“The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are.”
Source: Meditations
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Marcus Aurelius 400
Emperor of Ancient Rome 121–180Related quotes

Labour's Tom Watson: EU free movement rules must change https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36523759 BBC News (14 June 2016)
2016

"The Palace of the End" (2003)
Context: There are two rules of war that have not yet been invalidated by the new world order. The first rule is that the belligerent nation must be fairly sure that its actions will make things better; the second rule is that the belligerent nation must be more or less certain that its actions won't make things worse. America could perhaps claim to be satisfying the first rule (while admitting that the improvement may be only local and short term). It cannot begin to satisfy the second.