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Contents


[edit] quote containing stupidity and ignorance

I seem to recall a quote to the effect that "you can reason with ignorance, but not argue with stupidity" what is exact quote and author? --201.8.57.31 12:10, 16 November 2006 (UTC)

I googled stupidity+quote+"reason with ignorance" and found this: "One can reason with ignorance, But it is futile to argue with stupidity." It is used as a signature on forums, but there is no attribution listed. 152.16.188.111 09:59, 10 July 2007 (UTC)
And a second thought took me back to google. Found it. This page attributes the quote to Ed Fitch. 152.16.188.111 10:12, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Paraphrase: "Forgiveness is sincerely letting go of the wish that the past were different."

I've probably butchered this -- I'm not even sure that the first word is "forgiveness". It may be "healing" or something along those lines. I'm sure about "wish" and the last part might be something about "change/changing the past." At the time I heard it, attributed to someone widely recognized and from the last century or so, it seemed terribly powerful, but unfortunately I didn't record it. I'd very much appreciate the actual wording and attribution, if this rings any bells for anyone. Sorry this is so vague, but searches here and by search engine of many variants have produced nothing even close. Thanks! --anon

The closest I can find is "Forgiveness has taken place when past actions no longer hold a present bearing." by Rev John Kapteyn. I'll keep looking and if I find a better match will contact you via your webpage. 152.16.188.111 10:35, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Russell Baker Article

Please can you help me find an article written by Russell Baker dealing with ther futility of our daily routines?

He wrote an article many, many years ago, about working man who lives in a box, rides to work in a box, and gets into a box to reach his office. Additonally, he wrote about when we are home we are "leaf farmers" among other things.

Thank you.

Faith St. Claire 18:52, 3 December 2006 (UTC)

I am familiar with Russell Baker the journalist, but not Russell Baker the speculative fiction author (despite my life-long SF enthusiasm). I am wondering if they are the same person or two different people, which significantly impacts any attempt to research this question. w:Russell Baker includes no hint either of the journalist's fiction or of the need for a separate article on a different person. Anyone have any ideas about this? ~ Jeff Q (talk) 20:36, 22 December 2006 (UTC)


[edit] Who said"marvelous darling, simply marvelous"?

Who said " marvelous darling, simply marvelous"? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 69.92.168.60 (talk • contribs) 20:56, 29 December 2006 (UTC)

I haven't read Gone with the Wind but I believe Clark Gable utters that somewhere in the film version.

Billy Crystal on SNL? 74.67.42.162 15:32, 1 February 2007 (UTC)
According to this page, that is a line from Breakfast at Tiffany's. 152.16.188.111 10:46, 10 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Mystery Quote

Hey, can anyone help me. I know there is a quote that is something like "Younger siblings try to change the world, the elder siblings run it." or maybe "Younger children try to change the world, the elder children run it." but can't find anything like it... Does anyone know the actual quote, and who said it?

Many thanks,

--86.137.233.160 22:18, 17 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Be Present

Who is attributed with stating the proverb "Be Present?"



[edit] ...merely abandoned

Who said "a work of art is never completed, merely abandoned"?

I've seeen attributions for everyone from Jean Cocteau to G.B. Shaw to Somerset Maugham to Robert Benchley -- the lattermost being a longtime favorite of mine; but while he may have observed it, I know he never would have bothered to comment on it.


"It took me fifteen years to discover that I had
no talent for writing, but I couldn't give it up
because by that time I was too famous."
                              - Robert Benchley
Similar statements are ascribed to all sorts of people including Goethe, Flaubert and Da Vinci. But is most often given to Paul Valery although he seems to expressed the same idea at different times and never at all pithily. Here is a quote from Reading Paul Valery: Universe in Mind
How can he recognise that his work is finished?
That's a decision he has to take…In fact, the completion of a work is only ever an abandonment, a halt that can always be regarded as fortuitous in an evolution that might have been continued. MeltBanana 15:24, 2 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] missing link

i have a question about a link. I copied the following link a few days ago, and now its disappeared. I'd like to know if its going to be accessable again, because there were lot of beatiful quotes, and it would be so hard to find them another way. Thank you for your answer! Sincerely Sandor the link was: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/LOVE_QUOTES



[edit] "We have two ears and one mouth, so that we can listen twice as much as we speak"

I think i've heard this quote attributed to Epictetus but i am looking to find which of his works the quote comes from.......any ideas???? thanks

Nature hath given men one tongue but two ears, that we may hear from others twice as much as we speak.

