joe saying

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Joe Sayings Answers To The Common Questions of Over 5,000 Students and Teachers Too

Self

English

Joseph N. Wdowski, M.S. Ed. JAA Publishing

12/14/2013

JOE SAYINGS - By Joseph N. Wdowski

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"I don't really know anything, I am just opinionated"

- A Joe Saying (JW)

INTRODUCTION

Who is Joe and why should You care what he says?

I am sure your first question is "Who is Joe and why should I care what he says?" Well to

answer your question simply; I am Joe - Joseph Nicholas Wdowski to be more precise1. The

truth is I am no one special. I am not rich, not famous, not a V.I.P., I am just another nobody

in a human sea of nobodies. I am just a man who has lived his life the best he could without

hurting others, and to do what he loves to do most; teach. I love teaching. I think my love for

teaching is rooted in my love for learning, debating ideas, and seeking truth. "A good teacher

is always a good student." - A Joe saying.

1 Precise: to be exact, to be accurate, to be more specific. There are many Joe's in the world, but only

one Joseph Nicholas Wdowski.


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My fondest childhood memory is when my mother would have dinner parties in our home.

She would cook large meals for twelve or more people. We would sit in our Larchmont, New

York dining room and eat and talk for hours about everything, nothing was taboo2. My

mother encouraged us to examine the world we live in, to seek out truth and understanding.

When I became a teacher I wanted very much for my classes to be like sitting around my

mother's dining room table, unfortunately minus the good food.

I have taught over twenty years; in Taipei, in the United States, and at the time of writing this

book, in Chongqing, China. During my time as a university teacher and even as a student, I

have for some reason drawn a lot of people, not just students but other teachers too, to

approach me with their personal problems and concerns. I have taught over five-thousand

students on both sides of this planet, and even though the cultures between America and

China do have differences, most of the problems are the same. Over the years many of the

same questions have been asked of me. Over time I have developed standard answers that I

now call "Joe Sayings." I have often used my Joe sayings in my lessons, and many of my

students have asked me for them in a book form. That is the reason I am now writing this

book. It is a collection of my Joe sayings over the years with explanations to help the reader

better understand them.

Many of my students have informed me that my Joe sayings have helped them greatly and

have even changed their lives for the better. Some students have even contacted me years

after I had taught them and informed me that at first they did not understand what I had

taught them, but now understand my teaching and it has helped them greatly in their lives.

They called me after all these years to just thank me - no greater feeling for a teacher. So I

2 Taboo: Something that is terrible or horrible that is not allowed or forbidden.


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have compiled my Joe Sayings into this book and hope they can bring you the same benefits

they have clearly given some of my students and colleagues.

I do feel it is important to first explain a little bit more about me. It may help you to

understand my point of view of life better so you can better understand the Joe Sayings.

My Hometown

If you have never heard of Larchmont3 it is actually a village (not a town, but a village) on

the Long Island Sound in the State of New York. It is what is known as a bedroom

community4 of New York City. The Village of Larchmont's train station is only 20 minutes

from the heart of Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal. Larchmont, even for America is a

wealthy community; only 10,000 citizens with three yacht5 clubs and a golf course.

3 Larchmont was named after a type of tree called the Larch tree. 4 Bedroom Community; I town outside a major city like New York where people mostly sleep.

Because they spend most of the time working and playing in the city 5 Yacht: A sail boat for pleasure sailing, usually can sleep 4 to 6 adults, has a small kitchen for

preparing food.

Figure 1- Manor Park, Larchmont, NY


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One great advantage of growing up in Larchmont was that the schools were extremely good,

and my classmates were the children of people from all over the world. Some were the

children of United Nations representatives6 and translators

7.

My other classmates were the children of employees of international corporations. I had friends

from Korea, Italy, France, Uganda, South Africa, Japan, and many other nations. My mother

would often say to me. "We do not need to travel around the world, the world comes to us."

Very often my mother would open our home to foreign exchange students. We had a girl

from Poland live with us, a

girl from China, and a girl

from Central America.

Later in my life for three

summers I had a boy from

Spain live with me. I

would teach him English

and he became like a

second son to me.

6 Representative: A person who speaks for many people. I person chosen by their government or

chosen by their people to speak for their government. 7 Translator: A person who can understand two different languages extremely well and can read and

write in both. To help those who cannot understand another language.

Figure 2 - United Nations Headquarter, NYC


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My Family

My mother, Looking back now, I think was the one person that had the greatest influence8 on

me. My mother was extremely intelligent. Her IQ was over 145 and was such a good student

she even earned a full scholarship to attend college earning her bachelor's degree in

psychology9. This was during a time in America when very few women went to university. It

was so uncommon at the time, that even though my mother won a complete scholarship,

meaning my grandfather would not have to pay anything for her to go to school, he was still

against her attending. He, being very traditional, felt there was no need for a woman to go to

university. Women, in his mind, were to get married, have babies, cook, clean, and do

laundry10

. Luckily for my mother she had two older sisters that supported her and pressured

my grandfather to change his mind. He finally did much to my mother's happiness.

