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Power

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“[Charles I] had too high a notion of the regal power and thought that every opposition to it was rebellion.”
George III (1738–1820) said by 1820 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Essay on Charles I of England (late 1750s), quoted in John Brooke, King George III (1972; 1974), p. 110
“I was the last to consent to the separation; but the separation having been made and having become inevitable, I have always said, as I say now, that I would be the first to meet the friendship of the United States as an independent power.”
George III (1738–1820) said by 1820 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: To John Adams, as quoted in Adams, C.F. (editor) (1850–56), The works of John Adams, second president of the United States, vol. VIII, pp. 255–257, quoted in Ayling, p. 323 and Hibbert, p. 165
“I do not think the United States would come to an end if we lost our power to declare an Act of Congress void. I do think the Union would be imperiled if we could not make that declaration as to the laws of the several States.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841–1935) said by 1935 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A river is more than an amenity, it is a treasure. It offers a necessity of life that must be rationed among those who have power over it.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841–1935) first seen 1931 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Writing for the Court, New Jersey v. New York, et al., 283 U.S. 336, 342 (1931).
“Gentlemen, to the lady without whom I should never have survived for eighty, nor sixty, nor yet thirty years. Her smile has been my lyric, her understanding, the rhythm of the stanza. She has been the spring wherefrom I have drawn the power to write the words. She is the poem of my life.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841–1935) first seen 1929 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Attribution reported in Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations (1989), which states that this is not verified in works about him nor in Magnificent Yankee, the film about him. Holmes expressed a similar sentime…
“When you're as hollow as Enoch Kane, the emptiness aches. He's desperate to fill it, but he doesn't have the patience or the commitment to fill it with anything worthwhile… So a man like Kane obsesses on one thing after another — sex, money, food, power, drugs, alcohol — anything that seems to give meaning to his days, but that requires no real self-discovery or self-sacrifice.”
Dean Koontz (born 1945) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Nixon was always being attacked sexually. It was always said that he was a fag and that he had no sexual relations with his wife for 15 years and that was why he liked power. And Hitler had only one ball, and that was why he wanted to conquer the world.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger (born 1947) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We simply must do everything we can in our power to slow down global warming before it is too late... The science is clear. The global warming debate is over.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger (born 1947) first seen 2006 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Bill signing ceremony for California's strict anti-emissions law (26 September, 2006) .
“He is profoundly wrong. Our country is run by the people of the Russian Federation through legitimately elected bodies of power and administration: through representative bodies (the parliament) and executive bodies (the president and the government of the Russian Federation)”
Vladimir Putin (born 1952) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: When Larry King asked that Robert Gates is wrong or right about Russia that democracy has disappeared and the government being run by the security services. (February 2010)
“We want those who seized and continue to hold power in Kiev to immediately stop hostilities. Otherwise, the responsibility for the possible continuation of the bloodshed will lie entirely on the conscience of Ukraine’s ruling regime.”
Vladimir Putin (born 1952) first seen 2022 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Address by the President of the Russian Federation en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/67828 (21 February 2022)
“We can see that the forces that staged the coup in Ukraine in 2014 have seized power, are keeping it with the help of ornamental election procedures and have abandoned the path of a peaceful conflict settlement. For eight years, for eight endless years we have been doing everything possible to settle the situation by peaceful political means.”
Vladimir Putin (born 1952) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“What kind of negotiations can we talk about with people who indiscriminately strike civilians, civilian infrastructure and try to endanger nuclear power facilities?”
Vladimir Putin (born 1952) first seen 2024 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Putin: It makes no sense to talk to those who strike civilians", Pravdareport (August 12, 2024)
“I fear, in fact I am rather certain, that due to my inability to express myself with the power and penetration of the great Churchill, I have not made clear the points that assume such prominence and importance in my mind. However, I have done my best, and I hope I have sown some seeds which may bring forth good fruit.”
George C. Marshall (1880–1959) said by 1959 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The chief function of the city is to convert power into form, energy into culture, dead matter into the living symbols of art, biological reproduction into social creativity.”
Lewis Mumford (1895–1990) said by 1990 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This essential coalition between royal military power and often dubious supernatural authority anticipated a similar alliance between the scientists and mathematical games theorists with the higher agents of government today, and was subject to similar corruptions, miscalculations, and hallucinations.”
Lewis Mumford (1895–1990) said by 1990 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Apprise your veiled and drooping hearts that the universe, from the highest heavens [ala al-illiyyin] to the lowest in hell [asfal as-safilin], is a manifestation of God, the Blessed and Exalted, and all are in the threshold of His Power.”