—Epictetus, in The Golden Sayings of Epictetus, trans. by Hastings Crossley. Vol. II, Part 2. The Harvard Classics. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1909–14; Bartleby.com, 2001. http://www.bartleby.com/2/2/. 17:33, 8 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place

I know its George Bernard Shaw, but does anyone know which of his plays/ discourses its from ??? Thanks

Are you sure it is G. B. Shaw? I could not find anything similar in his works or a source cited anywhere. The earliest use of the quote I found was from 1951. Shaw is famous for having anything slightly cynical, without a definite source, ascribed to him. MeltBanana 15:45, 17 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Original quotes of Edward T. Hall's Silent Language based on the french ones I have

Hello,

I have some french quotes from Edward T. Hall's Silent Language (translated in french as Le Langage silencieux), I've posted them on the french wikiquote page and I'd like to find the original quotes. I also need the pages, chapter title translations, book ISBN, editor, collection (as much book informations as possible). If you own this book please leave a message whether you speak french or not.

Thanks,

MyXiLo 08:57, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

I don't have the book; but by using Google Book Search in combination with regular Google I've been able to find the first two quotes and a sentence each from the third and fourth. Google Book Search only shows the book in "snippet" form, so that the quotes can only be "teased" out piecemeal. By feeding the results back into Google Book Search and regular Google, however, here are the results:

1) French: "Le temps parle. Il parle plus simplement que les mots. Le message qu'il porte se transmet à haute voix et clairement. Parce qu'il est utilisé moins consciemment, il ne risque pas d'être dénaturé comme l'est le langage parlé. Il peut clamer la vérité quand les mots mentent."

Original: "Time talks. It speaks more plainly than words. The message it conveys comes through loud and clear. Because it is manipulated less consciously, it is subject to less distortion than the spoken language. It can shout the truth where words lie. [1]

2) French: "La meilleure raison de se soumettre à des cultures étrangères, c'est qu'elles engendrent un sens aigu de la vitalité et de l'attention consciente – un attachement à la vie qui ne peut se manifester qu'au contact de la différence et du contraste."

Original: "The best reason for exposing oneself to foreign ways is to generate a sense of vitality and awareness - an interest in life which can come only when one lives through the shock of contrast and difference." [2]

3) French: "Le fait que chez l'animal, le comportement soit conditionné par le sexe, a conduit à des erreurs quant à la place du sexe chez l'homme. Il est faux de penser que le comportement de l'homme est lié à la physiologie."

The first sentence from the original is: "The fact that behavior in animals is predominantly sex-linked has led to certain misconceptions concerning the role of sex in man." [3]

4) French: "[La plupart des gens] ont du mal à croire qu'un comportement qu'ils ont toujours associé à la « nature humaine » ne soit absolument pas naturel, mais acquis et faisant partie d'une catégorie particulièrement complexe. L'une des raisons possibles de cette réticence est qu'il jette un doute sur nos croyances les mieux enracinées."

The last sentence in the original is: "Possibly one of the many reasons why the culture concept has been resisted is that it throws doubt on many established beliefs." [4][5]

That's as much as Google would yield for these quotes. Amazon.com has the book but does not allow a search of the contents. - InvisibleSun 10:18, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

As a supplement to InvisibleSun's answers:

3) The second sentence in the original is, "It is a great mistake to assume that the behavior which is observed in man is linked to physiology." [6]

4) The first sentence in the original is, "[...almost everyone] has difficulty believing that behavior they have always associated with 'human nature' is not human nature at all but learned behavior of a particularly complex variety." [7][8]

As you'll see from Google Book the publisher (éditeur) of Silent Language is Doubleday. The book has no editor (rédacteur). Antiquary 19:30, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Question on attribution: Did Erich Fromm really say this?

I've seen this quote attributed to Erich Fromm, but it doesn't sound like him. Can anyone source this quote, or identify it as a misattribution? Here is the statement: "Let your mind start a journey through a strange new world. Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before. Let your soul take you where you long to be . . . Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar,

and you’ll live as you’ve never lived before." --71.246.187.217 02:57, 21 March 2007 (UTC)
You can find those lines, slightly re-arranged, in the show The Phantom of the Opera. They're from the song "The Music of the Night", music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, words by Charles Hart and/or Richard Stilgoe. [9] Goodness knows why anyone thought they were by Erich Fromm. Antiquary 19:32, 21 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "Amateurs work until they get it right. Professionals work until they can't get it wrong."

I'm trying to find the origin of this quote: "Amateurs work until they get it right. Professionals work until they can't get it wrong."

Thanks for any help you can give me. --PhotoBizLady 11:56, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

Apparently GMC used it in a commercial, but online sources trace it back to an NFL announcer[10], announcer heard in football clips[11], NFL voice guy[12]. You might want to contact the NFL and see if they can tell you exactly who said it. 152.16.59.190 04:56, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Can anybody help with these ambiguous sources?

