Better and safer is an assured peace than a victory hoped for. The one is in your own power, the other is in the hands of the gods.

Rome has grown since its humble beginnings that it is now overwhelmed by its own greatness.

The populace is like the sea motionless in itself, but stirred by every wind, even the lightest breeze.

Men are slower to recognize blessings than evils.

A fraudulent intent, however carefully concealed at the outset, will generally, in the end, betray itself.

Adversity makes men remember God.

There is always more spirit in attack than in defence.

Shared danger is the strongest of bonds; it will keep men united in spite of mutual dislike and suspicion.

The old Romans all wished to have a king over them because they had not yet tasted the sweetness of freedom.

There is nothing worse than being ashamed of parsimony or poverty.

Great contests generally excite great animosities.

I stare at the long, almost elegant thinness of the wrist bone jutting out from a heap of flesh and cloth. All that separates us, that poor woman and me, is an accident of birth.

Internal character: how you behave when no one is watching.

What you may seek and what you may find are not always one.

If you decide to become a political actor, then the things that you say and you do become subject of public scrutiny and comment.

I like what I see when I'm looking at me when I'm walking past the mirror.

You know, in the WikiLeaks cables, the Chinese discovered that Kevin Rudd was urging the Americans to keep the military option open against them. This is hardly a friendly gesture.

To aim at excellence, our reputation, and friends, and all must be ventured; to aim at the average we run no risk and provide little service.

The MacGuffin in that [Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky story] was [Bill] Clinton staying in office. That's what he wanted, and the media was hell-bent that he was gonna get what he wanted.

Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most.

I take really good care of myself. I promised myself long ago that I would never miss a hunting season, never poison my sacred temple with drugs, alcohol, tobacco or bad food.