Ruhollah Khomeini (1900–1989) said by 1989 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The people will not rest until the Pahlavi rule has been swept away and all traces of tyranny have disappeared. As long as the Shah's satanic power prevails, not a single true representative of the people can possibly be elected.”
Ruhollah Khomeini (1900–1989) first seen 1978 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Response to Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's announcement of elections (August 1978); quoted in "The Shah's Divided Land" (18 September 1978) Time
“They like a bomb-proof Cadillac Air-conditioned, gold taps Back-seat gun rack, Platinum hub caps They pick horses for courses They're the market forces They like order, make-up, limelight, power Game shows, rodeos, Star Wars, TV They're The Powers That Be If you see them come, you better run”
Roger Waters (born 1943) first seen 1987 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Powers That Be" on Radio KAOS (Roger Waters, 1987)
“Bourgeois civilization has built railroads and electric power plants, has invented explosives and airplanes, in order to create wealth. Imperialism has placed the tools of peace in the service of destruction. With modern means it would be easy to wipe out humanity at one blow.”
Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Anyone who feels the urge to undertake such a task must dedicate himself for his labors as he would prepare for a pilgrimage to distant lands. He must spare no time or effort, fear no earthly power or rank, and rise above his own vanity or false modesty in order to tell, in accordance with the expression of the Code Napoléon, the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.”
Carl von Clausewitz (1780–1831) said by 1831 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Behind the honeyed but patently absurd pleas for equality is a ruthless drive for placing themselves (the elites) at the top of a new hierarchy of power.”
Murray Rothbard (1926–1995) first seen 1995 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Egalitarianism and the Elites (1995).
“If some great Power would agree to make me always think what is true and do what is right, on condition of being turned into a sort of clock and wound up every morning before I got out of bed, I should instantly close with the offer. The only freedom I care about is the freedom to do right; the freedom to do wrong I am ready to part with on the cheapest terms to any one who will take it of me.”
Thomas Henry Huxley (1825–1895) first seen 1870 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On Descartes' Discourse touching the method of using one's reason rightly and of seeking scientific truth" (1870)
“Freedom is more often lost by false assumptions than by the power of one's enemies.”
Harry Browne (1933–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I call this The Dictator Syndrome. You see suffering or danger, and in your imagination you see a government program eliminating it. But in the real world the program would operate as you expect only if you were an absolute dictator — having at your disposal all the government's power to compel everyone to do things your way.”
Harry Browne (1933–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We have to understand that politicians don't want to reduce government. And it isn't because they think the spending cuts would hurt too many people. It's because they know it would hurt them. No matter what they say, neither Democrats nor Republicans want to give up the power that allows them to bestow favors and exemptions on friends.”
Harry Browne (1933–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There's this brutal imperial power, that my passport says I represent. But it will never represent where my heart lives, only vaguely where it went.”
Ani DiFranco (born 1970) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A nuclear-power plant is infinitely safer than eating, because 300 people choke to death on food every year.”
Dixy Lee Ray (1914–1994) first seen 1975 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: October 1975, quoted in a Seattle Times obituary published January 3, 1994.
“The more one presupposes that his own power will suffice him to realize what he desires the more practical is that desire. When I treat a man contemptuously, I can inspire him with no practical desire to appreciate my grounds of truth. When I treat any one as worthless, I can inspire him with no desire to do right.”
Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) said by 1804 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Constitution was framed fundamentally as a bulwark against governmental power, and preventing the arbitrary administration of punishment is a basic ideal of any society that purports to be governed by the rule of law.”
William J. Brennan Jr. (1906–1997) first seen 1987 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Dissenting, McCleskey v. Kemp, 481 U.S. 279 (1987).
“If our free society is to endure, and I know it will, those who govern must recognize that the Framers of the Constitution limited their power in order to preserve human dignity and the air of freedom which is our proudest heritage.”
William J. Brennan Jr. (1906–1997) first seen 1997 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Writing in Reason and Passion: Justice Brennan's Enduring Influence (1997).
“Perhaps His experiment went spectacularly wrong, sir. Perhaps He's just baffled. Seeing the mess, not knowing how to put it right. Perhaps not wanting to put it right. Perhaps He only had enough power left for one final intervention. So He made it. Whoever He is, whatever He is, I hope he burns in His own Hell.”
P. D. James (1920–2014) said by 2014 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“She couldn't remember when her interest in him, in his mysteriousness, his silences, his power, had grown into fascination, but she knew the precise moment when fascination had sharpened into desire.”
P. D. James (1920–2014) said by 2014 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Nothing we can do outrages Nature directly. Our acts of destruction give her new vigour and feed her energy, but none of our wreckings can weaken her power.”
