Pat Benatar Quotes

It is only out of ignorance that people are cruel, because they really don't think it will come back.

Circumstances cause us to act the way we do. We should always bear this in mind before judging the actions of others. I realized this from the start during World War II.

I think that if people are instructed about anything, it should be about the nature of cruelty. And about why people behave so cruelly to each other. And what kind of satisfactions they derive from it. And why there is always a cost, and a price to be paid.

If we don't accept the uncomfortable proposition that every perpetrator of virtually every act of evil in our history has been a human being like us, then we actually foreclose the possibility of understanding how we do this to one another and therefore make it impossible to figure out how we might prevent these things.

Human beings can be awful cruel to one another.

Look, it's terrible, I know, but weakness really, really bugs me, to the point that if there is a wounded bird on the sidewalk, I look at it and I go: I think I'll just kick it.

If I could do anything about the way people behave towards each other, I would, but since I can't, I'll stick to animals.

I don't know if there's a lot of patience anymore. I think that could serve a lot of people.

Personally I don't believe in bad people. I think there's always a reason for people acting badly.

Do you think you can cure the hatreds and the maladjustments of the world by hanging them? You simply show your ignorance and your hate when you say it. You may here and there cure hatred with love and understanding, but you can only add fuel to the flames by cruelty and hate.

I'm good with telling people what I think, too, but I don't know why people are so content to treat each other poorly.

He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.

The measure of and self-congratulation for our own intelligence should have its basis in our moral behavior as well as our smarts.

I'm an optimist in the sense that I believe humans are noble and honorable, and some of them are really smart. I have a very optimistic view of individuals.

I don't like anybody to be angry with me. I'd rather have friends.

I hate people.

I think I get angry when people cause serious suffering or don't alleviate suffering when they could.

I only wish that ordinary people had an unlimited capacity for doing harm; then they might have an unlimited power for doing good.

With violence, as with so many other concerns, human nature is the problem, but human nature is also the solution.

The most rewarding thing for me has been this affirmation for me that people are basically good and smart, and if you give them a simple tool that allows them to exhibit that behavior, they'll prove it to you every single day.

I've been fascinated by the idea that evil is the absence of empathy.

Well, of course, people are only human... But it really does not seem much for them to be.

People are so difficult. Give me an elephant any day.

As a species, we can at times be dimwitted and cruel. But we're also capable of learning.

We are not by nature cruel.