October 26 Quotations

Quotes of the day from previous years:

2004

I'm not against God. I'm against the misuse of God. ~ Marilyn Manson

selected by Kalki

2005

I know that it will hurt, I know that it will break your heart, the way things are, and the way they've been. Don't spread the discontent, don't spread the lies, don't make the same mistakes with your own life. ~ "Break Your Heart" by Natalie Merchant (born 26 October 1963)

proposed by Kalki

2006

The youth are not always right, but the society which ignores them and beats, is always wrong. ~ François Mitterrand (born 26 October 1916) on les événements of May 1968.

proposed by Fys

2007

Contempt loves the silence
it thrives in the dark
with fine winding tendrils
that strangle the heart.
~ Natalie Merchant ~

proposed by Kalki

2008

After bread, education is the first need of the people. ~ Georges Danton (born 26 October 1759)

proposed by Zarbon

2009

Cherish your visions and your dreams as they are the children of your soul, the blueprints of your ultimate achievements. ~ Napoleon Hill

proposed by Zarbon

2010 : Rank or add further suggestions…
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Ranking system:

4 : Excellent - should definitely be used.

3 : Very Good - strong desire to see it used.

2 : Good - some desire to see it used.

1 : Acceptable - but with no particular desire to see it used.

0 : Not acceptable - not appropriate for use as a quote of the day.

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Suggestions

Andrew Wiles gently smiles,
Does his thing, and voila!
Q.E.D., we agree,
And we all shout hurrah!
As he confirms what Fermat
Jotted down in that margin,
Which could've used some enlargin'.
~ Tom Lehrer in That's Mathematics (Fermat's Last Theorem proof published that day)

3 ~ MosheZadka (Talk) 09:43, 8 October 2005 (UTC)
1 Zarbon 05:39, 25 April 2008 (UTC)
0 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
1 Kalki 08:48, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

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Have I been blind, have I been lost,
inside myself and my own mind;
hypnotized, mesmerized,
by what my eyes have seen?
~ Natalie Merchant (date of birth)

3 Kalki 20:51, 25 October 2005 (UTC) with a lean toward 4.
2 Zarbon 05:39, 25 April 2008 (UTC)
3 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

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Who will draw the calvary in
risk his very own precious skin
to make our Angelinia a free and peaceful land again?
~ Natalie Merchant ~ (date of birth)

3 Kalki 20:51, 25 October 2005 (UTC)
1 Zarbon 05:39, 25 April 2008 (UTC)
1 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

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Labels are for cans, not people. ~ Anthony Rapp

2 Zarbon 04:42, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
0 Kalki 08:48, 18 October 2009 (UTC) I would rank this highly, but can find no source that would indicate this originates with Rapp.* 3 Kalki 22:33, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
4 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
0 because it is unsourced. - InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

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No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy. ~ Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

2 Zarbon 04:42, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
3 Kalki 22:33, 16 October 2008 (UTC) with a very strong lean toward 4, but would correct this from the paraphrase to:

No plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first contact with the main hostile force.

OR extend it further to:

The tactical result of an engagement forms the base for new strategic decisions because victory or defeat in a battle changes the situation to such a degree that no human acumen is able to see beyond the first battle. In this sense one should understand Napoleon's saying: "I have never had a plan of operations."
Therefore no plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first contact with the main hostile force.

1 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
0 because it is unsourced. InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

Though the original suggestion was originally unsourced, and seems to be a long used and common paraphrase, the original statement has now been sourced, and is included as part of my rankings, above. ~ Kalki 14:58, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

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A competent staff officer should work diligently, accomplish much, remain in the background, and be more than he seems. ~ Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

2 Zarbon 04:42, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
0 Kalki 08:48, 18 October 2009 (UTC) I can locate no published source for this.* 3 Kalki 22:33, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
1 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
0 because it is unsourced. InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

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To talk to others who are unseen and far away is an experience which, before the telephone, occurred only in mythology. Gods, devils, and angels talked from the sky across the world, but not mere mortals. ~ Ithiel de Sola Pool

2 Zarbon 04:42, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
2 Kalki 22:33, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
0 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
0 because it is unsourced. - InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

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What has begun in this evening will not stay for a long time, and because you represent the forces of the world of labour, you, forces of the youth, your victory is inevitable. ~ François Mitterrand

2 Zarbon 04:42, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
2 Kalki 22:33, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
2 Wikisaver62 14:31, 25 October 2008 (UTC)
0 because it is inadequately sourced. InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

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Do not wait; the time will never be "just right." Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along. ~ Napoleon Hill

3 Kalki 08:48, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

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Strategy is a system of expedients; it is more than a mere scholarly discipline. It is the translation of knowledge to practical life, the improvement of the original leading thought in accordance with continually changing situations. ~ Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

3 Kalki 08:48, 18 October 2009 (UTC) with a very strong lean toward 4.

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Quoternity