Talk:Time Enough for Love

Unlike every other Wikiquote page I know, this one has the quotes in alphabetical order, rather than in the order that they appear in the book. Should this be changed? Markjoseph125 (talk) 04:33, 30 January 2015 (UTC)Reply

Answering my own question, and thinking that it probably not "fair usage" to put an entire section of a book on its Wikiquote page (the original page had the entire contents of the first section of Long's notebooks, most of the second section, and very little else), I've done as follows: Left a more representative sampling of quotes on the page, and moved all the other ones here, with as many page numbers as I was able to identify. I hope this is satisfactory. Markjoseph125 (talk) 01:07, 15 February 2015 (UTC)Reply

Removed quotes

If the human animal has any value at all, he is too valuable to be property. If he has an inner dignity, he is much too proud to own other men. I don’t give a damn how scrubbed and perfumed he may be, a slave owner is subhuman.

It’s not enough to be able to lie with a straight face; anybody with enough gall to raise on a busted flush can do that. The first way to lie artistically is to tell the truth — but not all of it. The second way involves telling the truth, too, but is harder: Tell the exact truth and maybe all of it…but tell it so unconvincingly that your listener is sure you are lying. p. 22

$100 placed at 7 percent interest compounded quarterly for 200 years will increase to more than $100,000,000 — by which time it will be worth nothing. p. 249

A “critic” is a man who creates nothing and thereby feels qualified to judge the work of creative men. There is logic in this; he is unbiased — he hates all creative people equally. p. 347

A “pacifist male” is a contradiction in terms. Most self-described “pacifists” are not pacific; they simply assume false colors. When the wind changes, they hoist the Jolly Roger. p. 241

A brute kills for pleasure. A fool kills from hate. p. 243

A fake fortuneteller can be tolerated. But an authentic soothsayer should be shot on sight. Cassandra did not get half the kicking around she deserved. p. 241

A motion to adjourn is always in order. p. 242

A poet who reads his verse in public may have other nasty habits. p. 241

A touchstone to determine the actual worth of an “intellectual” — find out how he feels about astrology. p. 249

A society that gets rid of all its troublemakers goes downhill. p. 8

Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done, and why. Then do it. p. 240

Always store beer in a dark place. p. 240

An elephant. A mouse built to government specifications. p. 244

Another ingredient in a happy marriage: Budget the luxuries first! p. 347

Any government will work if authority and responsibility are equal and coordinate. This does not insure “good” government; it simply insures that it will work. But such governments are rare — most people want to run things but want no part of the blame. This used to be called the “backseat-driver syndrome.” p. 246

Avoid making irrevocable decisions while tired or hungry. N.B.: Circumstances can force your hand. So think ahead! p. 244

Being intelligent is not a felony. But most societies evaluate it as at least a misdemeanor.

By the data to date, there is only one animal in the Galaxy dangerous to man — man himself. So he must supply his own indispensable competition. He has no enemy to help him. p. 240

Certainly the game is rigged. Don’t let that stop you; if you don’t bet, you can’t win. p. 240

Cheops’ Law: Nothing ever gets built on schedule or within budget. p. 242

Courage is the complement of fear. A man who is fearless cannot be courageous. (He is also a fool.) p. 247

Darling, a true lady takes off her dignity with her clothes and does her whorish best. At other times you can be as modest and dignified as your persona requires. p. 249

Dear, don’t bore him with trivia or burden him with your past mistakes. The happiest way to deal with a man is never to tell him anything he does not need to know. p. 249

Delusions are often functional. A mother’s opinions about her children’s beauty, intelligence, goodness, et cetera ad nauseam, keep her from drowning them at birth. p. 241

Do not handicap your children by making their lives easy. p. 251

Do not confuse “duty” with what other people expect of you; they are utterly different. Duty is a debt you owe to yourself to fulfill obligations you have assumed voluntarily. Paying that debt can entail anything from years of patient work to instant willingness to die. Difficult it may be, but the reward is self-respect.
But there is no reward at all for doing what other people expect of you, and to do so is not merely difficult, but impossible. It is easier to deal with a footpad than it is with the leech who wants “just a few minutes of your time, please — this won’t take long.” Time is your total capital, and the minutes of your life are painfully few. If you allow yourself to fall into the vice of agreeing to such requests, they quickly snowball to the point where these parasites will use up 100 percent of your time — and squawk for more!
So learn to say No — and to be rude about it when necessary.
Otherwise you will not have time to carry out your duty, or to do your own work, and certainly no time for love and happiness. The termites will nibble away your life and leave none of it for you.
(This rule does not mean that you must not do a favor for a friend, or even a stranger. But let the choice be yours. Don’t do it because it is “expected” of you.). p. 353

Don’t ever become a pessimist, Ira; a pessimist is correct oftener than an optimist, but an optimist has more fun, and neither can stop the march of events.

Early rising may not be a vice ... but it is certainly no virtue. The old saw about the early bird just goes to show that the worm should have stayed in bed.