My mother as a young woman had no interest in being a housewife. She wanted to be a

modern career woman, never marry, and never have children. Luckily for me, my brother,

and my sister, one should never say never. When my mother met my father he somehow

changed her mind, and she fell in love and became a wife and a mother. "Never say never" I

wish it was a Joe saying, but someone much smarter than me said it first.

My grandfather, my mother's father, was an amazing11

man. Even though he never even

finished primary school he was one of the most intelligent men I ever knew. He was

completely self taught and loved to learn. He actually built his own telescope12

, grinding the

8 Influence; to make me who I am today. To teach me and guide me to become the way I am. 9Psychology: The study of the mind and how it works. The understanding of behavior, why we do

what we do. 10 Do laundry; wash clothes 11 Amazing: Very special, great, incredible , fantastic. Much better than most. 12 Telescope: A device to see things up close that are very far away. The opposite is a microscope, to see things that are too small to see with the naked eye.


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glass himself to make the lens, because he wanted to study the stars and the planets. He even

built his families first TV. If you had anything broken you could give it to him and he would

fix it for you. My mother's father was also a self taught oil painter. He actually painted copies

of the Mona Lisa and the Blue Boy that you could not tell the difference from the originals

unless you were well educated in the arts.

Mona Lisa

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

The Blue Boy

Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788)

My Mother also became an oil painter and did a portrait13

of President Dwight D. Eisenhower

that hung in our dining room over the buffet table14

. In our kitchen she had another oil

painting of a basket of oranges, spilled over in an orange orchid15

. To this day I can still see

the oranges rolling out of the tipped over basket in their rich16

orange colors. I still remember

the bright yellows she used for sunshine leaking through the lush17

green leaves of the orange

trees and the earthy brown slits of the farmer's basket. I only wish I had pictures of my

mother's paintings I could share with you.

13 Portrait: A painting or photo of a person. 14 Buffet table: A table used to serve food. Not to eat at. The table you sit and eat at is the dining room table. 15 Orchid: A farm with many fruit trees. A place where they grow tress for fruits like oranges, apples, pears, dates, plums, olives, bananas, etc… 16 Rich: Deep, strong 17 Lush: A very healthy plant, many leaves, abundant with plant life, thick with living plants.


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President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the photo my mother based her painting on.

Growing up I remember my mother taking art classes in weaving18

, ceramics19

, stain glass

cutting20

(she made a chandelier21

in our hallway between the kitchen and the dining room,)

and a Chinese artist coming to our home and teaching my mother and other students

traditional Chinese ink brush painting on rice paper.

Traditional Chinese Ink painting on rice paper

18 Weaving: The process of making cloth to make clothes. To take threads and weave them together into patterns. 编织 19 Ceramics: To make bowels, cups, plates, dishes, flower pots, out of clay. 陶瓷 20 Stain glass: Glass that has different colors and then put together to make pictures. 染色玻璃 21 Chandelier: A light that hangs from the ceiling, usually very beautiful with glass or crystals. 吊灯


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Larchmont Public Library where my

mother took me at least once a week

My mother though was more than just an artist, she was a rabid22

reader. For myself I had

gotten to the point where I was reading one book a week. My personal library was over 1,600

books. Yet according to my mother I was "never well read23

." Every week I remember going

to our local public library and my mother reading three books a week. While the family

would watch TV in our family room24

my mother would go to bed early with a good book.

She mostly read historical novels and mysteries25

, books that told you stories but made you

think and taught you history and about different cultures. To this day I am bibliophile26

because of my mother. But in this age of the internet and computer games I do not think I will

ever read the volumes27

of books my mother read.

22 Rabid: extreme, non-stop, almost to the point of being crazy. 23 Well read: I person who is very educated and knowledgeable, a person who has read many, many books. 24 Family room: In the United States most homes have a living room and a family room. The living room is for visitors, there is never a TV in the living room so people can talk. The family room is like another living room but It will have the TV were the family will watch TV together. 25 Mysteries: Stories usually about a murder (someone being killed) and trying to find out who did it. A "Who done it?" 26 Bibliophile: a person who loves books. A lover of books 27 Volumes: books, a number of books. "The library has many volumes about history."


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The Original Star Trek of the 1960's Rod Sterling's often thoughtful Twilight Zone

My mother was also a woman of science. She loved science fiction shows that made you

think and wonder about the future and how science may change our lives. I grew up watching

shows like Star Trek and the Twilight Zone by Rod Sterling because of my mother. Although

my oldest brother Donald was my biggest influence on me when it came to my love and

interest in science fiction28

He introduced to many wonderful books and movies. Donald

always told me "The best science fiction is based on a good understanding of real science."

Donald was, or I should say, is a math wizard29

. In university he would not even go to classes

but could just go to take the exams and pass them. He knew complex30

math not because the

professor's taught him, but because "It seemed like the logical way to solve the problem" he

would tell me. I still need to use my fingers to count. I am nothing like my big brother.

When I was nine years old my mother felt I was old enough to take care of myself. The fact

that I am the baby in the family (my brother is eight years older and my sister is six years

28 Science Fiction: A story that usually about the future, or about how science may change our lives. Not a true story but possible of actually happening one day in the near or far future. 29 Wizard: A person who knows how to use magic, usually a male magic user, like Harry Potter. 30 Complex: Complicated, difficult, not easy. Complex math would be like calculus and trigonometry.