Marquis de Sade (1740–1814) said by 1814 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“All religions concur in exalting the deep-seated wisdom and power of a divinity, but once its conduct is exposed, we find nothing but imprudence, weakness, and folly. God, we are told, created the world for himself, but so far he has failed to have the world honored appropriately. God created us to worship him, and we spend our days mocking him! What a wretched God he is!”
Marquis de Sade (1740–1814) said by 1814 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Charm"—which means the power to effect work without employing brute force—is indispensable to women. Charm is a woman's strength just as strength is a man's charm.”
Havelock Ellis (1859–1939) said by 1939 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Hitler was a master of manipulation, using propaganda, violence, intimidation, showmanship, and spectacle — and above all, fear. By demonizing "the other" – Jews, social democrats and communists – Hitler won the hearts and minds of the masses, consolidating his power, and turning Germany into a one-party Nazi state.”
Bill Moyers (1934–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My problem was that I felt ashamed of feeling sad or angry. Now, I don't hide my vulnerability in my lyrics. There's no way I was going to get raped and not get something out of it. I learned about power and hope and forgiveness. I like who I am now and I wouldn't be who I am if that hadn't happened.”
Fiona Apple (born 1977) first seen 1996 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: ELLE, "Fiona Apple is NOT the next Alanis, thank you" October [1996]
“Sometimes I feel like a beetle crawling through a fusion power plant. I can feel a certain amount, see a certain amount, but I sure as hell don’t understand everything.”
Greg Bear (1951–2022) said by 2022 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Populists believed the people should dictate their needs to any individual who rose above the herd, and bring them low again—except of course for the leaders of whatever populist government took power, who, as political messiahs, would earn specific privileges themselves.”
Greg Bear (1951–2022) said by 2022 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Power is the near neighbour of necessity.”
Pythagoras (583–491 BC) said by 491 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Aurea Carmina (8) by Hierocles of Alexandria, as translated in Dictionary of Quotations (1906) by Thomas Benfield Harbottle, p. 356
“Most men and women, by birth or nature, lack the means to advance in wealth and power, but all have the ability to advance in knowledge.”
Pythagoras (583–491 BC) said by 491 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in The Golden Ratio (2002) by Mario Livio
“You cannot possibly have a broader basis for any government than that which includes all the people, with all their rights in their hands, and with an equal power to maintain their rights.”
William Lloyd Garrison (1805–1879) said by 1879 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“They carried all they could bear, and then some, including a silent awe for the power of the things they carried.”
Tim O'Brien (author) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Way of the Warrior has been misunderstood. It is not a means to kill and destroy others. Those who seek to compete and better one another are making a terrible mistake. To smash, injure, or destroy is the worst thing a human being can do. The real Way of a Warrior is to prevent such slaughter — it is the Art of Peace, the power of love.”
Morihei Ueshiba (1883–1969) first seen 1942 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speaking of a vision of the "Great Spirit of Peace" in 1942, during World War II, as quoted in Adjusting Though Reflex : Romancing Zen (2010) by Rodger Hyodo, p. 76
“One does not need buildings, money, power, or status to practice the Art of Peace. Heaven is right where you are standing, and that is the place to train.”
Morihei Ueshiba (1883–1969) said by 1969 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Man is free; yet we must not suppose that he is at liberty to do everything he pleases, for he becomes a slave the moment he allows his actions to be ruled by passion. The man who has sufficient power over himself to wait until his nature has recovered its even balance is the truly wise man, but such beings are seldom met with.”
Giacomo Casanova (1725–1798) said by 1798 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If someone needs the "unusual" to be moved to astonishment, that person has lost the ability to respond rightly to the wondrous, the mirandum, of being. The hunger for the sensational, posing, as it may, in "bohemian garb," is an unmistakable sign of the loss of the true power of wonder, for a bourgeois-ized humanity.”
Josef Pieper (1904–1997) said by 1997 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The truth is the good of our knowing mind, upon which the mind fixes itself by nature; it is not granted to the mind to choose or not choose that good (truth!) on the basis, again, of knowledge. The finite mind does not comprehend itself so profoundly, and does not have such power over itself, that it follows its own light.”
Josef Pieper (1904–1997) said by 1997 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Happy will be the men who, having the power and the love and the benevolent forecast to [create a park], will do it. They will not be forgotten. The trees and their lovers will sing their praises, and generations yet unborn will rise up and call them blessed.”
John Muir (1838–1914) first seen 1888 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Basin of the Columbia River" in Picturesque California (1888-1890); reprinted in Steep Trails (1918), chapter 22
“The more information a guy has, the more likely he is to say, "Hey, King Charlie, you really blew that call." That's why democracy happened. The control of information is something the elite always does, particularly in a despotic form of government. Information, knowledge, is power. If you can control information, you can control people.”
Tom Clancy (1947–2013) said by 2013 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source