I want to add them to the site, but I don't know where. These quotes appear on many sites, but without any information.

[edit] Norman Brenner

  • The intermediate stage between socialism and capitalism is alcoholism.
    • - Norman Brenner

But who is he? The only known person with this name, that I managed to find, was a regular extra in Seinfeld. Is this him? But why would anyone quote this pretty unknown extra?

I found several people by that name - an author, a mathematician/scientist, a gravel pit operator, but the most famous would have to be the Seinfeld extra. Maybe he was given a funny line in a Seinfeld episode and it got added to online quote lists? 152.16.59.190 05:27, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Pentagon official

  • If we let people see that kind of thing, there would never again be any war.
    • - Pentagon official explaining why the U.S. military censored graphic footage from the Gulf War

Can anyone confirm this and give an accurate source?

The closest I could find is this page that lists the quote as having been included in "Military Blunders article by Geoffrey Regan in Night and Day (Mail on Sunday supplement)23rd January 2000." Geoffrey Regan is a military historian and author. It is possible that he didn't provide any more specific attribution than "Pentagon official." in his article. 152.16.59.190 05:13, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Can anybody give sources for these quotes?

Once I have sources, I'd put the following quotes in the appropriate places in this site.

[edit] Fear leads to hate

  • You fear what you don't understand, and you hate...what you fear.
    • - Unknown
Not sure about that exact quote, but it reminds me of the lyrics in a couple of songs: 1) "Ignorance and prejudice and fear walk hand in hand" from the song Witch Hunt, by Rush and 2) Waste by KMFDM. 152.16.59.190 05:50, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] 3 Wolves, 1 sheep, and Democracy

  • Democracy(n): 3 wolves and a sheep voting on what's for dinner.
    • - Unknown
Benjamin Franklin. 152.16.59.190 07:40, 12 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Peace and War, Screwing and Virginity

  • Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity.
    • - Unknown

It might be Lenny Bruce. 75.153.244.227 00:37, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

This is the earliest published reference I've found so far for this quote:
  • Fighting for peace is like fucking for virginity — But it's great!
    • Attributed as graffiti at "Subway men's room, Astor Place stop"
    • Herlihy, James Leo (1971). The Season of the Witch, p. 154, Simon and Schuster.
(Herlihy is probably best known for his earlier novel Midnight Cowboy, the controversial film of which won an Academy Award. Without checking a copy of Season, I can't tell if this quote is supposed to be an actual observation of Herlihy's, or part of his fiction.) This quote appears one year later with "screwing" substituted as a graffiti sample quoted in (1972) The Bowker Annual of Library and Book Trade Information, p. 69 (of 600), R. R. Bowker Company. ISBN 0835205207.
I've seen no authoritative reference yet to credit Bruce with it. Many unsourced quotes are attributed to someone merely because they sound like something that person would have said. I'd expect such a memorable line from such a famous comedian and social critic to be well-documented. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 02:21, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] A Smoking Section vs. A Peeing Section

  • Having a smoking section in a restaurant is like having a peeing section in a pool.
    • - Unknown
George Carlin. 152.16.59.190 07:41, 12 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Sex and Hacking

  • Sex is like hacking. You get in, you get out, and you hope you didn't leave something behind that can be traced back to you.
    • - Unknown

[edit] Sex and Cards

  • Sex is like a game of cards. If you don't have a good partner, you better have a good hand.
    • - Unknown

[edit] The Lion And The Flies

  • Even the lion has to defend himself against flies.
    • - Unknown
The only attribution I could find was "German proverb." 152.16.59.190 07:45, 12 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Windows Bit(e)s

  • Windows 9x(n): A 32 bit upgrade to 16 bit extensions for an 8 bit operating system designed to run on a 4 bit processor by a 2 bit company that doesn't like 1 bit of competition.
    • - Unknown
      • this 1997 mailing list posting appears to be the first public mention of this quote, but poster Art Bahrs claims that he got it from a friend. It may have been circulating prior to 1997, since Windows 95 (the first edition of "32 bit extensions") was released in 1995.

[edit] The Power of Love

  • To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.
    • - Unknown

[edit] who said this quote

i have searched but cant find the lady who made this quote i heard.who know who said 'its just so different when it comes from your own '

[edit] Quote about sewing a seed and reeping a habit, sewing a ... and reeping a ... and so on

Hi,

Can anyone tell me where I can find a quote about sewing a seed and reeping a plant and so forth. I read this last time on wikipedia quotes and am unable to find it now.

