Men seldom rise from low condition to high rank without employing either force or fraud, unless that rank should be attained either by gift or inheritance.

The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves.

Everyone sees what you appear to be, few experience what you really are.

I desire to go to Hell and not to Heaven. In the former I shall enjoy the company of popes, kings and princes, while in the latter are only beggars, monks and apostles

Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage.

A government which does not trust its citizens to be armed is not itself to be trusted.

Men are so stupid and concerned with their present needs, they will always let themselves be deceived.

It is just as difficult and dangerous to try to free a people that wants to remain servile as it is to enslave a people that wants to remain free.

Any man who tries to be good all the time is bound to come to ruin among the great number who are not good.

A sign of intelligence is an awareness of one's own ignorance.

Power is the pivot on which everything hinges. He who has the power is always right; the weaker is always wrong.

And what does it mean to take care of power? Do you use it? Conserve it? Keep it out of the wrong hands?

I truly believe that if we keep telling the Christmas story, singing the Christmas songs, and living the Christmas spirit, we can bring joy and happiness and peace to this world.

I guess I think of lotteries as a tax on the mathematically challenged.

My mother has been famous for longer than anyone else alive.

The devils enter uninvited when the house stands empty. For other kinds of guests, you have to first open the door.

Noir is where the clarity of moral divisions break down, the black and whites turn into grays.

Each generation is converted by the saint who contradicts it most.

Success results when preparation meets opportunity.

There's nothing more horrifying than the possibility or the idea that you will just fade away into obscurity.

Any woman who counts on her face is a fool.