Woodrow Wilson Quotes

His foe was folly and his weapon wit.

Fools are my theme, let satire be my song.

There are two ways of dealing with nonsense in this world. One way is to put nonsense in the right place; as when people put nonsense into nursery rhymes. The other is to put nonsense in the wrong place; as when they put it into educational addresses, psychological criticisms, and complaints against nursery rhymes or other normal amusements of mankind.

From my experience, politicians are much more uncomfortable being made fun of than they are being preached at and screeched at - you know, and the soapbox routine. They're much more uneasy knowing they're a target of ridicule.

Facetiousness is allowable when it is the most proper instrument of exposing things apparently base and vile to due contempt.

Satire is a form of social control, it's what you do. It's not personal. It's a job.

Take all the fools out of this world and there wouldn't be any fun living in it, or profit.

It's an old Elizabethan idea. The fool is the only one who is allowed to make fun of the king because he is a fool. I can say whatever I want about anybody else because I'm just an idiot talking - I'm not insisting that I'm any smarter than anyone else. It's satire.

In a satire, you need foolishness.

Satire recoils whenever charged too high; round your own fame the fatal splinters fly.

Comedy is grievances. It's a recitation of grievances - whether they're inconsequential, superficial - like "my wife shops too much", or "kids today", all those old-fashioned themes - or, if it's deeper, and somewhat more thoughtful, about social imbalance and inequities, and the folly of human behavior. It's usually a complaint.

Don't you know that it is only very foolish folk who talk sense all the time?

Mingle a little folly with your wisdom; a little nonsense now and then is pleasant. [Lat., Misce stultitiam consiliis brevem: Dulce est desipere in loco.

Thus we play the fool with the time and the spirits of the wise sit in the clouds and mock us.

Ridicule is the unfortunate destiny of the ridiculous.

By rights, satire is a lonely and introspective occupation, for nobody can describe a fool to the life without much patient self-inspection.

If you say to me: "Master, it would seem that you weren't too terribly wise to have written these bits of nonsense and pleasant mockeries," I respond that you are hardly more so in finding amusement in reading them.

Scoffing cometh not of wisdom.

Many, affecting wit beyond their power, Have got to be a dear fool for an hour.

If folly disappeared, wit would starve.

Dear Bill (O'Reilly)...I am concerned that you have been losing touch with reality recently. Did you really say you are more powerful than any politician? That reminds me of the famous story about Squeaky the Chicago Mouse. It seems that Squeaky was floating on his back along the Chicago River one day. Approaching the Michigan Avenue lift bridge, he called out: Raise the bridge! I have an erection!

Think of something to make the ridiculous look ridiculous.

It is the business of a comic poet to paint the vices and follies of human kind.

You know what you are? You're a beard with an idiot hanging off it.

Sometimes presenting the most ignorant point of view can be the best way to satirize the issue and highlight that ignorance.