Are you thinking of this poem:
The seed ye sow, another reaps;
The wealth ye find, another keeps;
The robes ye weave, another wears;
The arms ye forge, another bears.
That's 'Song to the Men of England' by Percy Shelley (1819). Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 22:37, 21 May 2007 (UTC)
Or perhaps you mean:
3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
3:2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
3:3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
3:4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
3:5 A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
3:6 A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
3:7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
3:8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.</poem>
Ecclesiastes III KJV
Or:
For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk; the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.
Hosea 8:7 KJV
Or
Sow a thought, and you reap an act;
Sow an act, and you reap a habit;
Sow a habit, and you reap a character;
Sow a character, and you reap a destiny.
Anonymous, quoted in Life and Labor by Samuel Smiles (1887)
MeltBanana 14:32, 23 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] How Can Background and Context for a Quotation be Found?

I'm new to Wikiquote. I find quotations that I'd like to use but I first want to know what they author's context or point was. Milton wrote, "they also serve who only stand and wait." He was, I believe, referring to his undiminished faith even though he was blind (?). The quotation itself sounds like praise of a reserve military unit at the ready.

Is there a way to get background for quotations? Thank you!

Brooks C. Sackett --Brooks1539 20:34, 17 June 2007 (UTC)
We generally frown on adding context to quotes from written works unless it is absolutely essential to understanding the quote. Context lines tend to become mini-essays which violate the "no original research" policy of Wikipedia which Wikiquote also informally follows. I confess I've never known the context of this quote myself, and have heard it used in a number of ways I'm sure John Milton had not intended. (My favorite one is from P. D. Q. Bach's "Hansel and Gretel and Ted and Alice: An Opera in One Unnatural Act" which requires too much context itself to quote here. See P. D. Q. Bach Lyrics, which unfortunately does not include the relevant song, for some samples of Peter Schickele's hilarious abuse of famous words and phrases.)
Anyway, to answer your question, besides the obvious — reading the original work, which is variously titled "On His Blindness" or "When I Consider How My Light Is Spent" — one can check professionally published quotation works (which have editorial boards that give them the freedom to do some contextual description), or look for an annotated compilation of works including this Milton sonnet. (Shawcross's The Complete Poetry of John Milton (ISBN 0385023510) is one listed on Amazon that seems recommended. The reviews also allude to definititve "Fowler" and "Carey" publications.) Another route is a critical study of Milton, perhaps like The Cambridge Companion to Milton (ISBN 0521655439), which would probably provide some detailed context to a work as famous as this sonnet. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 01:57, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Who said: What man can percieve, man can achieve.

[edit] Quotation on oil and food

Who said that "modern agriculture is the process of converting oil into food" –—87.192.87.247 20:39, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

The correct quote appears to be "modern agriculture is the use of land to convert petroleum into food" and the original author appears to be Prof. Albert A. Bartlett. He uses it in this article which was originally published in the American Journal of Physics in September 1978. However, note that he has put it in quotes, suggesting someone else may have inspired him. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 20:51, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Aldo Leopold

Missing from his quotes is one I read on a Nature conservancy T-shirt portraying a Bison:

"The first rule of intelligent tinkering is to save all the pieces." —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Katpages (talk • contribs) 13:39, 8 July 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for calling this omission to our attention. I've added the quote with some secondary citations (including a misattribution to another person) because the current article on Aldo Leopold doesn't provide specific source information (i.e., page numbers or even just chapters) for its quotes. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 15:03, 8 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Source of quote "if not appalled, then not paying attention"

There are various variations on this quote, sometimes seen on bumper stickers:

"if you are not completely appalled then you haven't been paying attention."

Who said it originally, what was the original form? 74.67.42.162 16:10, 11 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Did Voltaire say 'there is nothing a man loves more than his liberty'. If so, where?

I have searched sites with his quotations to find the original French, but am unable to find any quote resembling it. Perhaps it wasn't Voltaire?

[edit] "C'est pire qu'un crime, c'est une faute."

Or, in English, "It was worse than a crime it was a mistake." Who really said this (about the death of the Duc d'Enghien)? (Or perhaps the question should be who said it first?) I have seen this most frequently credited to Talleyrand, but other credible candidates include: w:Joseph Fouché and Antoine Boulay. Relevant discussions are here and here. ObiterDicta 16:01, 13 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "It always begins with detentions", Where is this from?

I heard this quote , or close to it ,recently but cannot remember where .

I think it was from the point of view of a holocaust survivor , but in a modern setting .

I am almost sure it was in a film rather than T.V .

If anyone could help , it would be greatly appreciated.__Daebh 13:10, 22 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Coincidence? I think not!

What's the origin of the common phrase "Coincidence? I think not!" I seem to recall a comedy sketch using the line repeatedly, emphasizing each word ("I! Think! Not!"), but I don't know if that's where it came from first. 74.67.42.162 19:54, 23 July 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Who said "any bus will do"

I believe Lewis Mumford has a quote something like" If you do not know where you are going, any bus will do." I also have heard this as 'any map will do.' Any help?

