H. L. Mencken Quotes

What restrains us from killing is partly fear of punishment, partly moral scruple, and partly what may be described as a sense of humor

Quotes to Explore
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I won't allow myself to have tremendous fear.
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The fear that individuality will be crushed out by the growing 'tyranny' of standardization is the sort of myth which cannot withstand the briefest examination.
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For the record, I believe elected officials should talk about faith. Our founders believed the moral principles of faith were indispensable to our nation's survival. The Declaration of Independence mentions God four times.
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I have a ridiculous fear of sharks but I'd jump in the water in a second for an amazing role.
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With the monstrous weapons man already has, humanity is in danger of being trapped in this world by its moral adolescents.
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I have one. I may get another during the off-season, I might get my son's name but I'm not sure yet. The one I have is my Hebrew name, which I share with my grandfather, and it's not the best tattoo.
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Therefore I am sure that this, my Coronation, is not the symbol of a power and a splendor that are gone but a declaration of our hopes for the future, and for the years I may, by God's Grace and Mercy, be given to reign and serve you as your Queen.
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In so far as the government lands can be disposed of, I am in favor of cutting up the wild lands into parcels so that every poor man may have a home.
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Attention may sound dull, but it is an essential aspect of consciousness. In fact, it governs what it is that we turn out to be conscious of, and therefore plays a part in the coming into being of whatever exists for us.
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Always try to rub up against money, for if you rub up against money long enough, some of it may rub off on you.
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Never let the fear of striking out get in your way.
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O! many a shaft, at random sent, Finds mark the archer little meant! And many a word, at random spoken, May soothe or wound a heart that's broken!
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Most seem to think that while a person may not be responsible for the opportunities he gets in life, each is entirely responsible for what he makes of these opportunities.
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Parenthood, like death, is an event for which it is nearly impossible to be prepared. It brings you into a new relationship with the fact of your own existence, a relationship in which one may be rendered helpless.
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I don't fear anything now.
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Companies are always being bought and sold. The markets are always moving; you have to be on top of your position. And in the U.S., the market is never closed for more than three days. The only time the market was ever closed was 9/11. I think it may have been closed the whole week.
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We are all aware that corruption is pervasive. It operates at every level. The poor may carry its greatest burden, but it is an affliction that every Indian is desperate to be rid of.
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We need to be clear when we venerate entrepreneurs what we are venerating. They are not moral leaders. If they were moral leaders, they wouldn't be great businessmen.
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I am profoundly fascinated by cruelty, fear, horror and death. My films show my preoccupation with violence, the pathology of violence.
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People know what they love … Even those whose lives are floundering. If they're directionless, it's not because they lack knowledge of what they want. It's because they lack the courage to acknowledge that they want it.
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There's a lot of ignorance about how long it takes to write a novel. There's a lot of ignorance about how long a novel is in your head before you start to write it.
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When women are paid for their work and have control over how the money gets spent, they invest much more of their income than men do in their families' education and health.
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What restrains us from killing is partly fear of punishment, partly moral scruple, and partly what may be described as a sense of humor