In my latest National Post column I say people enjoy the comforting blanket of political make-believe yet crave truth when reality intrudes.
"history is little more than the Newgate calendar of nations"
Herbert Spencer, quoted by Will Durant The Story of Philosophy
"Every man desires to obtain additional wealth with as little sacrifice as possible."
Nassau Senior in 1836, quoted by Stephen Leacock in "What is Left of Adam Smith?" in On the Front Line of Life
"America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand."
Harry S. Truman (displayed on the hoarding around a construction site in Philadelphia Sept. 12 2016
"Things work out best for those who make the best of how things work out."
Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, quoted by Jeff Hayden on www.inc.com
“Goodness me! Humans don't go to heaven! No, someone made that up to prevent you all from going nuts!”
Kryten the robot butler in the Red Dwarf episode "Last Day" (as a side note, Kryten firmly believes in a "silicon heaven" for everything from robots to calculators to toasters)
"Canada is free and freedom is its nationality"
Sir Wilfrid Laurier, quoted in Brian Lee Crowley Fearful Symmetry