It sounds a bit like the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland. That would be a Lewis Carroll creation!

Alice: Oh, no, no. I was just wondering if you could help me find my way. Cheshire Cat: Well that depends on where you want to get to. Alice: Oh, it really doesn't matter, as long as... Cheshire Cat: Then it really doesn't matter which way you go.

[edit] Socrates Vs. Solomon 44, 49, and Gross 2.

The following are three exerpts from the wikipedia article titled Socrates:

  1. Socrates stressed that "virtue was the most valuable of all possessions; the ideal life was spent in search of the Good. Truth lies beneath the shadows of existence, and that it is the job of the philosopher to show the rest how little they really know." (Solomon 44)
  1. It was not only Athenian democracy: Socrates objected to any form of government that did not conform to his ideal of a perfect republic led by philosophers (Solomon 49), and Athenian government was far from that.
  1. Socrates believed that the best way for people to live was to focus on self-development rather than the pursuit of material wealth. (Gross 2).
  1. My question is, "What exactly are Solomon 44, Solomon 49, and Gross 2? I searched the web for an exceedingly long period of time for Solomon 44 and 49 and could find no such titled documents and certainly nothing related to Socrates. Are the first two exerpts somehow in reference to the Solomon of the Bible, and if so, how? I know Solomon did author three of the books of the Bible, but none of them were titled Solomon, so I do not see how this could possibly be a biblical reference. I also checked all of the names of the writings by Plato, and none of them were titled Solomon 44, Solomon 49, or Gross 2. So where were these quotes taken from exactly??
                                                                 --anon.—This unsigned comment is by Kevin22590 (talk • contribs) .--
I added the author and wikified some words just for convenience. -Aphaia 06:39, 26 August 2007 (UTC)
    • Most likely there are books by Mr. Solomon and Mr. Gross on Plato that are inadequately referenced.--Cato 08:40, 26 August 2007 (UTC)
    • I suggest you try this book: Solomon, Robert C. Introducing Philosophy: A Text with Integrated Readings. 8th ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2005, pages 44 and 49. --Belliger 17:38, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] When hard to please people smile...

I used to carry a card with the quote, "When hard to please people smile, it's an idiots delight!" because it seemed particularly appropriate to my life. Now I'm wondering where I got the quote from. Your help will be appreciated!

Happy to be the idiot! Derick

Laugh with me, or at me, just laugh!

[edit] Source please

The 1955 movie "The Man Who Never Was" begins and ends with what seems like a quote:

Last night I dreamed a deadly dream: Beyond the Isle of Skye, I saw a dead man win a fight, And I think that man was I.

Thank you, Shir-El too 23:06, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

That's stanza 19, more or less, of "The Battle of Otterburn" (or "Otterbourne"), an old Scottish ballad about the eponymous 1388 England/Scotland border battle:
But I have dreamed a dreary dream,
Beyond the Isle of Skye;
I saw a dead man win a fight,
And I think that man was I.
The "speaker" is James Douglas, 2nd Earl of Douglas, who was killed in the battle. I'm not sure if there is a documented author for the work itself. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 01:04, 9 September 2007 (UTC)
Thank you. It is very appropriate: in the movie the Royal Navy 'borrows' the body of a dead Scot to pull off a coupè against German intelligence, saving an estimated 30,000 lives in the invasion of Sicily. It is based on a true story. Thank you again, Shir-El too 01:58, 9 September 2007 (UTC)


[edit] What poem includes: "if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my body take."

That is body, not soul.

I'm still hoping someone will recognize this.

I read this poem in a high school English text, while in school in southern California during the early 1960's. It was in Riverside, CA, in Ramona High School, in the '63-'64 school year. The poem told of a situation in the family life of a young person, where a grandmother lived with the nuclear family, but because she had lost her mental faculties, she was taken care of in an upstairs room. The young person was upset by this situation.

Though I may be paraphrasing them, the poem included the following phrases:

"When I was a child, we kept my grandmother's body in a room upstairs," "it ate and drank (or slept)," and "gazed out the window..."

I think the author of the poem was an American woman, but I might be wrong about this. I think the line, "Now I lay me down to sleep" was also present, just before the last line, "if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my body take."

Obviously, the poem I am looking for used the popular children's prayer, which someone has inserted below, as a point of departure, but the theme of the poem concerned the senile dementia of the grandmother. I would very much like to know the author and title of this poem, and be able to access a copy of it. 161.184.42.83 21:31, 19 September 2007 (UTC)revised 75.153.244.227 20:20, 11 October 2007 (UTC)75.153.244.227 18:35, 25 October 2007 (UTC) revised November 14, 2007 Janice Vian,161.184.42.91 17:45, 5 December 2007 (UTC)75.153.247.172 16:30, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Now I lay me down to sleep,
                    I pray the Lord my soul to keep ;
                    If I should die before I wake,
                    I pray the Lord my soul to take.

