March 12

Quotes of the day from previous years:

2004

Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it. ~ André Gide

selected by Kalki

2005

I want to work in revelations, not just spin silly tales for money. I want to fish as deep down as possible into my own subconscious in the belief that once that far down, everyone will understand because they are the same that far down. ~ Jack Kerouac (born 12 March 1922)

selected by Kalki

2006

Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it. A good writer turns fact into truth; a bad writer will, more often than not, accomplish the opposite." ~ Edward Albee (born 12 March 1928)

selected by Kalki

2007

They danced down the streets like dingledodies, and I shambled after as I've been doing all my life after people who interest me, because the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones that never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes "Awww!" ~ Jack Kerouac (born 12 March 1922)

proposed by InvisibleSun

2008

All human beings are also dream beings. Dreaming ties all mankind together. ~ Jack Kerouac

proposed by Kalki

2009

Life to each individual is a scene of continued feasting in a region of plenty; and when unexpected death arrests its course, it repays with small interest the large debt which it has contracted to the common fund of animal nutrition, from whence the materials of its body have been derived. Thus the great drama of universal life is perpetually sustained; and though the individual actors undergo continual change, the same parts are filled by another and another generation; renewing the face of the earth and the bosom of the deep with endless successions of life and happiness. ~ William Buckland

proposed by Fossil

2010

Who knows, my God, but that the universe is not one vast sea of compassion actually, the veritable holy honey, beneath all this show of personality and cruelty? ~ Jack Kerouac

proposed by Kalki

2011

All is well, practice kindness, heaven is nigh. ~ Jack Kerouac

proposed by Kalki

2012

With the improving of here and now comes the stark realisation that here and now is all we have. Each of us has only this one brief experience with the bright light of consciousness in that endless dark night of eternity and must make the most of it. Doing this means we must respect the existence of everyone else and the most criminal act imaginable is the terminating of one of these conscious existences. ~ Harry Harrison

proposed by Kalki

2013

At one point the driver said, "For God's sakes, you're rocking the boat back there." Actually we were; the car was swaying as Dean and I both swayed to the rhythm and the IT of our final excited joy in talking and living to the blank tranced end of all innumerable riotous angelic particulars that had been lurking in our souls all our lives.

~ Jack Kerouac ~

proposed by InvisibleSun

2014

With a mental effort, he grabbed hold of his thoughts and braked them to a stop. There was something new here, factors he hadn't counted on. He kept reassuring himself there was an explanation for everything, once you had your facts straight.

~ Harry Harrison ~

proposed by bystander

2015

I've seen fire and I've seen rain.
I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end.
I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend.
But I always thought that I'd see you again.

~ James Taylor ~

proposed by bystander

2016

I hope it is true that a man can die and yet not only live in others but give them life, and not only life but that great consciousness of life.

~ Jack Kerouac ~

proposed by Kalki

2017

One must let the play happen to one; one must let the mind loose to respond as it will, to receive impressions, to sense rather than know, to gather rather than immediately understand.

~ Edward Albee ~

proposed by Kalki

2018

Among all the diseases of the mind there is not one more epidemical or more pernicious than the love of flattery.

~ Richard Steele ~

proposed by Zarbon

2019

Doth the reality of sensible things consist in being perceived? or, is it something distinct from their being perceived, and that bears no relation to the mind?

~ George Berkeley ~

proposed by Kalki

2020

A favor well bestowed is almost as great an honor to him who confers it as to him who receives it.

~ Richard Steele ~

proposed by Zarbon

2021

We lay on our backs, looking at the ceiling and wondering what God had wrought when He made life so sad.

~ Jack Kerouac ~
in
~ On the Road ~

proposed by Kalki

2022

We — Russia — want to be a nation of peace. Alas, few people would call us that now.
But let's at least not become a nation of frightened silent people. Of cowards who pretend not to notice the aggressive war against Ukraine unleashed by our obviously insane czar.
I cannot, do not want and will not remain silent watching how pseudo-historical nonsense about the events of 100 years ago has become an excuse for Russians to kill Ukrainians, and for Ukrainians to kill Russians while defending themselves.
It's the third decade of the 21st century, and we are watching news about people burning down in tanks and bombed houses. We are watching real threats to start a nuclear war on our TVs.
I am from the USSR myself. I was born there. And the main phrase from there — from my childhood — was "fight for peace." I call on everyone to take to the streets and fight for peace.

~ Alexei Navalny ~

proposed by Kalki, as recent remarks on the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

2023

A play is fiction — and fiction is fact distilled into truth.

~ Edward Albee ~

proposed by Zarbon

2024

Remember one thing about democracy. We can have anything we want and at the same time, we always end up with exactly what we deserve.

