William F. Buckley Jr. Quotes

Civilization depends on morality.

Ethics is a fluid term ...It's the standards by which a civilized society lives.

Never create by law what can be accomplished by morality.

We do not consider patriotism desirable if it contradicts civilized behavior.

Manners easily and rapidly mature into morals.

Morality, like language, is an invented structure for conserving and communicating order. And morality is learned, like language, by mimicking and remembering.

Morals are in all countries the result of legislation and government; they are not African or Asian or European: they are good or bad.

It is the duty of government to make it difficult for people to do wrong, easy to do right.

Morality is a social necessity

moral, adj. Conforming to a local and mutable standard of right. Having the quality of general expediency.

There are bad examples which are worse than crimes; and more states have perished from the violation of morality than from the violation of law.

There are people who think that honesty is always the best policy. This is a superstition. There are times when the appearance of it is worth six of it.

What is right is not always the same as what is legal

The moral foundation of the society, the way we interact with each other is more fundamental than the Supreme Court.

When "Do no Evil" has been understood, Then learn the harder, braver rule, "Do Good.

Virtue and decency are so nearly related that it is difficult to separate them from each other but in our imagination.

For how can you compete Being honour bred, with one Who, were it proved he lies, Were neither shamed in his own Nor in his neighbour's eyes?

The best laws cannot make a constitution work in spite of morals; morals can turn the worst laws to advantage.

Morality is the thing upon which your friends smile, and immorality is the thing upon which they frown

I've no objection to morality, except that it's obsolete.

The giving of riches and honors to a wicked man is like giving strong wine to him that hath a fever.

The law functions as formal embodiment of a moral code, not as free-standing substitute for it.

There can be no high civility without a deep morality, though it may not always call itself by that name.

The importance of a high moral code, which is at the foundation of the Scout movement, cannot be stressed too highly.

When the Way is lost there is virtue. When virtue is lost there is benevolence. When benevolence is lost there is righteousness. When righteousness is lost there are rituals.