“Reason and judgment are the qualities of a leader.”

The sciences throw an inexpressible grace over our compositions, even where they are not immediately concerned; as their effects are discernible where we least expect to find them.

A cowardly populace which will dare nothing beyond talk.

The sciences throw an inexpressible grace over our compositions, even where they are not immediately concerned; as their effects are discernible where we least expect to find them.

The gods are on the side of the stronger.

Christianity is a pestilent superstition.

Valor is of no service, chance rules all, and the bravest often fall by the hands of cowards.

Power acquired by guilt was never used for a good purpose.

Christianity is a pestilent superstition.

An honorable death is better than a dishonorable life.

A woman once fallen will shrink from no impropriety.

Indeed, the crowning proof of their valour and their strength is that they keep up their superiority without harm to others.

It is the nature of the human disposition to hate him whom you have injured.

Reason and calm judgment, the qualities specially belonging to a leader.

We extol ancient things, regardless of our own times. [Lat., Vetera extollimus recentium incuriosi.]

The powerful hold in deep remembrance an ill-timed pleasantry. [Lat., Facetiarum apud praepotentes in longum memoria est.]

War will of itself discover and lay open the hidden and rankling wounds of the victorious party.

Then I try to come up with ideas for parodies. And 99% of those ideas are horrible.

The fear of saying something stupid (which stupid people never have) has censored far more good ideas than bad ones.

What I want to argue for is not that we should give up on our ideas of success, but that we should make sure that they are our own. We should focus in on our ideas and make sure that we own them, that we’re truly the authors of our own ambitions.

There is a devilishly direct relationship between the significance of an idea and how nervous we become at the prospect of having to think about it.

I start with a comprehensive list of all the recent songs that have been big hits – and then I go down that list and see if I can come up with funny ideas for them. I can always come up with ideas, but not necessarily good ones!

It’s hard to really articulate what the parameters are that make one song parody-able and another song not, but if I can come up with a good enough idea for it, I go for it, and if not, then I have to move on.

I did say to her that I thought that she had a real gift, and it’s a good idea to know that. It’s always good to go with your gift.

My process for the parodies is that I get an idea for a song and then get approval from the artist and then go in and record it and probably try to get it out as soon as possible.