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Kurt Vonnegut Quotes - Page 6

All Quotes Accidents Age Alcohol Apologizing Army Art Atheism Atheist Belief Bitterness Business Chaos Character Chemistry Children Christ Church College Communication Community Compassion Competition Country Creativity Culture Curiosity Dancing Democracy Design Dignity Doubt Dying Earth Evil Evolution Expectations Feelings Fighting Food Forgiveness Frustration Fun Funny Giving God Happiness Hard Work Hate Heart Heaven Hell Hiroshima Home Humanity Hurt Ignorance Imagination Inspirational Jazz Jesus Laughter Life Literature Loneliness Love Luck Lying Making Love Management Maturity Meaning Of Life Military Mountain Music Nature Opportunity Pain Past Philosophy Politics Progress Purpose Reading Reality Religion Revenge Running Safety School Science Science Fiction Shame Sleep Smoking Socialism Son Soul Students Stupidity Style Survival Teaching Technology Time Today Trade Tragedy Train Universe Waiting Wall War Water Wife Work Writing

Do you think Arabs are dumb? They gave us our numbers. Try doing long division with Roman numerals.

Do you think Arabs are dumb? They gave us our numbers. Try doing long division with Roman numerals.

Thinking, Roman Numerals, Numbers

"A Man Without a Country". Essay collection by Kurt Vonnegut, September 15, 2005.

Unfortunately, that still leaves plenty of Americans who don't read much or think much -- who will still be extremely useful in unjust wars. We are sick about that. We did the best we could.

War, Thinking, Sick

A lack of seriousness has led to all sorts of wonderful insights.

Creativity, Ideas, Imagination

The darkest secret of this country, I am afraid, is that too many of its citizens imagine that they belong to a much higher civilization somewhere else. That higher civilization doesn’t have to be another country. It can be the past instead—the United States as it was before it was spoiled by immigrants and the enfranchisement of the blacks. This state of mind allows too many of us to lie and cheat and steal from the rest of us, to sell us junk and addictive poisons and corrupting entertainments. What are the rest of us, after all, but sub-human aborigines?

Country, Lying, Past

Being a Humanist means trying to behave decently without expectation of rewards or punishment after you are dead.

Inspirational, Motivational, Atheist

I'm an old guy, and I was protesting during the Vietnam War. We killed fifty Asians for every loyal American. Every artist worth a damn in this country was terribly opposed to that war, finally, when it became evident what a fiasco and meaningless butchery it was.

Country, War, Artist

Interview with David Barsamian, www.sharedhost.progressive.org. June 12, 2003.

I apologize because of the terrible mess the planet is in. But it has always been a mess. There have never been any 'Good Old Days,' there have just been days. And as I say to my grandchildren, 'Don't look at me. I just got here myself.'

Grandchildren, Looks, Apologizing

Kurt Vonnegut (2013). “If This Isn't Nice, What Is?: Advice for the Young”, p.79, RosettaBooks

I hate it that Americans are taught to fear some books and some ideas as though they were diseases.

Hate, Book, Ideas

And I asked myself about the present: how wide it was, how deep it was, how much was mine to keep.

Healing, Slaughterhouse Five, Slaughterhouse 5

KURT VONNEGUT JR (1969). “SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE”

The only difference between Hitler and Bush is that Hitler was elected.

Differences, Political, Politics

New knowledge is the most valuable commodity on earth. The more truth we have to work with, the richer we become.

New Beginnings, Earth, Breakfast Of Champions

Kurt Vonnegut (2009). “Cat's Cradle: A Novel”, p.41, Dial Press

A first grader should understand that her or his culture isn't a rational invention; that there are thousands of other cultures and they all work pretty well; that all cultures function on faith rather than truth; that there are lots of alternatives to our own society...Cultural relativity is defensible, attractive. It's a source of hope. It means we don't have to continue this way if we don't like it.

Faith, Mean, Other Cultures

People are only animals, but special animals. Every animal has fought and killed to survive, even before the dinosaurs. We're the only ones that do it for fun. That's why I don't know about Darwinism. Supposedly evolution and natural selection are all about survival, but we haven't gotten smarter over the years, only more dangerous.

Fun, Animal, Years

'You hate America, don't you?' 'That would be as silly as loving it,' I said. 'It's impossible for me to get emotional about it, because real estate doesn't interest me. It's no doubt a great flaw in my personality, but I can't think in terms of boundaries. Those imaginary lines are as unreal to me as elves and pixies. I can't believe that they mark the end or the beginning of anything of real concern to a human soul. Virtues and vices, pleasures and pains cross boundaries at will.'

Pain, Hate, Real

"Mother Night". Book by Kurt Vonnegut, 1961.

I really wonder what gives us the right to wreck this poor planet of ours.

Giving, Earth Day, Environmental

If you want to break the rules of grammar, first learn the rules of grammar.

Want, Firsts, Break

Just because something feels better than anything else, that doesn't mean it's good for you.

Mean, Feel Better, Feels

It distresses me deeply that ideas are not to be circulated freely in the USA if certain persons have their way. One of the things that was great about this country was that I could say anything and that everyone else could say anything and we would compare all possible ideas and arrive at opinions.

Country, Ideas, Usa

The Summer had died peacefully in its sleep, and Autumn, as soft-spoken executrix, was locking life up safely until Spring came to claim it.

Summer, Spring, Sleep

Kurt Vonnegut (2010). “Look At the Birdie”, p.7, Random House

In the beginning, God created the earth, and he looked upon it in his cosmic loneliness. And God said, "Let Us make living creatures out of mud, so the mud can see what We have done." And God created every living creature that now moveth, and one was man. Mud as man alone could speak. God leaned close to mud as man sat, looked around, and spoke. "What is the purpose of all this?" he asked politely. "Everything must have a purpose?" asked God. "Certainly," said man. "Then I leave it to you to think of one for all this," said God. And He went away.

Loneliness, Men, Thinking

The most important message of a crucifix, to me anyway, was how unspeakably cruel supposedly sane human beings can be when under orders from a superior authority.

Order, Important, Messages

"Hocus Pocus, or What's the Hurry, Son?". Book by Kurt Vonnegut, 1990.

I was once asked if I had any ideas for a really scary reality TV show. I have one reality show that would really make your hair stand on end: "C-Students from Yale".

Reality, Hair, Yale

Kurt Vonnegut (2011). “A Man Without a Country”, p.99, Seven Stories Press

Humor is a way of holding off how awful life can be, to protect yourself.

Awful, Way, Protect

Kurt Vonnegut (2011). “A Man Without a Country”, p.129, Seven Stories Press

Human beings are about 1,000 times dumber and meaner than they think they are.

Thinking, Humanity, Humans

Kurt Vonnegut (1997). “Hocus Pocus”, p.41, Penguin

Thanks to TV and for the convenience of TV, you can only be one of two kinds of human beings, either a liberal or a conservative.

Two, Political, Television

Kurt Vonnegut (2013). “If This Isn't Nice, What Is?: Advice for the Young”, p.54, RosettaBooks

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