# October 29

Quotes of the day from previous years:

## 2004

    The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made, and the activity of making them, changes both the maker and the destination. ~ John Schaar
   * selected by Kalki

## 2005

    All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly. ~ Muhammad
   * proposed by Kalki; in 2005, Laylat al-Qadr (The Night of Power) is traditionally celebrated on this night (as the start of the 27th of Ramadan in the Muslim calendar) by many Muslims.

## 2006

    We cannot tell the precise moment when friendship is formed. As in filling a vessel drop by drop, there is at last a drop which makes it run over; so in a series of kindnesses there is at last one which makes the heart run over. ~ James Boswell
   * proposed by Fys

## 2007

    This is a terrific outburst. And since it doesn’t have a tail right now, some observers have confused it with a nova. We’ve had at least two reports of a new star. ~ Brian G. Marsden (on the recent unprecedented brightening of Comet Holmes)
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2008

    He who has provoked the lash of wit, cannot complain that he smarts from it. ~ James Boswell (born 29 October 1740)
   * proposed by Fys

## 2009

    No moral system can rest solely on authority. ~ Alfred Jules Ayer (born 29 October 1910)
   * proposed by UDScott

## 2010

    If you're a leader, you don't push wet spaghetti, you pull it. The U.S. Army still has to learn that. The British understand it. Patton understood it. I always admired Patton. Oh, sure, the stupid bastard was crazy. He was insane. He thought he was living in the Dark Ages. Soldiers were peasants to him. I didn't like that attitude, but I certainly respected his theories and the techniques he used to get his men out of their foxholes. ~ Bill Mauldin
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2011

    Let the world know you as you are, not as you think you should be, because sooner or later, if you are posing, you will forget the pose, and then where are you? ~ Fanny Brice (born 29 October 1891)
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2012

* There is a certain nobility and dignity in combat soldiers and medical aid men with dirt in their ears. They are rough and their language gets coarse because they live a life stripped of convention and niceties. Their nobility and dignity come from the way they live unselfishly and risk their lives to help each other.
* ~ Bill Mauldin ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2013

* There never comes a point where a theory can be said to be true. The most that one can claim for any theory is that it has shared the successes of all its rivals and that it has passed at least one test which they have failed.
* ~ Alfred Jules Ayer ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2014

* I saw a Divine Being. I'm afraid I'm going to have to revise all my various books and opinions.
* ~ Alfred Jules Ayer ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2015

* Only the mediocre are always at their best.
* ~ Jean Giraudoux ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2016

* One of my principles is, Thou shall not bully. The only answer is to muscle the bully. I'm very combative that way.
* ~ Bill Mauldin ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2017

* The American public highly overrates its sense of humor. We're great belly laughers and prat fallers, but we never really did have a real sense of humor. Not satire anyway. … When we realize finally that we aren't God's given children, we'll understand satire. Humor is really laughing off a hurt, grinning at misery.
* ~ Bill Mauldin ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2018

* Take care that thou be not made a fool by flatterers, for even the wisest men are abused by these. Know, therefore, that flatterers are the worst kind of traitors; for they will strengthen thy imperfections, encourage thee in all evils, correct thee in nothing; but so shadow and paint all thy vices and follies, as thou shalt never, by their will, discern evil from good, or vice from virtue. And, because all men are apt to flatter themselves, to entertain the additions of other men's praises is most perilous. Do not therefore praise thyself, except thou wilt be counted a vain-glorious fool; neither take delight in the praises of other men, except thou deserve it, and receive it from such as are worthy and honest, and will withal warn thee of thy faults; for flatterers have never any virtue — they are ever base, creeping, cowardly persons. … But it is hard to know them from friends, they are so obsequious and full of protestations; for as a wolf resembles a dog, so doth a flatterer a friend.
* ~ Walter Raleigh ~
   * proposed by Zarbon

## 2019

* There is no better way of exercising the imagination than the study of law. No poet ever interpreted nature as freely as a lawyer interprets the truth.
* ~ Jean Giraudoux ~
   * proposed by Zarbon

## 2020

* A wise man ought not to desire to inhabit that country where men have more authority than laws.
* ~ Walter Raleigh ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2021

* Even such is time, that takes in trust Our youth, our joys, our all we have, And pays us but with age and dust; Who in the dark and silent grave, When we have wandered all our ways, Shuts up the story of our days. But from this earth, this grave, this dust, My God shall raise me up, I trust!
* ~ Walter Raleigh ~
   * proposed by Zarbon

## 2022

* Look a-here, sweet mama, Let's burn off both our shoes Well, my heart's a-beatin' rhythm And my soul is singin' the blues.
* ~ Jerry Lee Lewis ~
   * proposed by Kalki; in regard of his recent death.