Everybody lies about sex. p. 249

Everything in excess! To enjoy the flavor of life, take big bites. Moderation is for monks. p. 243

Expertise in one field does not carry over into other fields. But experts often think so. The narrower their field of knowledge the more likely they are to think so. p. 349

Get a shot off fast. This upsets him long enough to let you make your second shot perfect. p. 240

I don’t trust a man who talks about ethics when he is picking my pocket. But if he is acting in his own self-interest and says so, I have usually been able to work out some way to do business with him.

It has long been known that one horse can run faster than another — but which one? Differences are crucial. p. 240

If men were the automatons that behaviorists claim they are, the behaviorist psychologists could not have invented the amazing nonsense called “behaviorist psychology.” p. 249

If tempted by something that feels “altruistic,” examine your motives and root out that self-deception. Then, if you still want to do it, wallow in it! p. 248

If the universe has any purpose more important than topping a woman you love and making a baby with her hearty help, I’ve never heard of it. p. 249

If you don’t like yourself, you can’t like other people. p. 242

If you happen to be one of the fretful minority who can do creative work, never force an idea; you’ll abort it if you do. Be patient and you’ll give birth to it when the time is ripe. Learn to wait. p. 251

In a mature society, “civil servant” is semantically equal to “civil master.” p. 244

It is a truism that almost any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so, and will follow it by suppressing opposition, subverting all education to seize early the minds of the young, and by killing, locking up, or driving underground all heretics.

It is better to copulate than never. p. 242

It’s amazing how much “mature wisdom” resembles being too tired. p. 242

Little girls, like butterflies, need no excuse. p. 244

Masturbation is cheap, clean, convenient, and free of any possibility of wrongdoing — and you don’t have to go home in the cold. But it’s lonely. p. 248

Men are more sentimental than women. It blurs their thinking. p. 240

Money is a powerful aphrodisiac. But flowers work almost as well. p. 243

Money is the sincerest of all flattery. Women love to be flattered. So do men. p. 250

Most people can’t think, most of the remainder won’t think, the small fraction who do think mostly can’t do it very well. The extremely tiny fraction who think regularly, accurately, creatively, and without self-delusion — in the long run these are the only people who count.

Most “scientists” are bottle washers and button sorters. p. 241

Moving parts in rubbing contact require lubrication to avoid excessive wear. Honorifics and formal politeness provide lubrication where people rub together. Often the very young, the untraveled, the naïve, the unsophisticated deplore these formalities as “empty,” “meaningless,” or “dishonest,” and scorn to use them. No matter how “pure” their motives, they thereby throw sand into machinery that does not work too well at best. pp. 247-248

Never appeal to a man’s “better nature.” He may not have one. Invoking his self-interest gives you more leverage. p. 244

Never crowd youngsters about their private affairs — sex especially. When they are growing up, they are nerve ends all over, and resent (quite properly) any invasion of their privacy. Oh, sure, they’ll make mistakes — but that’s their business, not yours. (You made your own mistakes, did you not?) p. 251

Never underestimate the power of human stupidity. p. 24, 251

“No man is an island — “ Much as we may feel and act as Individuals, our race is — a single organism, always growing and branching — which must be pruned regularly to be healthy.
This necessity need not be argued; anyone with eyes can see that any organism which grows without limit always dies in its own poisons. The only rational question is whether pruning is best done before or after birth.
Being an incurable sentimentalist I favor the former of these methods — killing makes me queasy, even when it’s a case of “He’s dead and I’m alive and that’s the way I wanted it to be.”
But this may be a matter of taste. Some shamans think that it is better to be killed in a war, or to die in childbirth, or to starve in misery, than never to have lived at all. They may be right.
But I don’t have to like it — and I don’t. pp. 245-246

No state has an inherent right to survive through conscript troops and, in the long run, no state ever has. Roman matrons used to say to their sons: “Come back with your shield, or on it.” Later on, this custom declined. So did Rome. p. 242

Nursing does not diminish the beauty of a woman’s breasts; it enhances their charm by making them look lived in and happy. p. 241

Of all the strange “crimes” that human beings have legislated out of nothing, “blasphemy” is the most amazing — with “obscenity” and “indecent exposure” fighting it out for second and third place. p. 242

Peace is an extension of war by political means. Plenty of elbow room is pleasanter — and much safer. p. 250

People who go broke in a big way never miss any meals. It is the poor jerk who is shy a half slug who must tighten his belt. p. 247

Place your clothes and weapons where you can find them in the dark. p. 244

Political tags — such as royalist, communist, democrat, populist, fascist, liberal, conservative, and so forth — are never basic criteria. The human race divides politically into those who want people to be controlled and those who have no such desire. The former are idealists acting from highest motives for the greatest good of the greatest number. The latter are surly curmudgeons, suspicious and lacking in altruism. But they are more comfortable neighbors than the other sort. pp. 351-352

Rub her feet. p. 251

Sex should be friendly. Otherwise stick to mechanical toys; it’s more sanitary. p. 243

Being generous is inborn; being altruistic is a learned perversity. No resemblance. p. 352

