F. D. Roosevelt Quotes

Comparison is the thief of all joy.

Unless the peace that follows recognizes that the whole world is one neighborhood and does justice to the whole human race, the germs of another world war will remain as a constant threat to mankind.

The things you refuse to meet today always come back at you later on, usually under circumstances which make the decision twice as difficult as it originally was.

Nationwide thinking, nationwide planning and nationwide action are the three great essentials to prevent nationwide crises for future generations to struggle through.

To leave the world richer—that is the ultimate success.

Furnish an example, stop preaching, stop shielding, don't prevent self-reliance and initiative, allow your children to develop along thier own lines.

No human being can ever 'own' another, whether in friendship, love, marriage, or parenthood.

Terrific minds focus on tips; average minds go over activities; little minds talk about people today.

The future lies with those wise political leaders who realize that the great public is interested more in government than in politics.

Conservation means development as much as it does protection.

Buying and selling securities on the Stock Exchange do not start new industries. Big business never starts anything new. It merely absorbs, consolidates and profits at the expense of others.

We must be willing to learn the lesson that cooperation may imply compromise, but if it brings a world advance it is a gain for each individual nation.

As for accomplishments, I just did what I had to do as things came along.

There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism.

No man who is not willing to bear arms and to fight for his rights can give a good reason why he should be entitled to the privilege of living in a free community.

There is nothing brilliant or outstanding in my record, except perhaps this one thing. I do the things I believe ought to be done. And when I make up my mind to do a thing, I act.

There can be little doubt that in many ways the story of bridge building is the story of civilisation. By it we can readily measure an important part of a people's progress.

I think we are warranted in contending that a society thus constituted, and which may be rendered so admirable an engine of improvement, far from meriting reproach, deserves highly of the community.

Only those are fit to live who do not fear to die and none are fit to die who have shrunk from the joy of life and the duty of life.

Every man has a right to life, and this means that he has also a right to make a comfortable living.

A great man left a watchword that we can well repeat: "There is no indispensable man"

If given the choice between Righteousness and Peace, I choose Righteousness.

That is the spiral galaxy in Andromeda. It is as large as our Milky Way. It is one of a hundred million galaxies. It consists of one hundred billion suns. Now I think we are small enough.

A great democracy must be progressive or it will soon cease to be a great democracy.

Philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes.

If I have to choose between peace and righteousness, I'll choose righteousness.

A radical is a man with both feet firmly planted-in the air.

Perhaps there is no more important component of character than steadfast resolution.

A Liberal is a man who uses his legs and his hands at the behest-at the command-of his head.

[On refusing to allow photos to be published of herself and her children:] A lady's name should appear in print only three times, at her birth, marriage, and death.

The only thing we have to fear is a giant wheelchair-crushing squid. Well... uh... actually, I guess that's the only thing I have to fear.

I have a terrific headache.

Everyone loves justice in the affairs of another.

It is of far more important that a man shall play something himself, even if he plays it badly, than that he shall go with hundreds of companions to see someone else play well.

No political party has exclusive patent rights on prosperity.

Then get busy and find out how to do it.

Rhetoric is a poor substitute for action.

What you don't do can be a destructive force.

The boy who is going to make a great man must not make up his mind merely to overcome a thousand obstacles, but to win in spite of a thousand repulses and defeats.

Go ahead, and fear not. You will have a full library at your service.

Politeness [is] a sign of dignity, not subservience.

It isn't sufficient just to want - you've got to ask yourself what you are going to do to get the things you want.

I am a part of everything that I have read.

Prosperous farmers mean more employment, more prosperity for the workers and the business men of every industrial area in the whole country.

The joy in life is his who has the heart to demand it.

Wide differences of opinion in matters of religious, political, and social belief must exist if conscience and intellect alike are not to be stunted, if there is to be room for healthy growth.

There is apt to be a lunatic fringe among the votaries of any forward movement.

The man of great wealth owes a peculiar obligation to the state because he derives special advantages from the mere existence of government.

There are many occasions when the highest praise one can receive is the attack of some given scoundrel.

The modern naturalist must realize that in some of its branches his profession, while more than ever a science, has also become an art.