Isaiah Thomas, ed. (1818). The Only Sure Guide to the English Tongue, or, Perry's New Pronouncing Spelling Book. Revised, corrected, and conformed to his late synonymous, etymological and pronouncing English dictionary, published in England under his own immediate inspection. To which is added a collection of moral lessons and fables, for the instruction of youth.…, Thomas's Improved edition, J. H. A. Frost.
121a0012 01:48, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Reference for: "A friend is one who believes in you when you have ceased to believe in yourself"

Thanks --Neworison 20:33, 8 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Who or what started the headache line

Who coined the phrase: "Not tonight, I have a headache"?

I doubt you'll find a clear attribution because it's such a generalised statement but I've always supposed it's a homage to the phrase attributed to Napoleon: "Not tonight, Joséphine". This quote dates back to the early 20th century, being the title of a song of 1911. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 22:48, 10 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] turning of a computer

If we want to turn off the computer and using the XP version of windows,order the computer to turn off and it shows the message that shows it turrned off the computer,certainly in this time it should cancel the electric,but it could'nt do this(canceling the electric),the problem is from where?which system has a problem?

I'm sorry, this is a board for questions about quotations, not for computer help. You might want to try Wikipedia's reference desks. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 16:09, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Fact or Fiction - Interesting statements nonetheless

These statements are making the circuit and I am interested to know if there is anyone who can authenticate them.

  • When in England at a fairly large conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an example of 'empire building' by George Bush.

He answered by saying, "Over the years, the United States has sent many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those that did not return." It became very quiet in the room. --MEM56 04:47, 23 October 2007 (UTC)

    • These quotes are more the territory of the urban legend researcher. As it happens, snopes.com has looked into this one and gives it the thumbs up: Colin Powell. It happened on 26 January 2003 when the then Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, asked him about the USA relying on 'hard power' and not on building trust throughout the world. The Archbishop did not actually mention 'empire building'. The full transcript of the question and answer are here. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 08:43, 23 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Then there was a conference in France where a number of international engineers were taking part, including French and American. During a break one of the French engineers came back into the room saying "Have you heard the latest dumb stunt Bush has done? He has sent an aircraft carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What does he intend to do, bomb them?" A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly: "Our carriers have three hospitals on board that can treat several hundred people; they are nuclear powered and can supply emergency electrical power to shore facilities; they have three cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000 people three meals a day, they can produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day, and they carry half a dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims and injured to and from their flight deck.. We have eleven such ships; how many does France have?" Once again, dead silence. --MEM56 04:47, 23 October 2007 (UTC)
    • This one doesn't appear to be on snopes yet. The US Aircraft Carrier Abraham Lincoln was despatched to help tsunami survivors in January 2005, so it's plausible. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 08:43, 23 October 2007 (UTC)
  • A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the U.S. , English, Canadian, Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of Officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English.' He then asked, 'Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?' Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied 'Maybe it's because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German.

You could have heard a pin drop! --MEM56 04:47, 23 October 2007 (UTC) (UTC)

    • Again, not on snopes. Typically no information is given to help researchers trace the quote. I'm suspicious of this one because it seems to be a simple development of the line "if it wasn't for us, you'd all be speaking German" which is by now a cliché. Still, it could be true, or a slight distortion of a real event. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 08:43, 23 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] from WWII documentary

This fragment is the opening theme for each episode of the Time Incorporated 1951 documentary series (reissued Musicbank) Crusade in the Pacific:

.....is eternal vigilance/ so forward men of courage in the freedom fight/ let justice reign... [and freedom's song ?]/ fill every heart with joy.

My husband, who fought in that war, would very much like to know what the words are, what they are from and, if possible, hear a recording of the full song/hymn whatever. Thank you in advance, --Shir-El too 11:21, 24 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] missing lyric

in the song lyrics for go forth and die (album version) the sixth line is missing. in the song there is a line sung between "studied teachers words" and "earned a peice of paper". just thought someone should know of this discrepancy.

[edit] Albert Einstein

I read recently that Einstein, in replying to a set of scientists who had disputed his theory or position on an issue in physics, said something like 'One counter example is worth a thousand letters' - in short, that the proper way to deal with a hypothesis is to test it, not simply deny it. I have searched Wikiquotes, and the usual reference books without success. Can anyone provide a source?

[edit] First your money, then your clothes

What is the rest of this statement: "That's the way it goes, first your money, then your clothes."