## 2023

* The ground for taking ignorance to be restrictive of freedom is that it causes people to make choices which they would not have made if they had seen what the realization of their choices involved.
* ~ Alfred Jules Ayer ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2024

* The criterion which we use to test the genuineness of apparent statements of fact is the criterion of verifiability.
* ~ Alfred Jules Ayer ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2025

    Rank or add further suggestions…
The Quote of the Day (QOTD) is a prominent feature of the Wikiquote Main Page. Thank you for submitting, reviewing, and ranking suggestions!

   ## Ranking system

    4 : Excellent – should definitely be used. (This is the utmost ranking and should be used by any editor for only one quote at a time for each date.)
    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.
    An averaging of the rankings provided to each suggestion produces it’s general ranking in considerations for selection of Quote of the Day. The selections made are usually chosen from the top ranked options existing on the page, but the provision of highly ranked late additions, especially in regard to special events (most commonly in regard to the deaths of famous people, or other major social or physical occurrences), always remain an option for final selections.
    Thank you for participating!

## Suggestions

If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. ~ Joseph Goebbels (born October 29)
OR
Alternate version: If you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth.
Alternate version: If you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it.
Alternate version: If you repeat a lie long enough, it becomes truth.
Alternate version: If you repeat a lie many times, people are bound to start believing it.
* 4 because a man who repeats a lie a thousand fold eventually convinces oneself and others that it holds truth. Zarbon 04:33, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
** SOURCE: Quoted in "The Sack of Rome" - Page 14 - by Alexander Stille and also quoted in "A World Without Walls: Freedom, Development, Free Trade and Global Governance" - Page 63 by Mike Moore - 2003
* 1 Kalki 18:57, 28 October 2008 (UTC) 2 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC) This, and variants of it, have been published most often as a quotation of Goebbels, but in this and other forms it has also been quoted as a statement of Hitler, so the original source and phrasing remains somewhat disputed.
** I wouldn't say it's disputed. The quote is derived from Goebbels and he is credited with the quote in numerous reliable sources. To say otherwise and attribute the quote to Hitler is incorrect in itself, considering the man did not say the quote. Still, it is a nice quote, and all the references I've pulled have suggested that it belongs to Goebbels only. Zarbon 22:08, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 0 (misquote/paraphrase) Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
** Comment: This is neither a misquotation nor a paraphrase. I provided all of the versions of this quote that he has repeated in the same section of his page. Also, I have provided the quote's source so as to avoid any confusion to misquotation. Again, this is not a misquotation. I even provided two different sources in order to ensure that. Zarbon 03:21, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
*** There is a distinction to be drawn between original sources and other attributions. He certainly expressed the general idea himself on multiple occasions, and such words are widely attributed to him, partly because of the great irony in that he both criticized opponents with similar words and also frankly practiced the technique himself. But as to the words themselves, in my opinion a Quote of the Day ought to be an actual quotation. ~ Ningauble 13:05, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
**** This is still a quotation nonetheless. It is not attributed to others. The only person who said it was him, therefore, it is not an attribution, it is one of his quotes. Bare in mind it is neither a misquote nor a paraphrase. The fact that he said it in many different ways doesn't make it either of those things. In fact, it strengthens the argument that he used the quote frequently, which originated from him. I've relisted all the versions of the same quote by him so as to be clear about it. Zarbon 13:30, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
* 0. Multiple versions of a quote don't make it more reliable; it would be like saying that rumors are more reliable than facts. - InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
** 0? I just provided all the versions of the quote, all attributed to the same person. In what way does it make it unreliable. In fact, this is getting very annoying. What is necessary, a scan of the page that the quote is derived from? This quote has been sourced many times over. It does not qualify for a 0, and neither do any of the other quotes. Zarbon 01:00, 29 October 2008 (UTC)
A child laughs when it feels joy and cries when it feels pain. Both things, laughing and crying it does with its whole heart. We all became so tall and so clever. We know so much and we have read so much. But one thing we forgot: to laugh and cry like the children do. ~ Joseph Goebbels
