Maxioms by H. L. Mencken
It is common to assume that human progress affects everyone- that even the dullest man, in these bright days, knows read more
It is common to assume that human progress affects everyone- that even the dullest man, in these bright days, knows more than any man of, say, the Eighteenth Century, and is far more civilized. This assumption is quite erroneous...The great masses of men, even in this inspired republic, are precisely where the mob was at the dawn of history. They are ignorant, they are dishonest, they are cowardly, they are ignoble. They know little if anything that is worth knowing, and there is not the slightest sign of a natural desire among them to increase their knowledge.
The objection of the scandalmonger is not that she tells of racy doings, but that she pretends to be indignant read more
The objection of the scandalmonger is not that she tells of racy doings, but that she pretends to be indignant about them.
No matter how happily a woman may be married, it always pleases her to discover that there is a nice read more
No matter how happily a woman may be married, it always pleases her to discover that there is a nice man who wishes that she were not.
The idea that the sole aim of punishment is to prevent crime is obviously grounded upon the theory that crime read more
The idea that the sole aim of punishment is to prevent crime is obviously grounded upon the theory that crime can be prevented, which is almost as dubious as the notion that poverty can be prevented.
In war the heroes always outnumber the soldiers ten to one.
In war the heroes always outnumber the soldiers ten to one.
