“The Wizard's First Rule: People are stupid; given proper motivation almost anyone will believe almost anything.”

1920s, The Doctrine Of The Sword (1920)
Context: In this age of the rule of brute force, it is almost impossible for anyone to believe that anyone else could possibly reject the law of final supremacy of brute force. And so I receive anonymous letters advising me that I must not interfere with the progress of non-co-operation even though popular violence may break out. Others come to me and assuming that secretly I must be plotting violence, inquire when the happy moment for declaring open violence to arrive. They assure me that English never yield to anything but violence secret or open. Yet others I am informed, believe that I am the most rascally person living in India because I never give out my real intention and that they have not a shadow of a doubt that I believe in violence just as much as most people do.
Such being the hold that the doctrine of the sword has on the majority of mankind, and as success of non-co-operation depends principally on absence of violence during its pendency and as my views in this matter affect the conduct of large number of people. I am anxious to state them as clearly as possible.
I do believe that where there is only a choice between cowardice and violence I would advise violence.

Source: Bleak Seasons (1996), Chapter 77 (p. 212)

Voltaire (1916)

Quotes from the Books

The Illiterate Digest (1924), p. 228

The Complete Neurotic's Notebook (1981), Unclassified

Source: Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and its Consequences (1988), Chapter 2, “Probability and Coincidence” (p. 44)

The Preface to the American edition of Fated to be Free (1875)

"Of Women"
Parerga and Paralipomena (1851), Studies in Pessimism