Return
Home
The
Credits
The
Cast
Act
1
Act
2
Act
3
The
End
The
Reviews
Photos
Click picture to ZOOM
     
 
AMERICA PAGE 2 (N-Z)

.
.
.

We find it almost as difficult as the communists to believe that
anyone could think ill of us, since we are as persuaded as the
communists that our society is so essentially virtuous that only
malice could prompt criticism of any of our actions.
--Reinhold Niebuhr (1892—1971)
American theologian.
_The Irony of American History_ [1962]

America wasn't founded so that we could all
be better. America was founded so that we
could all be anything we damn well pleased.
--P.J. O'Rourke (1947— )
American political satirist.

-

In one generation we have moved from denying a black
man service at a lunch counter to elevating one to
the highest military office in the nation, and to
being a serious contender for the presidency. This
is a magnificent country and I am proud to be one of
its sons.
--Colin L. Powell (1937— )
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff [1989-1993]
and Secretary of State [2001-2005].
(At a news conference in Alexandria, VA, where he
announced his decision not to seek the presidential
nomination [8 November 1995].)


One of the fondest expressions around is that
we can't be the world's policeman. But guess
who gets called when suddenly someone needs
a cop?
--Colin L. Powell (1937— )
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff [1989-1993]
and Secretary of State [2001-2005].

-

We ought to change the sign on the Statue of Liberty
to read, 'This time around send us your rich.'
--Felix Rohatyn (1928— )
Austrian-born American businessman.
Felix Rohatyn was a governor of the New York Stock Exchange, Chairman of the
New York Municipal Authority, and US Ambassador to France.

We must be the great arsenal of democracy.
--Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882—1945)
American Democratic statesman and President [1933—1945].
"Fireside Chat" radio broadcast [29 December 1940].

-

If a nation shows that it knows how to act with
decency in industrial and political matters, if
it keeps order and pays its obligations, then it
need fear no interference from the United States.
Brutal wrongdoing, or an impotence which results
in a general loosening of the ties of a civilized
society, may finally require intervention by some
civilized nation, and in the Western Hemisphere
the United States cannot ignore this duty; but it
remains true that our interests, and those of our
southern neighbors, are in reality identical.
--Theodore Roosevelt (1858—1919)
American Republican statesman and President [1901—1909].
Letter to The Cuba Society of New York [20 May 1904],
quoted in Edmund Morris, _Theodore Rex_.


Everything is un-American that tends either to government
by a plutocracy, or government by a mob. To divide along
the lines of section or caste or creed is un-American. All
privilege based on wealth, and all enmity to honest men
merely because they are wealthy, are un-American--both
of them equally so. Americanism means the virtues of
courage, honor, justice, truth, sincerity, and hardihood—
the virtues that made America. The things that will destroy
America are prosperity-at-any-price, peace-at-any-price,
safety-first instead of duty-first, the love of soft living,
and the get-rich-quick theory of life.
--Theodore Roosevelt (1858—1919)
American Republican statesman and President [1901—1909].
In a letter to S. Stanwood Menken [10 January 1917].

-

America will believe it her duty to concern herself
with the rest of the world, but she will not do this
without being paid for it. The payment she will
demand will not be material but moral. No country
is more convinced than this one that she is right,
or is more arrogant in her moral superiority. If she
intervenes in the affairs of the world it will be to
impose her ideas, and she will consider her inter-
vention a blessing for lost and suffering humanity.
The prospect is cheerless. Whether run by the
American left or right, the world will in either case
suffer a singular form of tyranny, at once biblical
and materialistic.
--Raoul de Roussy de Sales
French journalist and historian.
_The Making of Tomorrow_ [1943] "7 July 1942"

America's greatest enemy is not from without, but
from within, and that enemy is hate: hatred of races,
peoples, classes and religions. If America ever dies,
it will be not through conquest but suicide.
--Fulton John Sheen (1895—1979)
Roman Catholic bishop; the first popular
preacher to appear on television.
_Preface To Religion_ [1946]

I'd rather have the United States be the world's
policeman than the Soviet Union be the world's
jailer.
--attributed to Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1918— )
Russian novelist.

