“An ancient tradition declares that every idiot blunder we pass into law will sooner or later redound to Athens’ profit.”

Full of wiles, full of guile, at all times, in all ways, are the children of Men.

Thou shouldst not decide until thou hast heard what both have to say.

Open your mouth and shut your eyes and see what Zeus will send you.

Characteristics of a popular politician: a horrible voice, bad breeding, and a vulgar manner.

It is right that the good should be happy, that the wicked and the impious on the other hand, should be miserable; that is a truth, I believe, which no one will gainsay.

Look at the orators in our republics; as long as they are poor, both state and people can only praise their uprightness; but once they are fattened on the public funds, they conceive a hatred for justice, plan intrigues against the people and attack the democracy.

Old age is second childhood.

You can’t have anything else to say: you’ve poured out every drop of what you know.

Ignorance can be cured, but stupidity is forever.

One must not try to trick misfortune, but resign oneself to it with good grace.

The wise learn many things from their enemies.

To invoke solely the weaker arguments and yet triumph is an art worth more than a hundred thousand drachmae.

It often happens that less depends upon the valor of an army than the skill of the leader.

Poverty, the most fearful monster that ever drew breath.

Under every stone lurks a politician.

A man may learn wisdom even from a foe.

Acting is the perfect idiot’s profession.

Together, we make two halves of a whole idiot.

After 50 years of television, there’s no other conclusion the aliens could draw, but that most humans are neurotic, death-hungry, dysfunctional idiots.

Our nation is turning into an idiocracy.

To an old leader will be born an idiot heir, weak both in knowledge and in war.

A lot of writers come from Harvard and such, and are rich, and they write under the misapprehension that poor people are stupid. So when they do write them, they are hillbillies or rednecks or Christian idiots.

There’s a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot.

Drugs are for idiots. I’m never going to be that person.