Small change can often be found under seat cushions. p. 241

Stupidity cannot be cured with money, or through education, or by legislation. Stupidity is not a sin, the victim can’t help being stupid. But stupidity is the only universal capital crime; the sentence is death, there is no appeal, and execution is carried out automatically and without pity. pp. 246-247

The first time I was a drill instructor I was too inexperienced for the job — the things I taught those lads must have got some of them killed. War is too serious a matter to be taught by the inexperienced. p. 250

The more you love, the more you can love — and the more intensely you love. Nor is there any limit on how many you can love. If a person had time enough, he could love all of that majority who are decent and just. p. 248

The phrase “we (I) (you) simply must —” designates some thing that need not be done. “That goes without saying” is a red warning. “Of course” means you had best check it yourself. These small-change clichés and others like them, when read correctly, are reliable channel markers. p. 251

The profession of shaman has many advantages. It offers high status with a safe livelihood free of work in the dreary, sweaty sense. In most societies it offers legal privileges and immunities not granted to other men. But it is hard to see how a man who has been given a mandate from on High to spread tidings of joy to all mankind can be seriously interested in taking up a collection to pay his salary; it causes one to suspect that the shaman is on the moral level of any other con man.
But it’s lovely work if you can stomach it. p. 349

The second best thing about space travel is that the distances involved make war very difficult, usually impractical, and almost always unnecessary. This is probably a loss for most people, since war is our race’s most popular diversion, one which gives purpose and color to dull and stupid lives. But it is a great boon to the intelligent man who fights only when he must — never for sport. p. 245

The two highest achievements of the human mind are the twin concepts of “loyalty” and “duty.” Whenever these twin concepts fall into disrepute — get out of there fast! You may possibly save yourself, but it is too late to save that society. It is doomed. p. 247

There are hidden contradictions in the minds of people who “love Nature” while deploring the “artificialities” with which “Man has spoiled ‘Nature.’” The obvious contradiction lies in their choice of words, which imply that Man and his artifacts are not part of “Nature” — but beavers and their dams are. But the contradictions go deeper than this prima-facie absurdity. In declaring his love for a beaver dam (erected by beavers for beavers’ purposes) and his hatred for dams erected by men (for the purposes of men) the Naturist reveals his hatred for his own race — i.e., his own self-hatred.
In the case of “Naturists” such self-hatred is understandable; they are such a sorry lot. But hatred is too strong an emotion to feel toward them; pity and contempt are the most they rate.
As for me, willy-nilly I am a man, not a beaver, and H. sapiens is the only race I have or can have. Fortunately for me, I like being part of a race made up of men and women — it strikes me as a fine arrangement — and perfectly “natural” Believe it or not, there were “Naturists” who opposed the first flight to old Earth’s Moon as being “unnatural” and a “despoiling of Nature.” p. 245

There is no conclusive evidence of life after death. But there is no evidence of any sort against it. Soon enough you will know. So why fret about it? p. 240

There is no such thing as “social gambling.” Either you are there to cut the other bloke’s heart out and eat it — or you’re a sucker. If you don’t like this choice — don’t gamble. p. 250

There is only one way to console a widow. But remember the risk. p. 243

Throughout history, poverty is the normal condition of man. Advances which permit this norm to be exceeded — here and there, now and then — are the work of an extremely small minority, frequently despised, often condemned, and almost always opposed by all right-thinking people. Whenever this tiny minority is kept from creating, or (as sometimes happens) is driven out of a society, the people then slip back into abject poverty.
This is known as “bad luck.” p. 244

To be matter of fact about the world is to blunder into fantasy — and dull fantasy at that, as the real world is strange and wonderful. p. 348

Touch is the most fundamental sense. A baby experiences it, all over, before he is born and long before he learns to use sight, hearing, or taste, and no human ever ceases to need it. Keep your children short on pocket money — but long on hugs. p. 348

What a wonderful world it is that has girls in it! p. 241

When a place gets crowded enough to require ID’s, social collapse is not far away. It is time to go elsewhere. The best thing about space travel is that it made it possible to go elsewhere. p. 244

When the need arises — and it does — you must be able to shoot your own dog. Don’t farm it out — that doesn’t make it nicer, it makes it worse. p. 243

Whenever women have insisted on absolute equality with men, they have invariably wound up with the dirty end of the stick. What they are and what they can do makes them superior to men, and their proper tactic is to demand special privileges, all the traffic will bear. They should never settle merely for equality. For women, “equality” is a disaster. p. 250

Work is not an end in itself; there must always be time enough for love.

Writing poetry is not necessarily something to be ashamed of — but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards. p. 249

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don’t ever count on having both at once. p. 244

You live and learn. Or you don’t live long. p. 250

Your enemy is never a villain in his own eyes. Keep this in mind; it may offer a way to make him your friend. If not, you can kill him without hate — and quickly. p. 242

Pessimist by policy, optimist by temperament — it is possible to be both. How? By never taking an unnecessary chance and by minimizing risks you can’t avoid. This permits you to play out the game happily, untroubled by the certainty of the outcome. p. 352

Being privileged to work hard for long hours at something you think is worth doing is the best kind of play.