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Knowing how things work is the basis for appreciation, and is thus a source of civilized delight.
William Safire
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William Safire
Age: 79 †
Born: 1929
Born: December 17
Died: 2009
Died: September 27
Author
Columnist
Journalist
Writer
New York City
New York
William Lewis Safire
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Delight
Thus
Gratitude
Source
Knowing
Civilized
Work
Appreciation
Things
Basis
More quotes by William Safire
No one flower can ever symbolize this nation. America is a bouquet.
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Last, but not least, avoid cliches like the plague.
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The right to do something does not mean that doing it is right.
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Decide on some imperfect Somebody and you will win, because the truest truism in politics is: You can't beat Somebody with Nobody.
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George Washington had a tough second term.
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If you re-read your work, you can find on re-reading a great deal of repetition can be avoided by re-reading and editing.
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A dependent clause is like a dependent child: incapable of standing on its own but able to cause a lot of trouble.
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What a joy it is to see really professional media manipulation.
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To be accused of 'channeling' is to be dismissed as a ventriloquist's live dummy, derogated at not having a mind of one's own.
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Dangling punch lines to forgotten stories remain in the language like the smile of the Cheshire cat.
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Carter is the best President the Soviet Union ever had.
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You don't want lopsided government. You don't want one side running roughshod over the other.
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Better to be a jerk that knees than a knee that jerks.
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It behooves us to avoid archaisms. Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.
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I want my questions answered by an alert and experienced politician, prepared to be grilled and quoted -- not my hand held by an old smoothie.
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The CEO era gave rise to the CFO (not certified flying object, as you might imagine, but chief financial officer) and, most recently, the CIO, chief investment officer, a nice boost for the bookkeeper you can't afford to give a raise . . .
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I welcome new words, or old words used in new ways, provided the result is more precision, added color or greater expressiveness.
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Never put the story in the lead. Let 'em have a hot shot of ambiguity right between the eyes.
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You don't overturn a previous court's decisions lightly and I think most Americans are somewhere in the middle on abortion and there's not going to be a revolution here at all.
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Gridlock is great. My motto is, 'Don't just do something. Stand there.'
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