“I never worry about action, but only about inaction.”
Winston Churchill (Author) and Richard Langworth (Editor) (28. Oktober 2008): Churchill by Himself: The Definitive Collection of Quotations. New York: PublicAffairs (1st Edition), page 160. note: See also: 1940s. Passim. Martin Gilbert, The Churchill War Papers, Volume II: Never Surrender, May 1940-December 1940. London: Heinemann, New York: Norton, 1994, page xvi, where Sir Martin writes in his Preface: "Inefficiency, incompetence and negative attitudes roused his ire: I have indicated some examples of this in the Churchill index entry, under “rebukes by.” He did not take kindly to what he called “a drizzle of carping criticism,” or to those officials, military or civilian, who, as he expressed it, “failed to rise to the height of circumstances.” Among his injunctions to his Ministers were, “Don’t let this matter sleep,” and, “I never ‘worry’ about action, but only about inaction.”" note: See also: In a letter, on page 1184 of the above work: Concerning “Operation Compass,” the first major British offensive in North Africa, Churchill wrote to General Dill on 7 December 1940: "If, with the situation as it is, General Wavell is only playing small, and is not hurling on his whole available forces with furious energy, he will have failed to rise to the height of circumstances. I never “worry” about action, but only about inaction." note: Source for all the aforementioned information: Richard M. Langworth (Senior fellow, Hillsdale College Churchill Project, Writer and Historian) (March 4, 2009): Churchill on Action vs. Inaction.
Source: Archived on June 2, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200602062301/https://richardlangworth.com/i-never-worry-about-action-but-only-about-inaction and secured on June 2, 2020 http://archive.is/Xgxu6 from the original https://richardlangworth.com/i-never-worry-about-action-but-only-about-inaction
Help us to complete the source, original and additional information
Winston S. Churchill 601
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1874–1965Related quotes
“I don't worry about it, because I never took an overdosage.”
1987
Attributed
John Perry Barlow 2.0 (2004)
Context: It’s a perfect set of circumstances to give us the time Yeats foretold, with the best having lost all conviction and the worst full of passionate intensity. I’m an optimist. In order to be libertarian, you have to be an optimist. You have to have a benign view of human nature, to believe that human beings left to their own devices are basically good. But I’m not so sure about human institutions, and I think the real point of argument here is whether or not large corporations are human institutions or some other entity we need to be thinking about curtailing. Most libertarians are worried about government but not worried about business. I think we need to be worrying about business in exactly the same way we are worrying about government.
“When you control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his actions.”
Preface <!-- p. 21 -->
Source: The Mis-Education of the Negro (1933)
Context: When you control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his actions. You do not have to tell him not to stand here or go yonder. He will find his "proper place" and will stay in it. You do not need to send him to the back door. He will go without being told. In fact, if there is no back door, he will cut one for his special benefit. His education makes it necessary.
The same educational process which inspires and stimulates the oppressor with the thought that he is everything and has accomplished everything worth while, depresses and crushes at the same time the spark of genius in the Negro by making him feel that his race does not amount to much and never will measure up to the standards of other peoples. The Negro thus educated is a hopeless liability of the race.
“Action always beats inaction.”
Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money-That the Poor and the Middle Class Do Not!
