Moral Flexibility Quotes

I do not like an injurious lie, except when it injures somebody else.

Therefore, a prudent ruler ought not to keep faith when by so doing it would be against his interest, and when the reasons which made him bind himself no longer exist. If men were all good, this precept would not be a good one; but as they are bad, and would not observe their faith with you, so you are not bound to keep faith with them.

The prince must not mind incurring the scandal of those vices without which it would be difficult to save the state.

He [William Gladstone] made his conscience not his guide but his accomplice.

Can't he understand it if a soldier who has crossed thousands of kilometers through blood and fire and death has fun with a woman or takes some trifle?

John von Neumann gave me an interesting idea: that you don't have to be responsible for the world that you're in. So I have developed a very powerful sense of social irresponsibility as a result of von Neumann's advice. It's made me a very happy man ever since. But it was von Neumann who put the seed in that grew into my active irresponsibility!

Never let your sense of morals get in the way of doing what's right.

It seems that in the world of politics, lying is not such a big deal.

Man grows used to everything, the scoundrel!

Intelligence work has one moral law—it is justified by results.

Principles aren't of much account anyway, except at election time. After that you hang them up to let them season.

Very rarely do people make big compromises with their integrity. Almost every compromise is a small one that is easily justified. The downhill slide is usually a result of many little compromises.

If he [Franklin Delano Roosevelt] became convinced tomorrow that coming out for cannibalism would get him the votes he so sorely needs, he would begin fattening a missionary on the White House backyard come Wednesday.

I am on the side of the underdog except when I am on the side of the rich

If the chief party ... be corrupt, you must follow their humor and indulge them, and in that case honesty and virtue are pernicious.

The more bad choices you make, the less bad your choices seem.

Truth is, I've always been selling out. The difference is that in the past, I looked like I had integrity because there were no buyers.

A man who wishes to make a profession of goodness in everything must necessarily come to grief among so many who are not good. Therefore, it is necessary for a prince, who wishes to maintain himself, to learn how not to be good, and to use this knowledge and not use it according to the necessity of the case.

There's a gigantic gray area between good moral behavior and outright felonious activities. I call that the Weasel Zone and it's where most of life happens.

The leader should know how to enter into evil when necessity commands.

Good and bad are really arbitrary words when it comes to character.

Nothing is a sin when you obey the orders of a priest

With a gentleman I am always a gentleman and a half, and with a fraud I try to be a fraud and a half.

I am conservative with a small 'c.' It's possible to be conservative in fiscal policy, and tolerant on moral issues or questions of freedom of expression.