I like to be in America!
O.K. by me in America!
Ev'rything free in America
For a small fee in America!
--Stephen Sondheim (1930— )
American musical theater lyricist and composer.
"America" [1957 song]

In the United States there is more space where
nobody is than where anybody is. That is what
makes America what it is.
--Gertrude Stein (1874—1946)
American writer.
In _The Geographical History of America_ [1936].

For centuries America and Americans have been the target for
opinions—Asian, African, and European —only these opinions
have been called criticism, observation, or, God help us, evaluation.
Unfortunately, Americans have allowed these foreign opinions the
value set on them by their authors. ... This essay is not an attempt
to answer or refute the sausage-like propaganda which is ground
out in our disfavor. It cannot even pretend to be objective truth. ...
But at least it is informed by America, and inspired by curiosity,
impatience, some anger, and a passionate love of America and
the Americans. For I believe that out of the whole body of our past,
out of our differences, our quarrels, our many interests and directions,
something has emerged that is itself unique in the world: America—
complicated, paradoxical, bullheaded, shy, cruel, boisterous,
unspeakably dear, and very beautiful.
--John Ernst Steinbeck (1902—1968)
American novelist.
Forward to _America and Americans_ [1966].

The home of the homeless all over the earth.
--Alfred Billings Street (1811—1881)
American poet, lawyer, and librarian.

America, my friends, is the only country in
the world actually founded on liberty— the
only one. People went to America to be free.
--Margaret Thatcher (1925— )
British conservative stateswoman and Prime Minister [1979—1990].

-

If I were asked. . . to what the singular prosperity and growing
strength of that people [the Americans] ought mainly to be
attributed, I should reply: To the superiority of their women.
--Alexis de Tocqueville (1805—1859)
French historian and politician.
_Democracy in America_ [1840], pt. 2, bk.3, ch. 12


There are today two great peoples on the earth who,
setting off from different points of departure, seem
to be advancing towards the same goal: they are the
Russians and the Anglo-Americans ... Each of them
seems to be summoned by a secret plan of
Providence one day to hold in its hands the
destinies of half the world.
--Alexis de Tocqueville (1805—1859)
French historian and politician.
_Democracy in America_ [1835] bk I, pt. 2, ch. 10

-

America is a large, friendly dog in a very small
room. Every time it wags its tail it knocks over
a chair.
--attributed to Arnold Toynbee
(1889—1975) English historian.

America is a vast conspiracy to make you happy.
--John Updike (1932— )
American novelist and short-story writer.
_Problems and Other Stories_ [1980]

I like the German fir-woods, in green battalions drilled
I like the gardens of Versailles with flashing fountains filled;
But, oh, to take your hand, my dear, and ramble for a day
In the friendly western woodland where Nature has her way!
..Oh, it's home again, and home again, America for me!
I want a ship that's westward bound to plough the rolling sea,
To the blessed Land of Room Enough beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars.
--Henry Van Dyke (1852—1933)
American clergyman, educator, and author.

-

...teachers of children in the United States of America wrote this date
on blackboards again and again, and asked the children to memorize
it with pride and joy: 1492.

The teachers told the children that this was when their continent was
discovered by human beings. Actually, millions of human beings were
already living full and imaginative lives on the continent in 1492. That
was simply the year in which sea pirates began to cheat and rob and
kill them.

--Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922—2007)
American novelist and short-story writer.
_Breakfast of Champions_ [1973], ch. 1

-

There is a rank due to the United States, among
nations, which will be withheld, if not absolutely
lost, by the reputation of weakness. If we desire
to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we
desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful
instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be
known that we are at all times ready for war.
--George Washington (1732—1799)
American general and commander-in-chief of the
colonial armies in the American Revolution [1775—1783]
and first president of the United States [1789—1797].

