Alfred North Whitehead Quotes

Nothing can justify war.

If you are not prepared to use force to defend civilization, then be prepared to accept barbarism.

We believe in peace, but we are not pacifists. Sometimes we have to use force

The right things to do are those that keep our violence in abeyance; the wrong things are those that bring it to the fore.

We must begin by acknowledging the hard truth: We will not eradicate violent conflict in our lifetimes. There will be times when nations—acting individually or in concert—will find the use of force not only necessary but morally justified.

The law "thou shalt not kill" has thus come to prevail among the individuals of a civilized state. It does not prevail among nations because our national mind still finds advantage in killing men of other nations and is heedless of the disadvantages to ourselves.

There is a difference between myself and some of the peace people in Europe: whereas they think that the ultimate evil in the world is war, I think the ultimate evil in the world is aggression, and aggression sometimes must be repelled by force.

There is no such thing as a politically correct war.

Any man who has once proclaimed violence as his method is inevitably forced to take the lie as his principle.

Morality is contraband in war.

War can only be abolished through war, and in order to get rid of the gun it is necessary to take up the gun.

War, except in self-defense, is a failure of moral imagination.

Force and mind are opposites; morality ends where a gun begins.

I'm really interested in how conflicts arise and how they reach points of no return. I'm no pacifist. Sometimes force is necessary. But war is a choice.

Those who 'abjure' violence can do so only because others are committing violence on their behalf.

I myself am a very nonviolent person and only resort to violence when I absolutely have to.

A sane person doesn't think war is a good idea. I'm not a pacifist. I feel that there are situations where fighting is inescapable, but we don't go looking for those things.

I'm not a pacifist. I feel that there are situations where fighting is inescapable, but we don't go looking for those things.

No man has the right to initiate the use of physical force against others.

Force should never be the first answer, but sometimes it is the only answer.

Force cannot change right.

International law seeks to avoid the use of force but does not preclude it.

The end of war is to procure by force the justice which cannot otherwise be obtained.

There's a very heavy burden of proof to be borne by anyone who calls for violence. Maybe it can be sometimes justified. Personally, I'm not a committed pacifist, so I think that, yes, it can sometimes be justified.

Repel force by force