* 3 Zarbon 03:11, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 0 Kalki 18:57, 28 October 2008 (UTC) This is another that in many ways seems rather uncharacterstic of Goebbels, and I can find no reliable sources which indicate it to actually be a quotation by him. If a source were found I might conceivably rank it a 1 or 2 in relation to some form of irony.
** This quote is not unsourced. The source is "Michael : a German fate in diary notes (1926)" Zarbon 22:10, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
** The cited source is mentioned in Wikipedia (if you can believe that source) as a novel by Joseph Goebbels, if anyone feels inclined to track it down. ~ Ningauble 00:50, 29 October 2008 (UTC)
** 0 because it is unsourced. - InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
** For the second time, this quote is NOT unsourced. Zarbon 01:00, 29 October 2008 (UTC)
Every fool knoweth that hatreds are the cinders of affection. ~ Walter Raleigh (date of death)
* 2 Zarbon 14:16, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 1 Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
So when thou hast, as I Commanded thee, done blabbing — Although to give the lie Deserves no less than stabbing — Stab at thee he that will, No stab the soul can kill. ~ Walter Raleigh
OR
Stab at thee he that will, No stab the soul can kill. ~ Walter Raleigh
* 3 for both versions. Zarbon 14:16, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
* 3 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC) with preference for the shorter version.
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 for the shorter version Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 3 for the shorter version. - InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
Cowards fear to die; but courage stout, Rather than live in snuff, will be put out. ~ Walter Raleigh
* 3 Zarbon 14:16, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
Silence in love bewrays more woe Than words, though ne'er so witty: A beggar that is dumb, you know, May challenge double pity. ~ Walter Raleigh
* 3 Zarbon 14:16, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
* 3 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
Remember...that if thou marry for beauty, thou bindest thyself all thy life for that which perchance will never last nor please thee one year; and when thou hast it, it will be to thee of no price at all, for the desire dieth when it is attained, and the affection perisheth when it is satisfied. ~ Walter Raleigh
* 3 Zarbon 14:16, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 3 Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 3 InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
As soon as war is declared it will be impossible to hold the poets back. Rhyme is still the most effective drum. ~ Jean Giraudoux
* 3 Zarbon 14:16, 5 July 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 15:58, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 ~ UDScott 12:41, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Ningauble 17:18, 27 October 2008 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 22:27, 28 October 2008 (UTC)
The flower is the poetry of reproduction. It is an example of the eternal seductiveness of life. ~ Jean Giraudoux
* 3 Kalki 08:00, 19 October 2009 (UTC) with a lean toward 4.
Certainly none of the advances made in civilization has been due to counterrevolutionaries and advocates of the status quo. ~ Bill Mauldin
* 3 Kalki 08:00, 19 October 2009 (UTC) with a strong lean toward 4.
Your audience gives you everything you need. They tell you. There is no director who can direct you like an audience. You step out on the stage and you can feel it is a nervous audience. So you calm them down. I come out before an audience and maybe my house burned down an hour ago, maybe my husband stayed out all night, but I stand there. I'm still. I don't move. I wait for the introduction. Maybe I cough. Maybe I touch myself. But before I do anything, I got them with me, right there in my hand and comfortable. That's my job, to make them comfortable, because if they wanted to be nervous they could have stayed home and added up their bills. ~ Fanny Brice, (born 29 October 1891)
* 3 Kalki (talk · contributions) 15:50, 11 November 2010 (UTC) with a very strong lean toward 4.
* All, or the greatest part of men that have aspired to riches or power, have attained thereunto either by force or fraud, and what they have by craft or cruelty gained, to cover the foulness of their fact, they call purchase, as a name more honest. Howsoever, he that for want of will or wit useth not those means, must rest in servitude and poverty.
* ~ Walter Raleigh ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 22:17, 28 October 2020 (UTC)