# January 3

Quotes of the day from previous years:

## 2004

    Ring out a slowly dying cause, And ancient forms of party strife; Ring in the nobler modes of life, With sweeter manners, purer laws. ~ Alfred, Lord Tennyson ~
   * selected by Kalki

## 2005

    No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were. Any man's death diminishes me because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee… ~ John Donne
   * selected by Kalki

## 2006

    Not to know what happened before you were born is to be a child forever. For what is the time of a man, except it be interwoven with that memory of ancient things of a superior age? ~ Cicero (born 3 January 106 BC)
   * proposed by UDScott

## 2007

    Each comprehended only that part of the mind of Ilúvatar from which he came, and in the understanding of their brethren they grew but slowly. Yet ever as they listened they came to deeper understanding, and increased in unison and harmony. ~ J. R. R. Tolkien in The Silmarillion (Tolkien born 3 January 1892)
   * selected by Kalki

## 2008

    The rule of no realm is mine, neither of Gondor nor any other, great or small. But all worthy things that are in peril as the world now stands, those are my care. And for my part, I shall not wholly fail of my task, though Gondor should perish, if anything passes through this night that can still grow fair or bear fruit and flower again in days to come. ~ "Gandalf" in The Lord of the Rings : The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien
   * proposed by Gandalf

## 2009

    This is an ancient hallow, and ere the kings failed or the Tree withered in the court, a fruit must have been set here. For it is said that, though the fruit of the Tree comes seldom to ripeness, yet the life within may then lie sleeping through many long years, and none can foretell the time in which it will awake. ~ Gandalf in The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2010

    Of the theme that I have declared to you, I will now that ye make in harmony together a Great Music. And since I have kindled you with the Flame Imperishable, ye shall show forth your powers in adorning this theme, each with his own thoughts and devices, if he will. But I will sit and hearken, and be glad that through you great beauty has been wakened into song. ~ J. R. R. Tolkien in The Silmarillion
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2011

    He who looks on a true friend looks, as it were, upon a kind of image of himself: wherefore friends, though absent, are still present; though in poverty, they are rich; though weak, yet in the enjoyment of health; and, what is still more difficult to assert, though dead, they are alive. ~ Cicero
   * proposed by Zarbon

## 2012

    The world is changing: I feel it in the water, I feel it in the earth, and I smell it in the air. ~ J. R. R. Tolkien in The Return of the King
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2013

* We must not say every mistake is a foolish one.
* ~ Cicero ~

## 2014

* It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till. What weather they shall have is not ours to rule.
* ~ J. R. R. Tolkien ~ in ~ The Return of the King ~
   * proposed by bystander

## 2015

* My political opinions lean more and more to Anarchy (philosophically understood, meaning abolition of control not whiskered men with bombs) … The most improper job of any man … is bossing other men. Not one in a million is fit for it, and least of all those who seek the opportunity.
* ~ J. R. R. Tolkien ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2016

* The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.
* ~ J. R. R. Tolkien ~ in ~ The Fellowship of the Ring ~
   * proposed by bystander

## 2017

* True law is right reason in agreement with nature; it is of universal application, unchanging and everlasting; it summons to duty by its commands, and averts from wrongdoing by its prohibitions.
* ~ Cicero ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2018

* The news today about "Atomic bombs" is so horrifying one is stunned. The utter folly of these lunatic physicists to consent to do such work for war-purposes: calmly plotting the destruction of the world! Such explosives in men's hands, while their moral and intellectual status is declining, is about as useful as giving out firearms to all inmates of a gaol and then saying that you hope "this will ensure peace". ... Well we're in God's hands. But He does not look kindly on Babel-builders.
* ~ J. R. R. Tolkien ~

## 2019

* Appetitus rationi pareat. Let your desires be ruled by reason.
* ~ Cicero ~
   * proposed by Zarbon

## 2020

* How long will men dare to call anything expedient that is not right? Can odium and infamy be of service to any empire, which ought to be supported by glory and by the good-will of its allies?
* ~ Cicero ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2021