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older than me,) she felt she could have the time to do the things she wanted to do. So in her

40's my mother got a job as a book keeper and during her free time went to graduate school to

earn her Master's in Business Administration (M.B.A.) My mother taught me that one is

never too old to go to school. She was now going to become the career woman she wanted to

be when she was a young woman.

Since my father always had his business to run and much more traditional about the ideas of

men's work and woman's work, my mother knew he would not be helping her do house work

and take care of me. I would have to learn to take care of myself. When I told my mother that

I was hungry, she pointed at the kitchen and said "There's the kitchen" - I learned to cook.

When my clothes were dirty my mother pointed at the laundry room and said "There is the

washer and dryer" - I learned to do laundry. When I told my mother that my room was dirty,

she would point to the hall closet and said "There is the vacuum cleaner and the cleaning

detergents" - I learned to clean house. I have later in my life appreciated the fact that I do not

need my mother, or any woman, to cook, clean, or do laundry for me. I can do them all

myself. I only need their love.

Tandy TRS-80 My mother's first computer


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When I was sixteen years old my mother bought our first computer to do accounting for my

father's business. We were the first to have a computer and I learned a little bit about

computer programming. I remember that the computer cost nearly $1,000 USD and this was

back in 1979. The monitor had only one color, it could not show movies, or even photos. It

only had green dots that would light up its black glass screen to form letters and numbers.

The quality was so bad that it you could actually see each individual dot that was used to

make the letters. There was no hard drive to save your computer files. The computer used an

audio cassette machine to save the files. To think, now a days, the computers in most cell

phones are a thousand times more powerful than our first desktop computer. You would need

four-hundred computers like my mother's to hold the same amount of information as a small

standard 8GB USB thumb drive of today. My mother, like her dad who had the first TV in his

neighborhood in the late 1940s, she had the first computer in our neighborhood in the late

1970's. It was not much compared to today's computers, but in the 1970's it was cutting edge

technology.

Because of my mother I always felt a strong love and respect for learning, books, technology,

the sciences, the arts, understanding international cultures, and an openness to discuss any

subject. My mother always said "You do not need to agree with others, but you should at

least try to understand why they think the way they do."

If my mother was my mind in my upbringing, my father was my heart. My father is one of

the most honest and kindest men I have ever known. I have very rarely heard him say a

unkind word about anyone. He is also one of the most generous people I have ever known.

Growing up I often watched my father fight with his friend's on who would pay for a dinner.

My dad seemed to always win and pick up the bill. He was a small self made businessman,


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and his employees loved him. They were like family to us and my Dad would often invite

them to our home, to our family events. They stayed with my dad for decades, and even after

he sold his business they still called him and stayed in touch with my father. My father

showed me that one can be a very successful businessman and still be honest to your

customers and treat your employees with respect and even love.

My father always taught me that no matter what job you do, even if it is cleaning the floor,

you should be so proud of your work you would put your name on it. One should always do

their best. He also taught me that no one should be treated with disrespect, no matter their

race, religion, nationality, or how much money they make. My father always believed that if

someone is not good to you, it is because you did something wrong to them. This is a topic

my father and I always disagreed on. I always understood that no matter how good you are to

some people they will still treat you badly. Some people will even try to take advantage of

you if you are too good to them. My father never cared though. He was not going to treat

anyone rudely, dishonestly, or terrible. If someone was bad to my father, he would just show

them more love. This is why so many people loved my dad so much. I wish I could be half

the man he has been.

My parents had a sign hanging in our home. "Children do not learn from what they are told.

Children learn by example." My parents always followed that. My parents never told me to

get good grades. They showed me their love of learning and I have learned to love to learn.

They always worked hard and took pride in any job they did to do the best job they could.

Quality work was always extremely important to them. They never told me to be honest.

Everyday growing up they showed me how to be honest by their example. I never saw my

parents cheat or lie to others.


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I love and respect my parents. I was never always in complete agreement with them on some

of their life philosophies31

. In some ways I think they were workaholics32

and worked their

lives away with not taking enough time to enjoy life with each other. I do though believe you

have to be responsible and they were that. I believe in doing the best quality work one can,

that no matter what the job is, even if its sweeping the floor. Those values I learned from my

parents. I just do not believe life is only work. I feel making money is a necessity, but not

life's goal. "Money is only a tool to have the freedom to do what and when you want to." - a

Joe saying. I feel life's goals are beyond making money, buying an expensive car, a house, or

designer clothes. "I am not the things I own.”- Another Joe saying. We all need to take the

time to enjoy life too, because we never know what will happen tomorrow.

My Education

I was not a typical student, far from it. I remember my first month in HIGH school I was

summed33

to my guidance counselors office to see him. Mr. Greenberg would end up

becoming one of my dearest friends, but at the time I thought I must have done something

wrong, since I was the only one being called to his office.

When I arrived at his office Mr. Greenberg (a middle-aged man and clearly balding) sat

behind his big office desk greeted me with a big smile as I entered his office. "So you are Joe

Wdowski." he said seeming to know much more about me than I knew about him. "I could

not wait to finally meet you." he said gesturing me to sit down. His interest in me confused

31 Philosophies: One's thinking way. A way of living one's life to have a happier and more meaningful life. To understand what is really in important in life and a guide to live with oneself and others. 32 Workaholic: A person who feel a strong need to work all the time and cannot simple relax and enjoy life. 33 Summed: To be called to go to see someone. To be told to go and see a person. He was summoned by the king.