~ Edward Albee ~

proposed by Kalki

2025: Rank or add further suggestions…

Quotes by people born this day, already used as QOTD:

Every now and then a clear harmonic cry gave new suggestions of a tune that would someday be the only tune in the world and would raise men's souls to joy. ~ Jack Kerouac in On The Road
- Used 15 November 2004, selected by Kalki

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

4 : Excellent – should definitely be used. (This is the utmost ranking and should be used by any editor for only one quote at a time for each date.)

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!

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But let the mind beware, that though the flesh be bugged, the circumstances of existence are pretty glorious. ~ Jack Kerouac

—This unsigned comment is by Japhy (talk • contribs) .

1 for unsigned suggestion. Zarbon 05:16, 4 March 2009 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)

What difference does it make after all? — anonymity in the world of men is better than fame in heaven, for what's heaven? what's earth? All in the mind. ~ Jack Kerouac

3 InvisibleSun 10:39, 11 March 2007 (UTC)
2 Kalki 23:43, 11 March 2008 (UTC) but trimmed to begin at "Anonymity in the world of men..." though I might rank it a 3 if trimmed to simply state "What's heaven? what's earth? All in the mind."
2 In its entirety Zarbon 04:17, 23 April 2008 (UTC)
3 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)

I woke up as the sun was reddening; and that was the one distinct time in my life, the strangest moment of all, when I didn't know who I was — I was far away from home, haunted and tired with travel, in a cheap hotel room I'd never seen, hearing the hiss of steam outside, and the creak of the old wood of the hotel, and footsteps upstairs, and all the sad sounds, and I looked at the cracked high ceiling and really didn't know who I was for about fifteen strange seconds. I wasn't scared; I was just somebody else, some stranger, and my whole life was a haunted life, the life of a ghost. I was halfway across America, at the dividing line between the East of my youth and the West of my future. ~ Jack Kerouac

3 InvisibleSun 10:39, 11 March 2007 (UTC)
3 Kalki 23:43, 11 March 2008 (UTC) but only if trimmed a bit to start at "I looked at the cracked high ceiling..."
1 Zarbon 04:17, 23 April 2008 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)

I am skeptical about preventing wars. I doubt if they can be prevented. There will always be wars. Judging by past experiences, working for peace now would be as ineffective as ever. It's a law of nature. ~ Wilhelm Frick (born March 12)

3 Zarbon 04:26, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Hitler was undoubtedly a genius but he lacked self-control. He recognized no limits. Otherwise the thousand-year Reich would have lasted more than twelve years. ~ Wilhelm Frick (born March 12)

3 Zarbon 04:26, 18 April 2008 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
1 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC) I cannot agree that Hitler was a genius — he was simply a very bold person, driven by bigotry and arrogance into very brutal paths, in ways tragic for himself and millions of others.
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

I have a fine sense of the ridiculous, but no sense of humour. ~ Edward Albee

2 because one can understand the laughable but does not have to laugh about it. Zarbon 15:36, 3 May 2008 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain. ~ Aaron Eckhart as Two-Face from The Dark Knight.

4 Two-Face is my favorite character in Batman history. He's the enthralling image of dual personalities, both mesmerizing and captivating, in all his esteem. This quotation strongly describes his ascent into a schizophrenic state of mind, a double entendre of truth and chance, corrupted by nothing but chance alone. I truly love Two-Face. Zarbon 19:21, 7 December 2008 (UTC)
3 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
0 Kalki (talk · contributions) 04:54, 2 March 2011 (UTC) ~~2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)~~ I can't at this point consider this QOTD material. I no longer know why this was suggested for this date, but though I like the statement in the context of the film, as it has a striking ring, and stoic implications relative to the story, the statement itself is in many ways highly fallacious. Even as a young child I knew enough of life to reject much of the apparent validity of such statements as these as false and at very best merely apparent. I have not lived or observed so little as to accept so darkly cynical and dreary a dictum as this as if it were a dear truth — there are heroes who live long lives and who never become villains — nor even appear to do so, to lucid minds. I might someday rank this higher, but currently don't even know how it relates to the date. ~ Kalki (talk · contributions) 04:54, 2 March 2011 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

It's not about what I want, it's about what's fair! You thought we could be decent men in an indecent time. But you were wrong. The world is cruel, and the only morality in a cruel world is chance. Unbiased. Unprejudiced. Fair. ~ Aaron Eckhart as Two-Face from The Dark Knight.