I have a friend who's a working girl and she says it all the time. Seriously.

I have also seen the phrase used several times in reference to Las Vegas, which makes sense as in losing all one's money and one's shirt as well.

As a riff on loving and losing, "First Your Money, Then Your Clothes" is a country/rock song by Jude Cole. Here are a portion of the lyrics:

Oh no, love ain't cheap/There's a toll booth up on Lover's Leap/Sweet romance take a chance/Come and dance with me

I'm ridin' out on a southbound train/Just a Romeo in the pouring rain/But hey baby, that's the way it goes/First your money, then your clothes

Link to Jude Cole mp3

It is also the name of a biography by Raina Barrett titled, First Your Money Then Your Clothes: My Life and OH! CALCUTTA! (which has nothing to do with the scandalous musical of the same name; as Barrett writes, "I do not know the relationship between the famed nude show "Oh! Calcutta!!" and the real Calcutta; probably both reveal bare truths about mankind that we do not see otherwise.").

[edit] Who said 'Women: you can't live with them…

'Women: you can't live with them…and you can't live without them'--Fireflite 01:31, 16 December 2007 (UTC)

Well, I've said it a few times. Ah, but the first published instance? I found a version in a novel nearly a century old:
  • "… You can't live without a woman, and you can't live with one, if you argues," said the old man.
    • Ernest George Henham (1914). Wintering Hay, page 149 (of 510), Mitchell Kennerley (publisher).
A 1919 work attributes this to the French:
  • Of some of his colleagues one might repeat the French wit's dictum on women: one can't live with them and can't live without them.
    • E. T. Raymond (1919). Uncensored Celebrities, page 25 (of 244), Great Britain: H. Holt and Company.
I'll see if I can dig up an earlier version en français. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 02:53, 16 December 2007 (UTC)
Just after I wrote the above, it occurred to me that the French version I know:
Les femmes — on ne peut pas vivre avec elle, on ne peut pas vivre sans elle.
… isn't nearly as concise or witty as the English ("with/without"). This implies the French attribution is only a hypothesis, or that my rusty French isn't up to the task (not at all unlikely). I did find one modern work that included this phrase in a comparison with psychology:
  • On finit toujours par trouver la présence, parfois troublante, parfois tolérée, de la psychologie. On pourrait dire comme dans les tragédies d'amour: on ne peut pas vivre avec elle, on ne peut pas vivre sans elle.
    • English: One always ends up finding the presence, sometimes troubling, sometimes tolerated, of psychology. One could say as in the romantic tragedies: can't live with it, can't live without it.
    • Serge Moscovici; Fabrice Buschini, Nikos Kalampalikis (2001). Penser la vie, le social, la nature: mélanges en l'honneur de Serge Moscovici, page 290 (of 604), Editions MSH. ISBN 2735109062.
Since the author is a French psychologist, I imagine the work is not translated into French but in its original language, and that if there were a more idiomatic version, he would have used it. This makes me suspect that the French origin is a red herring, although the lack of any but a single modern French citation may be more indicative of the modest size of Google Book Search's French collection. That doesn't mean the original is necessarily English (although the "with/without" is a modest boost to this idea). It also may predate 1914, and I just couldn't find an earlier version with GBS. But it's a start. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 03:41, 16 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Gibbon quote

I have a German version and a not-wordly version in the EB of an Edward Gibbon quote [13]. I can't find the original quote - thanks for all help! --Histo 21:05, 27 December 2007 (UTC)

For the record here, the quote as cited on de:WQ (with a little en:WQ formatting) is:
  • Man traue keinem erhabenen Motiv für eine Handlung, wenn sich auch ein niedriges finden lässt.
    • Edward Gibbon, englischer Historiker (1737-1794) gefunden in: Naturwissenschaftliche Rundschau, Nr. 711, September 2007, Seite 465
This translates (I hope) roughly to:
  • One cannot trust an honorable motive for an action if a base one can be found.
    • Edward Gibbon, English historian, found in: [Natural Science Roundtable], no. 711, September 2007, page? 465
      • NOTE: I found a Naturwissenschaftliche Rundschau in the Library of Congress, but it is numbered differently. Its September 2007 issue is "Jahrg. 60, Nr. 9" (which I believe is "Volume 60, No. 9" in our nomenclature).
Substitute high, lofty, grand, elevated, sublime, upright, exalted, or other synonyms for honorable alone (not to mention selfish, vain, etc. for base), and it's clear why this is hard to Google. The 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica citation alluded to is from the article on "Prostitution":
  • Gibbon, who never gave credit for a good motive when a base one could be found, attributes Justinian's action solely to his desire to marry Theodora, whose life had been notorious; and no doubt she influenced him in the matter, but it is permissible to assume a good motive.
(Classic Encyclopedia's copy of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica offers nothing illuminating in its entry on "Edward Gibbon".) Frankly, this sounds like it was never actually a Gibbon quote, but rather a misattribution to Gibbon of EB 1911's description of him. But we can certainly try to dig up earlier instances of the possible English translations. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 05:47, 16 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Who said this, "I make the humdrum the sum of life as I begun. Each day, a ray of light, to later reflect, I reconnect with the universe."