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me greatly as I sat in the chair opposite to him. "Although I am not supposed to do this, I

want to share with you the comments your teachers have written about you for the past ten

years." He delighted informed me. "In nearly 20 years of being a guidance counselor I never

read anything like this about any student before."

I sat quietly as he explained. "It is clearly divided 50-50, no teachers were in the middle about

you. Not a single one." He continued "Half of them wrote in their reports, that you are the

worst student they ever had. Some even calling you 'evil', that you are troublesome and will

end up in prison someday. The other half describe you as the best student they ever had and

that it was a delight to have as a student. They said you made it a great joy to teach, you

added much to their classes, you are extremely intelligent, humorous beyond your age, and

will be a very great and important man one day." He finished telling me with his great big

smile on his face. He then asked me. "Why so different? Why have they given such opposite

views about you, no one was in the middle. They either loved you or hated you. Why?"

"Because they are different people." I calmly answered him. "Those who were not good

teachers, and wanted to only dominate and control their classrooms like their own personal

kingdoms would hate me. Those who were good teachers, who actually enjoyed teaching and

learning themselves, enjoyed me in their classrooms. These reports they wrote about me, tell

you much more about them, than about me."

Honestly, I was not a typical student. I was not a student that cared much about grades, but I

did care about learning, and understanding things. I and my friends would actually enjoy

trying to find mistakes in a teacher's lesson and confronting them with it. Our goal at a young

age was to challenge their authority in the classroom. Later as I got older I would challenge

teachers because I didn't want them to teach things I knew were factually wrong or they were


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presenting concepts to my classmates that were not reasonable or well thought out. I found

the process a great way to learn for myself and my classmates. Excellent teachers would

actually use me to make their classes more dynamic and forcing the class to think things out

and truly understand the subjects deeply. Inferior teachers would see me only as a threat to

their power.

If a teacher attacked me for correcting them, I would attack back. We called it "the game." It

was a mind game to see who would control the direction of the lessons and we had rules to

the game to protect us from getting into any serious trouble; we could not make any personal

attacks on the teacher, no insults, no swear words. We would only try to punch holes in their

lessons, seeking mistakes in their teaching. Teachers at times would get so angry at me they

would bring me to the principal's office to have me punished, but when they would tell the

principle what I did in the class the Principle would simply reply "Joe is right" making the

teacher lose face. For a 9 - 13 year old boy it was a great ego boost.

I was later told two teachers actually had lost their jobs because of me. Later as I got older I

felt extremely bad about this, but one of my high school teachers told me that I did them a

service, that they were not meant to be teachers. I understood what he was saying, but I

actually still feel bad about it. I can understand why some of them looked at me as evil. I

could have tried to use my skills to help them, not destroy them. Later on as a university

student I stopped playing the game, but I could not just sit quietly in a classroom when I

knew a professor was teaching something that was wrong, especially those that tried to

influence students to their political points of view. Even on exams I would not give the

answers I knew the professors wanted I would instead write what I knew was correct. Even


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though I was never proven incorrect, I still got the lower scores on my exams for not

regurgitating34

back to the professors what they wanted us to think.

Mr. Greenberg and I actually disagreed with each other on politics, but we both loved the

challenge of intelligent conversation and a good laugh. From that day on, Mr. Greenberg

became a personal friend. He understood that even as an educator he did not know everything

and could learn much from a mere student such as myself. Once I became an educator

myself, I knew I did not have all the answers, and I too make mistakes. My love of learning

and trying to understand the world we live in has made me appreciate a student that will

challenge me, force me to see things from a different points of view, help me develop my

own understanding of our world, and making me a much better teacher. "A wise man is open

to learn from anyone, no matter their age, education, or stature in life." a Joe saying.

So I continued my formal educations. After High school I studied Cinema, earned my B.F.A.

in education in the hopes of making movies someday. I was mostly interested in

screenwriting and perhaps directing. After graduation I worked for my university's cinema

department as their technical director. I did that for two and half years. At the time I did some

work in film production, educational videos, promotionals, music videos, and even worked

on a small independent feature film. More importantly I had the chance to substitute some

film classes and discovered that I liked teaching much more than making movies which I

actually found to be very long hours and boring.

Luckily my university had a program where I could teach as a substitute teacher full time

during the day in exchange taking classes in the evenings for a Masters degree in Education.

34 Regurgitating: To eat something and then to throw it up or spit it out, much like birds feed their young.


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So I went back to being a student full time and teaching in a inner city high school. I earned

my Master's in Education, but needed more undergraduate classes in history and political

science in order to be certified to teach history in an American High School. so I went back to

undergraduate school for another year. After that I went to graduate school again to study

History for another year.

My Love Life

I have actually had several people request that I write a book about my love life. I never

thought that my love life was very interesting, but thinking back it has perhaps been more

romantic and complex than most. To begin with I have always liked girls. My parents had

often told people the story when I was about 4 years old and we were at the local McDonald's

in the town of Mamaroneck, N.Y. (Larchmont's zoning laws would not allow any fast food

restaurant chains in order to maintain its small village feel) and I had spotted a very attractive

girl about 16 or 17 years old and told my parents that I was "in love."

