Quote #113

No state has an inherent right to survive through conscript troops and, in the long run, no state ever has. Roman matrons used to say to their sons: 'Come back with your shield, or on it.' Later on, this custom declined. So did Rome.

More from Robert A. Heinlein

  1. 'No man is an island - ' Much as we may feel and act as Individuals, our race is - a single organism, always growing and branching - which …
  2. Nursing does not diminish the beauty of a woman's breasts; it enhances their charm by making them look lived in and happy.
  3. Never underestimate the power of human stupidity.
  4. Of all the strange 'crimes' that human beings have legislated out of nothing, 'blasphemy'is the most amazing - with 'obscenity' and 'indece…
  5. Never crowd youngsters about their private affairs - sex especially. When they are growing up, they are nerve ends all over, and resent (qu…
  6. One man's 'magic' is another man's engineering. 'Supernatural' is a null word.
  7. Never appeal to a man's 'better nature.' He may not have one. Invoking his self-interest gives you more leverage.
  8. One man's theology is another man's belly laugh.

All Robert A. Heinlein quotes