-

I am lost in wonder and amazement. It is not a
country but a world. . . . The West I liked best.
The people are stronger, fresher, saner than the
rest. They are ready to be taught. The surroundings
of nature have instilled in them a love of the
beautiful, which but needs development and
direction. The East I found a feeble reflex of
Europe; in fact, I may say that I was in
America for a month before I saw an American.
--Oscar Wilde (1854—1900)
Anglo-Irish dramatist and poet.
Quoted in the "St. Louis Daily Democrat"
[26 February 1882].


The cities of America are inexpressibly tedious.
The Bostonians take their learning too sadly:
culture with them is an accomplishment rather
than an atmosphere; their 'Hub,' as they call
it, is the paradise of prigs. Chicago is a sort
of monster-shop, full of bustle and bores.
Political life at Washington is like political
life in a suburban vestry. Baltimore is amusing
for a week, but Philadelphia is dreadfully
provincial; and though one can dine in New
York, one could not dwell there.
--Oscar Wilde (1854—1900)
Anglo-Irish dramatist and poet.
_The American Invasion_ in the
"Court and Society Review" [March 1887].


Please do not shoot the pianist.
He is doing his best.
(Printed notice in a dancing saloon.)
--anon., in Oscar Wilde
_Impressions of America_ "Leadville" [c.1882—1883]

-

The business of America is not business. Neither
is it war. The business of America is justice,
and securing the blessings of liberty.
--George F. Will (1941— )
American columnist.
"A Land Fit for Heroes",
"Time" [11 March 1991]

If the US is an empire it's a very odd
one: Countries where it has troops such
as Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and
Germany suggest they are unhappy about
that and the response is, 'OK," and an
offer to leave. Nero and Napoleon would
have been appalled.
--R. James Woolsey (1941— )
Director of the CIA (1993—1995).
"We Are All Jews,"
http://info.jpost.com/C003/Supplements/FSB/030926/art.04.html

America is God's Crucible, the great Melting-Pot
where all the races of Europe are melting and
re-forming!
--Israel Zangwill (1864—1926)
Jewish spokesman and writer.
_The Melting Pot_ [1908]



TOPICAL

I know that some of the stuff we've been
doing hasn't been explained real well, so
I thought I'd take a shot. Listen to me
real good, now. We, the United States of
America, don't want to kill you or anyone
else, nor do we want to piss you or anyone
else off (well, maybe France). We'd prefer
that everyone just keep sending us their
smartest students and hardest workers while
buying our soft drinks and watching our
action movies. However, we are going to
defend ourselves against attack and take
steps to keep ourselves from being attacked.
We also reserve the right to stick up for
people who are getting slaughtered for no
good reason at all. Don't expect any
different. Ever. [...]

So, remember. We don't want to kill anyone and
we'll try hard not to, but if we have to defend
ourselves we will. Don't think that any bad stuff
that may happen is intentional. It's not. We're
just as likely to !!!! up as anyone else, we just
do it with bigger ordnance.

--William Burton [7 September 2002],

-

To Americans, self-defense means more than
just striking back when they are attacked.
They take a more pro-active approach,
seeking to confront threats as they develop.
Hostile nations should be very wary of the
temptation to use the threat of military
action against American interests to
blackmail the United States. Likewise,
providing aid and comfort to America's
enemies will more than likely attract
unwanted attention.

Despite this pro-active stance towards
self-defense, Americans do not see
themselves as imperialists. They seek
engagement with the rest of the world,
but not domination. Indeed, they will
proudly tell you that after the Second
World War, when their armed forces
occupied much of Western Europe and
most of the islands of the Pacific,
they gave it all back.

Except Guam.

--L.T. Smash,
http://www.lt-smash.us/archives/001441.html#001441

-

American Generosity
_The Wall Street Journal_
May 13, 2006

When the U.N.'s Jan Egeland called the U.S. "stingy" with foreign aid a couple of years back, he was playing to a stereotype promoted by those who want governments to redistribute global incomes. He was also wrong, and now we have the data to prove it.