* Salvation changes not, nor yet destroys, garden nor gardener, children nor their toys. Evil will not see, for evil lies not in God's picture but in crooked eyes, not in the source but in malicious choice, and not in sound but in the tuneless voice. In Paradise they no more look awry; and though they make anew, they make no lie. Be sure they still will make, not being dead, and poets shall have flames upon their head, and harps whereon their faultless fingers fall: there each shall choose for ever from the All.
* ~ J. R. R. Tolkien ~
   * proposed by DanielTom

## 2022

* While there are two ways of contending, one by discussion, the other by force, the former belonging properly to man, the latter to beasts, recourse must be had to the latter if there be no opportunity for employing the former.
* ~ Cicero ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2023

* Let the welfare of the people be the ultimate law.
* ~ Cicero ~
   * proposed by Kalki

## 2024

* Diseases of the mind are more common and more pernicious than diseases of the body.
* ~ Cicero ~
   * 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

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    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

DOB: Cicero · Douglas William Jerrold · J. R. R. Tolkien
Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others. ~ Cicero (born January 3)
* 3 Zarbon 17:05, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Triviaa 04:20, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 4 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:52, 2 January 2025 (UTC) 3 Kalki 06:29, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 3 InvisibleSun 23:31, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
A room without books is like a body without a soul. ~ Cicero (born January 3)
* 3 because without knowledge, we have emptiness. Zarbon 17:05, 22 April 2008 (UTC)
* 4 Triviaa 04:20, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 1 Kalki 06:29, 2 January 2009 (UTC) I can agree that books are desirable, but not that all rooms require them. Also now with a lean toward 0, as this seems a very loose summary paraphrase rather than an accurate quote. ~ ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:52, 2 January 2025 (UTC)
With engineering, I view this year's failure as next year's opportunity to try it again. Failures are not something to be avoided. You want to have them happen as quickly as you can so you can make progress rapidly. ~ Gordon Moore
* 3 Zarbon 05:54, 12 December 2008 (UTC)
* 3 perhaps better for the end of the year? Triviaa 04:20, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 06:29, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 3 InvisibleSun 23:31, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
A blessed companion is a book,—a book that fitly chosen is a life-long friend. ~ Douglas William Jerrold
* 3 Zarbon 05:54, 12 December 2008 (UTC)
* 3 Triviaa 04:20, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 06:29, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 3 InvisibleSun 23:31, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
I have never learned to draw a hand well enough, so why should I stop trying now? ~ Jack Levine
* 3 Zarbon 05:54, 12 December 2008 (UTC)
* 2 Triviaa 04:20, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 2 Kalki 06:29, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 23:31, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
Lúthien stood upon the bridge, and declared her power: and the spell was loosed that bound stone to stone, and the gates were thrown down, and the walls opened, and the pits laid bare. ~ J. R. R. Tolkien in The Silmarillion
* 3 Kalki 06:29, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 1 Zarbon 14:45, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
* 2 InvisibleSun 23:31, 2 January 2009 (UTC)
If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need. ~ Cicero
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:18, 31 December 2012 (UTC)
The gods have as many names as there are languages among humans. ~ Cicero
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:18, 31 December 2012 (UTC) with a lean toward 4; but would probably extend this a bit to read:
       Do we really think that the gods are everywhere called by the same names by which they are addressed by us? But the gods have as many names as there are languages among humans.
That, Senators, is what a favour from gangs amounts to. They refrain from murdering someone; then they boast that they have spared him! ~ Cicero
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:18, 31 December 2012 (UTC)
* Since our leading men think themselves in a seventh heaven, if there are bearded mullets in their fish-ponds that will come to hand for food, and neglect everything else, do not you think that I am doing no mean service if I secure that those who have the power, should not have the will, to do any harm?
* ~ Cicero ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:52, 2 January 2025 (UTC)
* They are such fools that they seem to expect that, though the Republic is lost, their fish-ponds will be safe.
* ~ Cicero ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:52, 2 January 2025 (UTC)
* Time destroys the figments of the imagination, while confirming the judgments of nature.
* ~ Cicero ~
* 3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:52, 2 January 2025 (UTC)