3 and strong lean toward a 4. Another powerful image depicted by Two-Face. The raw truth of chance in life is magnificently depicted here. I love this character and all that he stands for. Zarbon 19:21, 7 December 2008 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC) but my lean is toward 1 — because I hold that there are many very dangerous delusions at work in this statement, though I can accept that the character speaking them was in many ways understandably impelled into them.
- Yes, he was impelled but I really love the quote, it's from one of my alltime favorite scenes in the flick aside from the one I suggested above. I was really hoping that at least one of his quotes would make it this year. Well, there's always next year. - Zarbon 03:08, 12 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Geology has shared the fate of other infant sciences, in being for a while considered hostile to revealed religion; so like them, when fully understood, it will be found a potent and consistent auxiliary to it, exalting our conviction of the Power, and Wisdom, and Goodness of the Creator. ~ William Buckland

3 Fossil 20:36, 7 November 2008 (UTC)
1 Zarbon 19:23, 28 February 2009 (UTC)
2 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Geology holds the keys of one of the kingdoms of nature; and it cannot be said that a science which extends our Knowledge, and by consequence our Power, over a third part of nature, holds a low place among intellectual employments. ~ William Buckland

3 Fossil 20:36, 7 November 2008 (UTC)
2 Zarbon 19:23, 28 February 2009 (UTC)
3 UDScott 20:08, 9 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

God is indeed dead.
He died of self-horror
when He saw the creature He had made
in His own image.
~ Irving Layton

2 and lean toward 3. Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC) but my lean is toward 1.
3 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

When you argue with your inferiors,
you convince them of only one thing:
they are as clever as you.
~ Irving Layton

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

My neighbour
doesn't want to be loved
as much as
he wants to be envied.
~ Irving Layton

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. ~ Richard Steele

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
3 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Of all the affections which attend human life, the love of glory is the most ardent. ~ Richard Steele

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Old England is our home, and Englishmen are we;
Our tongue is known in every clime, our flag in every sea.
~ Mary Howitt

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Yes, in the poor man's garden grow
Far more than herbs and flowers—
Kind thoughts, contentment, peace of mind,
And joy for weary hours.
~ Mary Howitt

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Westward the course of empire takes its way;
The four first acts already past,
A fifth shall close the drama with the day:
Time's noblest offspring is the last.
~ George Berkeley

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
3 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

Our youth we can have but to-day,
We may always find time to grow old.
~ George Berkeley

2 Zarbon 05:18, 10 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)

What is that feeling when you're driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? — it's the too-huge world vaulting us, and it's good-by. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies. ~ Jack Kerouac in On the Road

3 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
3 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
1 Zarbon 03:08, 12 March 2009 (UTC)

The gods too are fond of a joke. ~ Socrates

3 Kalki 17:00, 11 March 2009 (UTC) with a strong lean toward 4, but probably extended for context; (originally placed on this date's suggestions as an attribution to Edward Albee)
2 InvisibleSun 22:09, 11 March 2009 (UTC)
2 Zarbon 03:08, 12 March 2009 (UTC)

You've still got the same old words that have been killing people since the birth of the human race. A "cowardly peace," that's a good one. Peace means not being at war, not fighting. How can you have a cowardly not-fighting. What are you trying to hide with this semantic confusion? Your real reasons? I can't blame you for being ashamed of them — I would be. Why don't you just come out and say you are keeping the war going because you enjoy killing? Seeing things die makes you and your murderers happy, and you want to make them happier still! ~ Harry Harrison

3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 15:58, 8 March 2012 (UTC) with a strong lean toward 4.

We must be as stealthy as rats in the wainscoting of their society. It was easier in the old days, of course, and society had more rats when the rules were looser, just as old wooden buildings have more rats than concrete buildings. But there are rats in the building now as well. Now that society is all ferrocrete and stainless steel there are fewer gaps in the joints. It takes a very smart rat indeed to find these openings. Only a stainless steel rat can be at home in this environment. ~ Harry Harrison

3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 15:58, 8 March 2012 (UTC) with a very strong lean toward 4.

You're not a homicidal, I checked that on your record before I came out after you. That is why I know you will join the Corps and get a great deal of pleasure out of going after the other kind of criminal who is sick, not just socially protesting. The man who can kill and enjoy it. ~ Harry Harrison

3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 15:58, 8 March 2012 (UTC) with a strong lean toward 4.

And of course the most amazing thing about reality, which we should never taken for granted, is that we can understand any of it. ~ Tony Piro - Calamities of Nature - (March 12, 2012 - Fairies - final episode - alt.text)

3 bystander (talk) 16:40, 13 March 2012 (UTC)
3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 17:04, 13 March 2012 (UTC)

I've noticed that there is not necessarily a great relationship between what the majority of critics have to say and what is actually true.

~ Edward Albee ~

3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:40, 11 March 2024 (UTC)

People take what a critic says as a fact rather than an opinion, and you have to know whether the opinion of the critic is informed or uninformed, intelligent or stupid — but most people don't take the trouble.

~ Edward Albee ~

3 ♞☤☮♌︎Kalki ⚚⚓︎⊙☳☶⚡ 23:40, 11 March 2024 (UTC)

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