At age of six I had my first wedding engagement; she was my neighbor and also six years

old. Her name was Jennifer and we promised each other that when we both turned eighteen

years old we would get married, But before her 18th birthday married someone else,

breaking our promise.

My first real love was when I was fifteen years old. She was my first everything and an older

woman, she was sixteen years old. She dumped me and I cried for three months thinking I

could never be in love again. Finally one of my teachers told me he was tired of hearing

about her, and I at last got my act together. What confused me about girls when I was a

teenager was that they always said they wanted a certain type of man yet always seemed to

fall for the exact opposite. I found women extremely confusing, but was so attracted to them


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that I decided to learn everything I could about their psychology, and to make them happy

physically and emotionally.

I was never handsome, always a bit over weight, and never flowing in cash, yet by the time I

was an university student I was dating eight different women at once and was told by one of

my naturally very handsome classmates that I was the only guy he knew who could pick up

women purely on personality.

After university I have had over twenty-six women tell me that they were "in love" with me

or "afraid" that they were "falling in love" with me. Twelve even told me they wanted to

marry me and two actually did marry me, yet both did divorce me. My first marriage lasted

seven years. My second wife I was with for thirteen years before I found out she was having

an affair with her boss. So I do have experience in dating, marriage, and unfortunately

divorce. I am also a hopeless romantic and have married for a third and hopefully last time. I

can tell more, but I am saving those stories for my next book.

My Work Experience

My first real job was working for my father since I was nine years old. Every Saturday and

summers I would work at my father's dry cleaners in New York City. My duties included

cleaning the side walk in front of the story, riding shotgun on the fur truck to the fur district

in Manhattan, checking in clothes for cleaning, and servicing customers at the front. The

worst and most boring was making card board forms for suit jackets and women's dresses. As

I got older I even ended up actually doing some of the cleaning in the back for one summer

because both my father and older brother were out due to foot and leg injuries. My father had

accidently stepped on a rusty nail that went through his shoe and his foot. My brother, trying


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to push his car off the highway, tore his Achilles heel. So I had to run the cleaners for one

summer, with much help from my father's employees of course. It became my responsibility

to make deliveries and pickups to peoples' homes and to make the runs to the fur district in

Manhattan alone.

When I was 16 years old I was legally old enough to hold a job I quickly got one so I didn't

have to work for my father. My dad was great boss, and his employees loved him very much,

but for me (his son) he had much higher expectations. I also think my dad didn't want to not

show any favoritism towards me, which was another reason he was a lot tougher on me. I

knew my Dad would not force me to work for him, as long as I had another job. My first job

was a stock boy at a local supermarket near my home. I was responsible for making sure

there was plenty of beer, soda, and water on the shelves. Later in University and during my

summer holidays I was a dishwasher, a cook, a bouncer, a janitor for apartment buildings, did

computer data entry, an assistant student manager of the university's cafeteria, and was a

wedding videographer.

After finishing my bachelors in cinema I had a short stance working for a photo developer,

then an assistant manager for a Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC,) before becoming the

technical director for my university's cinema department for two and half years. During that

time I worked part time on an Independent feature, educational videos, some promotional

corporate videos, was a projectionist for medical seminars at Yale Medical University, and an

assistant director on a rock video that aired on MTV.

Most importantly during my time as the technical director, some of the professors would ask

me to cover their classes. It was from that experience I discovered that I loved teaching much


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more than making movies. So I quit my job and went into a program where would be a full

time substitute teacher for an inner city high school, in exchange for a small amount of

money to cover transportation costs and lunch, they more importantly paid for my graduate

classes so I could earn my Master's in Education.

One of the history teachers at the high school had a long term sick leave and personally

requested me to teach her American history classes. This was my first real experience as a

real teacher. The first thing I discovered is that the textbook was bland and boring, so I wrote

up all my own lesson plans, and have ever since.

For most of my adult life I have been a teacher, mostly teaching university. I have taught

Media Literacy at Bennington College in Vermont, European History from 1500 - 1815 and a

class in the History of Invention in Technology at Macomb Community College in Michigan.

I have taught Public Communications, English Communications, and Cinema Appreciation

and History all at the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut. In Taipei I taught, Media

Literacy, English Conversation, English writing, Business Writing, Western Civilization, and

Appreciation and History of English Popular Music. I have also given three different

teaching seminars where I taught teachers in Taiwan. In Taipei alone I taught over 5000

students. I presently teach in Chongqing China at the medical university and did free English

corners at the Public Library.

Having lived in Chongqing now for over three years along with my nine years in Taipei, I

have an understanding of the Chinese and their culture many westerners do not. An added

benefit of living abroad and leaning about another culture first hand to my surprise it has


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given me a perspective of America that most Americans do not have. If anything I feel I have

a greater appreciation of the principles the United States were founded on.

My Faith or lack of it

My mother had taught Sunday school before I was born. My father had always believed in

God. My family used to go to church every week. It was my fault that they stopped going to

church. I was told that when they brought me to church as an infant I cried terribly, and if a

minister approached me I would cry even more so. I seemed terrified of the minister and the

church. My family stopped going to church so my crying would not disturb the other

worshippers.