The Hudson Institute recently released the 2006 Index of Global Philanthropy, the first comprehensive report on international aid by private institutions and individuals in the U.S. The index shows that millions of Americans give to the world's poor at a rate that is anything but "stingy." Voluntary giving by Americans dwarfs government aid the world over.

The assaults on U.S. generosity derive from a view that government assistance is the only aid that matters. Even on that count, the U.S. is far from miserly. In 2004 Washington provided official development aid of $19.7 billion, more than runners-up Japan and France put together. Add the benefits of American innovation and military sacrifice and other First World nations are even further behind.

Then there is the charity from the U.S. private sector. In 2004, the latest year for which many numbers are available, Americans — through schools, religious institutions, companies, foundations and families — gave at least $71 billion to the developing world, more than three times what the government gave. The index authors say it is impossible to capture all giving, so if they've erred it's on the low side.

Almost $10 billion came from private groups, $4.5 billion from religious organizations and nearly $5 billion from corporations. But perhaps the most impressive private giving, and arguably the most efficient, is in the category of individual remittances, which the index puts at $47 billion in 2004. According to the authors, "The massive amounts of money sent home by immigrants and temporary workers — involving little or no overhead and filling people's basic needs directly — is changing the landscape of development and donor agencies."

These dollars bypass bureaucrats to serve development. Which makes it odd that the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development doesn't count it in its annual Development Assistance Committee Report, which lists financial flows to the developing world.

Official aid promoters will respond to this good news about private giving with their standard complaint that American foreign aid is still too low as a fraction of GDP. If development depended on government transfer payments, no number would ever be high enough. That's why we are heartened to hear that next year the index hopes to expand by measuring the effectiveness of private aid.

Hudson's Carol Adelman says the index has been well received. "Many of the private organizations are stunned because they have heard for so long that America is stingy. They knew that American giving was large and important but they had no idea it was so big." That's OK, neither did the U.N.

-----

gallimaufry [gal-uh-MAW-free], noun:
A medley; a hodgepodge.
Syn.: jumble, olla podrida, olio, salmagundi, potpourri.
Ex.: Today bilingual programs are conducted in a gallimaufry
of around 80 tongues, ranging from Spanish to Lithuanian to
Micronesian Yapese.
--Ezra Bowen, "For Learning or Ethnic Pride?"
_Time_ [8 July 1985]


end page



| ABILITY - ABUSE | ACADEMY AWARDS - ACCUSTOMED | ACHIEVEMENT - ACQUAINTANCE | ACTIONS | ACTORS / ACTING | ACTUARIES - ADVERSARIES | ADVERSITY - ADVERTISING | ADVICE | AFFAIRS - AFGHANISTAN | AGE | AGNOSTICS - AIRPLANES | ALCOHOL | ALIBI - AMBITION | AMERICA PAGE 1 (A-M) | AMERICA PAGE 2 (N-Z) | AMERICANS | AMERICAN INDIANS | AMERICAN REVOLUTION | AMUSEMENT - ANCESTORS | ANGER | ANIMAL RIGHTS & ANIMALS | ANIMOSITIES - APATHY | APOLOGY & APPEARANCE | APPEASEMENT | APPLAUSE - APRIL | ARCHAEOLOGISTS - ARCHITECTURE | ARGUMENT | ARISTOCRACY - ART | ASHAMED - ASTROLOGY | ATHEISM | ATOM BOMB - ATTRACTION | AUSTRALIA | AUTHORITY - AUTOMOBILES | AUTUMN - AWARENESS |
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G |
| Return Home | The Credits | The Cast | Act 1 | Act 2 | Act 3 | The End | The Reviews | Photos |
 
     



Copyright © 2008, someworthwhilequotes.com. All rights reserved.