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In any game of hazard, including war, if you don’t quit while you’re ahead, you’ll quit when you’re behind. Those are the options. You cannot quit any other time – and quitting while you’re ahead is better.

On avoiding war

It is not enough to do the right thing; you have to do it at the right time. Doing the right thing at the wrong time is doing the wrong thing.

It’s useless to kiss the ass of bullies. They regard it as lip service.

Hanging around disagreeable places to prevent something in which you don’t want to get caught up just about guarantees that you’ll be caught up in whatever you fail to prevent. Remembering this might have avoided the tragedy at Benghazi that cost U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens his life.

Western coalitions did not prevent civil wars in the East; they presided over them.

It isn’t silent majorities that drive things, but vocal minorities. Don’t count heads; count decibels

On democracy