Heritage-wise my family was mostly Catholic, but since the men in my family were always

marrying women that were not Catholic they would raise children Protestant (my family

tradition was that children would be raised the faith of the mother.) My religious foundation

from my parents was Christian, but Larchmont had a very large Jewish population and at

least half my friends were Jewish. It could be said that I was raised with a Judeo-Christian

value system. As a child I had always believed in God, much like I believed in Santa Claus at

the time. When I turned 12 years old I asked my mother to introduce different churches to

me. We visited all the different Christian faiths, and a Jewish synagogue. What I had noticed

in all of them was they all spoke how they understood how to worship God, and that all the

other faiths were wrong. I started to question why God just didn't make it clear to everyone

how to worship him, instead of them all dividing up into so many different beliefs and

fighting and killing each other for thousands of years. He was God; he could easily set the

record straight.


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This whole conflict between all the different ways to worship God had I come up with one

my earliest Joe sayings "They cannot all be right, but they can all be wrong." It was the

beginning of my becoming an atheist. My family though were still believers and my sister

even became a born again Christian and my cousin a Jehovah's Witness. Since my mother

always had our open discussion dinners, religion was a common topic we debated about. My

mother always told me "You should always try to understand the opinions of others, why they

think the way they do. You do not have to agree with them, but you should always try to

understand them."

Heeding my mother's words I would read the bible. The truth is the more I did read it, the

more I found it contradicted itself within its own story line. I felt that if anyone would be

logical and reasonable it would be God. Yet the stories in the bible, especially the Old

Testament illustrated to me a very insecure and vindictive God more interested in being

worshiped than his so called love for mankind. It just never made any sense to me, since as a

father that loves his children I never demanded them to worship me or even love me. My love

for my children is unconditional. I just always felt that the supreme being, that created the

universe, should be a better person than myself; much more understanding, much more open

minded, and much more tolerant of our short comings and mistakes as mere humans.

As I thought more about the teachings of the Bible, putting aside the unconditional devotion

to God, the messages are actually very good messages for man to just treat his fellow man

better, in turn making this a much better world to live in. The Bible though made more sense

to me as book written by men thousands of years ago that had a need to explain the universe

we live in, and to encourage man to behave more civil.


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I did though in later years wish at times there was a God. I also realized that if God wanted

to, he could very easily prove himself to me, but I could never prove there is no God. So in

my mind I am an agnostic, I do not know if there is or isn't a God. Yet in my heart I do not

feel there is. I lack the faith. I used to be a militant atheist always arguing with those with

faith. I realize now I do not have all the answers and started to feel if an atheist tries to push

others to not believe in God we become just as arrogant and intolerant as those with faith

trying to enforce their beliefs in God on others. It became clear to me that faith is a personal

choice and I respect whatever brings inner peace to each individual. As long as they (even my

fellow atheists) do not try to use the government to force their beliefs on me or anyone else, I

support them.

My Thoughts About Political Correctness

I purposely said my thoughts about political correctness as opposed to my "feelings" about

political correctness. I stated it that way because I think too many people in our society make

their decisions based on their feelings and not on critical thinking. Facts are what are

important to me, not what someone feels is true. One of the scariest things a friend had told

me about myself is that I am "too reasonable." They felt this was a root cause of my problems

in life. That I expect other people to function and act in reasonable ways. I also have the

problem of pointing out the illogical and unreasonable ways people do things.

Yankee was originally (and still is to some around the world) a derogatory term towards

Americans. It was used by the British soldiers during the American Revolution. It was

making fun of how the native Americans pronounced English in French. Americans though

adopted it with pride. They were proud they were Yankees not English. Yankee was again

used in a derogator fashion by the confederates during the American Civil War. In the 20th


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century it had often been used as an insult by Latin Americans "Yankee Go Home" was a

common phrase spry painted on walls during the Cold War.

During World War II the British used "Yanks" as an insult and a nick name for Americans.

"What's the problem with Yanks?

They are overpaid.

Over sexed.

and over here."

This was of course before Operation Overlord (D-Day, Normandy Invasion) when the

Americans were flooding into England preparing for the invasion of Fortress Europe. I

happen to be a New Yorker, where the N.Y. Yankees are one of our baseball teams, and I am

now happy to think of myself a "Connecticut Yankee." My new adopted home. A term

endeared by Mark Twain in his book "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court"

Malcolm X had said the best way to defuse those that wish to harm us with words is to adopt

their insults as a badge of honor. He would say if someone calls you a "nigger" reply "Yes I

am, and proud of it"

Words do have meaning by their users, but they also can have meaning by the listeners. One

can choose to be offend by a word there by giving a weapon to one's enemies, or one

can choose not be offend by a word and there by disarming one's enemies. That was the point

Malcolm X was making. Disarm your enemies. Do not arm them.

Words can only offend you if you allow them to offend you. Using derogatory words to hurt

others says much more about those that use the words than it does about those the words are

being used against.


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So in the spirit of Malcolm X - I am a Yankee, I am Cracker, I am Gringo, I am a foreign

Devil, and I am proud of it.

