"Nothing has been worse than the modern notion that a clever man can make a joke without taking part in it; without sharing in the general absurdity that such a situation creates. It is unpardonable conceit not to laugh at your own jokes. Joking is undignified; that is why it is so good for one’s soul." G.K. Chesterton, "The Flat Freak," in Alarms and Discursions, quoted in Gilbert! Vol. 4 #7
"the sweet humiliation of organic life." C.S. Lewis That Hideous Strength
"The real index of civilization is when people are kinder than they need to be." British author Louis de Bernières, quoted as "Thought du jour" in Social Studies in Globe & Mail August 27, 2009
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." Albert Einstein
"There was no good in telling everybody he met that he was a prince, for he felt that a prince ought to be able to get on like other people, else his rank only made a fool of him. He had read of princes setting out upon adventure; and here he was out in similar case, only without having had a choice in the matter. He would go on, and see what would come of it." George MacDonald, At the Back of the North Wind
"He was ruled by a sense of duty, but one cannot touch tar without getting one’s hands dirty." John Lawrence, A History of Russia (re Felix Dzerzhinsky)
"Human nature demands ritual everywhere. Abolish your ritual, and you get an inferior ritual. Destroy your impressive ceremony, and all you get in return is an unimpressive ceremony." G.K. Chesterton in Illustrated London News March 17, 1906, quoted in Gilbert! Vol. 6 #3 (December 2002)
"The hatchet was buried, but the handle was still visible." A news story about George W. Bush meeting with Bill Clinton in the Ottawa Citizen December 20, 2000