I need help fast!!!

[edit] Witness in a police procedural

This one has been bothering me for some time. The work is a television police procedural set in the UK (perhaps Morse?), and a potential witness is being interviewed. He describes himself thus:

Never been rich, never been poor, never voted Tory, never been a football hooligan. There you have it, sir, the story of my life.

It's not known to Google or Google Books. Anyone have a lead? 121a0012 12:58, 13 January 2008 (UTC)

That's a tough one. I couldn't find any likely hits even with partial groupings and variations. Nor could I find a Google-indexed transcription or screenplay (usually the best way to find TV dialog) with even a hint of this quote. (Google's becoming less and less useful for searches for quotes like these, apparently because of the tens of millions of bloggers who write copiously about their favorite subject — themselves. I wish someone would create a engine that allowed searches to ignore all blogs and discussion forums; the remaining information would be so much more valuable.) ~ Jeff Q (talk) 05:03, 16 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Source of the quote: "When in Rome..."

We've all (I assume) heard of the quote, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." or something to that effect (I'm not quite sure if this is the exact wording of the quote). My question is does anyone know definitively the source of this quote?

Much appreciated...I'm not very good at search engine syntax, so please bear with me; I anticipate that a lot of responses might be prefaced with comments that I should have used a search engine instead.

Many thanks,


--Bregi 11:46, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

This quote has been traced to Saint Ambrose. In Jeremy Taylor's Ductor Dubitantium, or the Rule of Conscience (1660), Ambrose is quoted as having advised Saint Augustine of Hippo in the following words:

Si fueris Romae, Romano vivito more;
Si fueris alibi, vivito sicut ibi.
("When you are at Rome, live in the Roman style; when you are elsewhere, live as they live elsewhere.")

Augustine himself twice quoted Ambrose as having said "When I am at Rome, I fast on a Saturday; when I am at Milan, I do not. Follow the custom of the church where you are." (Epistles to Januarius, epistle 2, section 18 and Epistles to Casualanus, epistle 36, section 32). The quotes are from Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 15th edition. - InvisibleSun 12:16, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] These rocks are prehistoric

I am looking for a movie from the fifties or sixties where a geologist upon landing on a distant planet says "these rocks are prehistoric". In the next scene, the identification of the rocks as prehistoric is confirmed when a dinosaur appears.

[edit] Lewis Carroll

Please, help I am trying to find which of Lewis Carrolls works contant the phrase "In Winter when the fields are white, I sing this song for your delight". Thanks tracimarlowe@nyc.rr.com

In winter, when the fields are white,
I sing this song for your delight.

—This is said by Humpty Dumpty in chapter VI of Through the Looking Glass. - InvisibleSun 23:41, 13 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] 13th century man and phrase

Who was the 13th century music man behind a phrase that means a deal is a deal and nonpayment could result in severe penalties? I need tha man's name and the phrase please. Thank you.--75.121.202.179 The quote you want is probably something like "He who pays the piper, calls the tune," or "Who calls the tune must pay the piper." Hope this helps, 75.153.247.172 16:38, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Temple of Stone and Ice

I heard a song a long time ago, and I have been searching for it ever since. All I seem to be able to remember is one of the lines, most likely in the chorus being something about "...temple of stone and ice". I think more accurately the line was "in the temple of stone and ice". But that's all I have. Does anyone know what that may be from? Any help on figuring out what that is actually from or finding the song would be most appreciated.

Signed, Aaron Ni. ( orinanime@msn.com ) —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 65.188.48.70 (talk • contribs) 02:58, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

I couldn't readily find anything with these words, but I found the following possibilities:
  • Scent of Sound (an electronica band), "Temple of Ice", Polar Lights (2002)
  • Jedi Mind Tricks, "Temples of Ice", Servants in Heaven, Kings in Hell (2006)
  • Venom, "Temples of Ice", Temples of Ice (1991)
  • The Victors, "Temple of Stone", Days to Come (unknown year) [14]
There is a song called "In the House of Stone and Light", written and sung by Martin Page, that was very popular back in 1994-5. Knowing the tendency for time to muddle recollection, it occurred to me that this might be what you're thinking of. You might check All Music Guide's sample (click any of the tiny speaker icons next to the credits on