Conclusion

I do strongly believe that if everyone could adapt Joe Sayings to their own personal life

philosophies, they will have much happier and productive lives and we would all live in

much more civilized, free, just, and human society.

Before continuing with the actually Joe Sayings I do want to give my acknowledgements to

much wiser men that have gone before me. In many ways I am only reinforcing their insights

and great thoughts. Men like Thomas Jefferson, Adam Smith, Tom Paine, Lincoln, Gandhi,

Confucius, Jesus, Socrates, Einstein, Edison, Benjamin Franklin, Freud, etc… I think many

of the Joe Sayings are rooted in what we in America call the two golden rules. The first

golden rule, which I think is the easiest for us to follow, was said by Confucius "Do not do to

others, what you wish they will not do to you."

Simply it means:

If you do not want others to lie to you, do not lie to others.

If you do not want others to cheat you, do not cheat others.

If you do not want others to hurt you, do not hurt others.

If you do not want others to tell you how to live your life, do not tell others how to live theirs.

If you do not want others disrespecting or exploiting you, do not disrespect or exploit others.

The second golden rule, which I personally think is much more challenging for most people

to follow, was said by Jesus, who said "Do for others as you wish others would do for you."


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Basically to actually do good for others, not to only not do bad to others.

For example:

If you hope that when you are down on your luck others will help you, you should

help those down on their luck.

If you hope someone will care for you when you are sick, you should care for others

who are sick.

If you hope the strong will protect you when you are weak, you should protect the

weak.

If you hope others will forgive you when you are truly sorry, you should forgive

others when they are truly sorry.

If everyone in the world, and governments too, followed these two simple truths, from

Eastern and from Western philosophies, there would be no need for police, prisons, or armies.

One does not have to be Chinese nor a Christian to follow the golden rules. You just have to

be determined to follow them because it is the right thing to do; for better families and for

better societies.

This book was originally designed as a self-teaching English book for advanced students of

English as a Second Language. With the assistance of a teacher this book can be suitable for

intermediate English students. It is for these students of English you will find footnoted the

definitions of some words and the explanations of the Joe saying themselves for better

understanding of the sayings. To my surprise though many native English speakers have also


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enjoyed my Joe Sayings. So, this book is also for those who are interested in my life

philosophies; to either adopt, ponder upon, or even oppose. If they can spark thought of any

kind I am happy.

As I stated before I hope that my Joe sayings help you to find a happier life as they seem to

have helped so many of my students and colleagues. Along with some of my Joe sayings I

have also added the sayings of some great philosophers that have gone before us - enjoy.

- Joseph N. Wdowski, B.F.A., M.S. Ed.


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Joe Sayings

"Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of speech, of the press, of

assembly, of association, of procession and of demonstration."

- Article 35 of the Chinese Constitution

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free

exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the

people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

- 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

AFTERLIFE

"The afterlife is nothing more than a continuation of before life." - JW


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"Heaven is being remembered for leaving this world a better place than before we entered it.

Hell is being remembered for making the world a worse place than before we entered it." -

JW

"Man himself cannot live forever, but his ideas can." - JW

“Ex-girlfriend heaven: Is when two women are talking trash about a man they both had once

loved." - JW

AMERICA

"America used to be the 'land of the free and the brave' but has become the land of the

'insured and certified." - JW

"We need become a creative nation of explorers, builders, and producers again, not a nation

of lobbyists, paper pushers, and regulators that create nothing, build nothing, and produce

nothing." - JW

.

"There was a time in America that to start your own business you only needed a pair of

scissors, a comb, and a chair. If you did a good job you got repeat business and word of

mouth. Now you need licenses, insurance and certificates before you can even cut one

person's hair." - JW

"As Mao said 'Political power comes from a barrel of a gun.' which is why our American

forefathers made sure the people always had the political power." - JW


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"In the name of security and protecting women and children, an innocent man is guilty until

he can prove he won't do, what he didn't do." - JW

"Once the majority of Americans begin to expect the government to make their lives better, as

opposed to doing it themselves, it will be the end of the great American experiment."- JW

"America is not harmonious; it is Jazz, Rock and Roll, and Rap." - JW

"I have no fear that the result of our experiment will be that men may be trusted to govern

themselves without a master." - Thomas Jefferson

APPRECIATION

"Contracts, constitutions, and money only have value if people value them, if not they are

only pieces of paper." - JW

"The beauty of nature without a person to appreciate its beauty is meaningless. It is like a

book without a reader." - JW

"Very often being appreciated for job well done is much more important than money earned."

- JW

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/t/thomasjeff390513.html


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BILL OF RIGHTS

"Chipping away at the Bill of Rights merely chips away at our being citizens and forces us to

instead become wards or serfs of the state." - JW

BUREAUCRACY

"It's a rule is not a good reason." - JW

"More government regulations and higher taxes never hurt the big guys, they can afford to

work the system. It really hurts the rest of us who cannot." - JW

"Keep it simple and keep it fair." - JW

"Government offices and paper work are thieves of precious time from our already short

lives." - JW

"They hired me because they wanted someone who 'thinks outside the box', yet the first thing

they did was stick me in cubical." - JW

"If you have ten thousand regulations you destroy all respect for the law." - Winston

Churchill

"Nothing is more destructive of respect for the government and the law of the land than

passing laws which cannot be enforced." - Albert Einstein

"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated." - Confucius

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/w/winstonchu122577.html


http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/alberteins136890.html


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"The larger the government, the smaller the individual." - President Ronald Reagan.

