Never cross a man, not afraid to die.

The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep’s throat, for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as his liberator, while the wolf denounces him for the same act. . . . Plainly the sheep and the wolf are not agreed upon the definition of liberty.

Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.

Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what they are going to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote.

It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.

The best revenge is not to be like your enemy.

We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break, our bonds of affection.

Peace is not the absence of war, but a virtue based on strength of character.

Fear not those who argue but those who dodge.

We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist.

It was while helping others to be free that I gained my own freedom.

All tyrannies rule through fraud and force, but once the fraud is exposed they must rely exclusively on force.

One man thinks himself the master of others but remains more of a slave than they are.

The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.

Since men are neither omniscient nor infallible, they must be free to agree or disagree, to cooperate or to pursue their own independent course, each according to his own rational judgment. Freedom is the fundamental requirement of man's mind.

The overwhelming importance of the atmosphere means that there are no longer any frontiers to defend against pollution, attack, or propaganda. It means, further, that only by a deep patriotic devotion to one’s country can there be a hope of the kind of protection of the whole planet, which is necessary for the survival of the people of other countries.

It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong.

I had always hoped that this land might become a safe & agreeable Asylum to the virtuous & persecuted part of mankind, to whatever nation they might belong.

Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore, send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me: I lift my lamp beside the golden door.

For you can only be free when even the desire of seeking freedom becomes a harness to you.

Fundamentally, there are only to ways of coordinating the economic activities of millions. One is central direction involving the use of coercion — the technique of the army and the modern totalitarian state. The other is voluntary cooperation — the technique of the marketplace.

To change your mind and to follow him who sets you straight is to be nonetheless the free agent that you were before.

The right to free speech is more important than the content of the speech.

If by the mere force of numbers a majority should deprive a minority of any clearly written constitutional right, it might, in a moral point of view, justify revolution—certainly would if such a right were a vital one.

Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for man to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence.

If liberty and equality, as is thought by some, are chiefly two be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in the government to the utmost.

Liberty without Learning is always in peril and Learning without Liberty is always in vain.

Why has government been instituted? Because the passions of men will not conform to the dictates of reason & justice without constraint.

Civil disobedience becomes a sacred duty when the state becomes lawless or corrupt.

Irreverence is the champion of liberty and its only sure defence.

As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.

A Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever.

I am not aware that any community has a right to force another to be civilized.

It was that which gave promise that in due time the weights would be lifted from the shoulders of all men, and that all should have an equal chance. This is the sentiment embodied in the Declaration of Independence. . . . I would rather be assassinated on this spot than surrender it.

Tolerance is giving to every other human being every right that you claim for yourself.

Can’t is the worst word that is written or spoken; Doing more harm here than slander and lies; On it is many a strong spirit broken, And with it many a good purpose dies.

Free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or good or joy worth having.

A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.

The way you habitually think will determine your destiny.

Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find a better man.

Find out who you are and do it on purpose.

Unsuccessful people make decisions based on current situations. Successful people make decisions based on where they want to be.