaret Thatcher (PM Great Britain)
Indira Ghandi (President, India)
Helen Keller (Author, educator, lecturer)
Song Qingling (PRC's Deputy Premier Minister, Deputy Head of State, Vice-Chairperson of the National People’s Congress)
Isabel (Martínez Cartas de) Perón
Corazón Aquino (President, Phillipines)
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (President, Phillipines)
Mary Robinson (President, Ireland)
Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (President, Sri Lanka)
Ruth Dreifuss (President, Switzerland)
Vaira V??e-Freiberga (President, Latvia)
Mireya Moscoso Rodrígez (President, Panama)
Tarja Halonen (President, Finland)
Natasa Micic (President, Serbia)
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf (President, Liberia)
Michelle Bachelet Jeria (President, Chile)
Condolezz Rice (Secretary of State, U.S.)
Ruth Bader Ginzburg (Justice, U.S. Supreme Court)
Sandra Day O'Conner (Justice, U.S. Supreme Court)
Ann Tsukamoto (patentee of a process to isolate the human stem cell)
Mary Walton (inventor)
Valerie Thomas (physicist, NASA engineer, inventor)
Ellen Ochoa (astronaut)
Sally Ride (astronaut)
...ad infinitum

...All rather well behaved, none cowering in the shadows of a man, all role models, all having made history without "not being well behaved".


Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
[I can provide you with low-cost, remote Database Administration services: see our website and contact me via www.dasages.com]