Robert G. Ingersoll Quotes

If we are not ashamed to think it, we should not be ashamed to say it.

In terms of having views and being prepared to express them, yes, I think New Zealand's had a leadership role in a lot of things.

Countries aren't built by boring people.

America needs some honest men who dare to say what they think, not what they think people want them to think.

History shows us that the youth are usually a step ahead of their elders when change is required.

Leaders must go ahead even when moving ahead is controversial. You must be ahead of time, because if you want to represent the status quo, what do you need leaders for?

We're always trying to stay on the cutting edge but also, at the same time, do something that's real. We're never going to do something that's not us.

I work in a public forum, and all I can do is say what I honestly feel.

If what you're writing is genuine, regardless of whether it sounds cliche or people wouldn't necessarily think it's the most brilliant metaphor in the world, it's always important to be genuine with what you're writing; at least, that's how I feel.

On an occasion of this kind it becomes more than a moral duty to speak one's mind. It becomes a pleasure.

The world is starving for leaders who are not afraid to dismantle the sacred and precious beliefs, which hold us as prisoners of the past.

An ability to embrace new ideas, routinely challenge old ones, and live with paradox will be the effective leader's premier trait.

I would like to continue being radical. As you get older, some of the world catches up and it's passed you. In the '60s you were on the crest of a wave because you were part of the wave. I don't want be a stick in the mud and do the same thing as I did last year, I want to do something different and see what happens.

I think we are living in a time, where as a whole, as a community, people do want to push the boundaries.

You make real progress when somebody is honest enough to say something that's really uncomfortable. Of course when you're a candidate's wife and when you're first lady and the first African-American first lady to boot, that is very, very hard to do.

I'm not going to sit around an pretend I'm not thinking things on my blog when I am thinking them and when I'm open to rebuttal.

I hate diversity workshops. “Real change comes from having enough comfort to be really honest and say something very uncomfortable.

I just think it's ridiculous to be dogmatic and be caught in the past. You have to be open, aware, nimble and flexible about changes in the world.

Film, television, and working with a camera is such an intimate art form that if a camera is right on you, and I've got your face filling the screen, you have to be real. If you do anything that is fake, you're not going to get away with it, because the camera is right there, and the story is being told in a very real way.

I love being able to stay real to the world.

I was always 'awake'...Some part of me clamoring for NEW insights and NEW ways to make the world a better place.

I think there are a lot of people who feel very passionate about needing to have an open debate. And I think it's a real sign of leadership that the press needs to be actually standing up for that.

I try to be genuine. I try to be real. It's such a subjective thing, but I try to convey an emotion.

I want to be real. I want to be a real person. That's what an artist is. An artist has to be honest. Without honesty, there's nothing.

Authenticity resonates with people. The industry can be very misleading and is built to make people believe what they see. But people aren't dumb they can see through that and I think real music and real people resonate.