Provoking Quotes

And what greater might do we possess as human beings than our capacity to question and to learn?

To be interesting, one has to provoke.

The difference between a bad artist and a good one is: the bad artist seems to copy a great deal; the good one really does.

Only barbarians are not curious about where they come from, how they came to be where they are, where they appear to be going, whether they wish to go there, and if so, why, and if not, why not.

I would like to provoke ambiguous responses in my readers.

Those who restrain their desires, do so because theirs is weak enough to be restrained.

As was his language so was his life.

Fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves.

If one can't be happy, one must be amused.

The temptation of the age is to look good without being good.

The goal is to turn data into information, and information into insight.

Provoking, isn't it? that when one is most in need of sensible words, one finds them not.

The trumpet does not more stun you by its loudness, than a whisper teases you by its provoking inaudibility.

Words are loaded pistols.

A disciple is a disciple maker.

My nature is to provoke, that's true. I can't help myself. But it's always with good intentions.

If you don't like someone's story, write your own.

May each of you live lives of immersion. They won't necessarily be easy lives. But in the end, it is all that will sustain us.

No man however great is greater than his people

Mistakes are a great educator when one is honest enough to admit them and willing to learn from them

The worst thing about the miracle of modern communications is the Pavlovian pressure it places upon everyone to communicate whenever a bell rings.

Librarian is a service occupation. Gas station attendant of the mind.

This company doesn't pay anybody. Only customers can do that. The company merely handles the money.

Failure isn't something to be embarrassed about; it's just proof that you're pushing your limits, trying new things, daring to innovate.

Truthful words are not beautiful; beautiful words are not truthful. Good words are not persuasive; persuasive words are not good.

To learn is to be young, however old.

Fun for us just happens to be screwing around with anything that gets our attention and is thought-provoking.

Sometimes the most important things that we do are things we cannot measure.

You yourself may not be luminous, but you are a conductor of light.

A man who makes trouble for others is also making trouble for himself.

The truth is libraries are raucous clubhouses for free speech, controversy and community.

Perfection can be a fetish

There's only one thing a bully respected: bigger bully.

You're stressing too much about what might be. Do something to take your mind off thinking about what might never happen.

However much we know about birth in general, we know nothing about a particular birth. We must let it unfold with its own uniqueness.

Look after your laundry, and your soul will look after itself.

Life goes by fast. Enjoy it. Calm down. It's all funny.

My son even if you want to fall, at least fall where your bones can be gathered

If you wouldn't write it and sign it, don't say it.

You will find that you survive humiliation. And that's an experience of incalculable value.

Quite often, lyrics get misunderstood - and I never mind that. I guess what all artists want is for their work to touch someone or for it to bethought provoking.

What is more important in a library than anything else-than everything else-is the fact that it exists.

With too little data, you won't be able to make any conclusions that you trust. With loads of data you will find relationships that aren't real... Big data isn't about bits, it's about talent.

Every lizard lies on its belly, so we cannot tell which has a belly-ache

The time for change is now.

We lost weight and grew thin. We stopped bleeding. We stopped dreaming. We stopped wanting.

The standard library saves programmers from having to reinvent the wheel.

All of life is a risk; in fact we're not going to get out alive. Casualness leads to casualties. Communication is the ability to affect other people with words.

If we have data, let's look at data. If all we have are opinions, let's go with mine.

It is praiseworthy to be brave and fearless, but sometimes it is better to be a coward. We often stand in the compound of a coward to point at the ruins where a brave man used to live.