thucydides

“ We secure our friends not by accepting favors but by doing them. ”

“ It is useless to attack a man who could not be controlled even if conquered, while failure would leave us in an even worse position. ”

“ They whose minds are least sensitive to calamity, and whose hands are most quick to meet it, are the greatest men and the greatest communities. ”

“ Justice is an issue only between equals, otherwise those in power do what they can and the weak forgive. ”

“ I dont blame those who want to rule but those who are more ready to obey. ”

“ The strong do what they have to do and the weak accept what they have to accept. ”

“ The Nation that makes a huge distinction between its scholars and its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting done by fools. ”

“ Right, as the world goes, is only in question between equals in power, while the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must. ”

“ The growth of the power of Athens, and the alarm which this inspired in Sparta, made war inevitable. ”

“ It is a common mistake in going to war to begin at the wrong end, to act first, and wait for disaster to discuss the matter. ”