Salman Rushdie Quotes

A man is not good or bad for one action.

The only equitable manner in my opinion, of judging the character of a man is to examine if there are personal calculations in his conduct; if there are not, we may blame his manner of judging, but we are not the less bound to esteem him.

Ninety-five percent of people who walk the earth are simply inert. One percent are saints, and one percent are assholes. The other three percent are people who do what they say they can do.

Character gives us qualities, but it is in our actions — what we do — that we are happy or the reverse.

The majority of men are more capable of great actions than of good ones.

Intentions are invisible but they are the true test of character.

Virtuous people are simply those who have not been tempted sufficiently, because they live in a vegetative state, or because their purposes are so concentrated in one direction that they have not had the leisure to glance around them.

The first step toward greatness is to be honest, says the proverb; but the proverb fails to state the case strong enough. Honesty is not only "the first step toward greatness," - it is greatness itself.

Strong moral character results from consistent correct choices in the trials and testing of life. Your faith can guide you to those correct choices.

Lord, give me the wisdom to know what's right and the courage to do what's right-even when it's hard.

Whether the man is an atheist or a Christian, I would judge him by his fruits, and I have therefore many agnostic friends.

Hypocrisy is bad, but it's not the worst vice in the world. If I declared “murder is wrong” and then killed somebody, I would hope that the top count against me would be homicide, not hypocrisy. Liberal elites ' particularly in Hollywood ' believe that hypocrisy is the gravest sin in the world, which is why they advocate their own lifestyles for the entire world: Sleep with whomever you want, listen to your own instincts, be true to yourself, blah, blah, blah. Our fear of hypocrisy is forcing us to live in a world where gluttons are fine, so long as they champion gluttony.

It is possible that a wise and good man may be prevailed on to game; but it is impossi∣ble that a professed gamester should be a wise and good man.

None But such as are good men can give good things, And that which is not good, is not delicious To a well-govern'd and wise appetite.

Remember, we can judge better by the conduct of people towards others than by their manner towards ourselves.

To have and not to give is often worse than to steal.

To say America can have strong leadership without strong character is to say we can get water without the wet.

In looking for people to hire, look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence and energy. And if they don't have the first, the other two will kill you.

Being true to ourselves doesn't make us people of integrity. Charles Manson was true to himself, and as a result, he rightly is spending the rest of his life in prison. Ultimately, being true to our Creator gives us the purest form of integrity.

Integrity is what you do behind closed doors or when you think nobody is watching. Integrity is the true essence of who you are, your beliefs and your values. Reputation is the public perception of who you are. It is how others view your integrity or strong moral principles.

The honest and good man ought to be exactly like a man who smells strong, so that the bystander as soon as he comes near him must smell whether he choose or not.

I don't admire how much a person has, I admire what a person does with what they have and I think that defines you most.

It is circumstance and proper measure that give an action its character, and make it either good or bad.

Reputation is rarely proportioned to virtue.