“The only thing worse than a society with a rigid, over developed centralized, dishonest

Bureaucracy is one with a rigid, over developed centralized, honest bureaucracy.” - Dr.

Samuel P. Huntington

BEAUTY

"How long can one stare at a thing of beauty? Sooner or later everyone will want to look at

something else. " - JW

"The beauty of nature without a person to appreciate its beauty is meaningless. It is like a

book without a reader." - JW

"Even the most beautiful women see only what is wrong with them. It is because they judge

themselves to women in the media; Women that have professional makeup artists,

professional hairstylists, professional clothing designers, professional photographers,

professional lighting, professional physical trainers, plastic surgeons, youth, and are still

often photo-shopped." - JW

"Too many women worry about how big their breast are. Men though are actually just happy

that they have them, no matter what their size." - JW

"Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. " - Confucius


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BEING COOL

"Cool people never try to be cool." - JW

"Those who try to be cool, are not cool, they are only wannabes" - JW

"In today's world anyone who smokes is not cool. Every time they light up they are

announcing to the world that they want to be cool." - JW

BOOKS

"If you are serious about learning, read, read some more and never stop reading." - JW

"Books allow us to travel through time to hear the words of our forefathers." - JW

"I cannot live without books." - Thomas Jefferson

"A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read. " - Mark Twain

BREAKING UP

"The best way to forget a girl, is another girl." - JW

CAPTALISM

"True capitalism is two free men coming to a reasonable agreement to trade honorably for

each other's productivity and/or skills for their mutual benefits. It is not the exploitation or


http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/marktwain100303.html


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subjugation of the individual by professional guilds, trade unions, or corporations backed by

the power of the state." - JW

"It is interesting how the left can understand that life can evolve without centralized

planning, yet are incapable of understanding that economies can do the same." - JW

"It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our

dinner, but from their regard to their own interest." - Adam Smith

"Some people regard private enterprise as a predatory tiger to be shot. Others look on it as a

cow they can milk. Not enough people see it as a healthy horse, pulling a sturdy wagon. " -

Winston Churchill

"There is one rule for the industrialist and that is to make the best quality of goods possible

at the lowest cost possible, paying the highest wages possible." - Henry Ford

CENSORSHIP

"If your ideas are superior, you should be able to stand up against the winds of opposing

opinions. There is no reason or excuse for censorship, political correctness, or violence

against those in disagreement." - JW

"What is it about the images of the nude body that generates more fear and disgust than the

images of violence" - JW



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"How can you solve problems or improve things, if you are not allowed to talk about the

problems, and are denied all the information?" - JW

"As long as you have censorship or political correctness, as long as you imprison those you

disagree with, as long as you threaten teachers, writers, artists, and reporters not to write or

speak the truth, as long as you block all information to your people, and forbid them to talk

about the problems. Society can never improve, it can only get worse." – JW

"When we are confronted with speech we don't agree with, the remedy to be applied is more

speech...not enforced silence." - Justice Louis Brandeis

CHANGE

"Devolution is change. Dumbing-down is Change. An economic down turn is change. Change

for the sake of Change is not always progress. - JW

PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

"Let the phrase 'this is China" be a statement of pride, not an excuse for incompetence." - JW

"China; the nation that invented bureaucracy and has made it an art form to make everything

much more difficult than it needs to be." - JW

"'Do I love China?' The question should be 'Does China love me?'" - JW

"In China 'harmony' means 'shut up and do what you're told'." - JW


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"Graveyards are very 'harmonious'" - JW

"Only in China is being honest considered a poor character trait." - JW

"It seems In today's China many divide the world between Chinese and foreigners, but that

group mentality view of 'us and them' is dated in a modern shrinking world. All people need

to start to learn to see the world as 'us and each of us.'" - JW

" China is not a classless society. The party is just the new lords." – JW

"The meek shall inherit China when all the rich and powerful bleed it pale and move

overseas." - JW

COMMUNICATIONS

"Words alone are meaningless, unless they can inspire others to act." - JW

"If you want to understand me, just listen to my words. Do not add to what I say or take away

from what I say. I have no hidden meanings." - JW

"The goal of any debate is not to change the mind of your opponent, but influence those that

are listening that your arguments are more reasonable." - JW

"Even if you speak different languages, yet share the desire to truly understand each other,

communication can be managed. But if you are both close minded even when speaking the


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same mother tongue, communication can be extremely difficult if not at times impossible." -

JW

"When you try not to offend anyone when you speak or write, very often you end up not

saying or writing anything worth listening to or reading." - JW

CRITICISM AND OPINIONS

"You don't have to be hen to know if an egg is bad or not." - JW

"I don't know anything, I'm just opinionated." - JW

"If you don't want to hear my honest opinion, don't ask me what I think." - JW

"It is not hypocrisy to condemn those societies that allow slavery, stoning women for

adultery, and hanging homosexuals. You do not need to be an angel to condemn pure evil." -

JW

"Giving your honest opinion does not mean you have to be hurtful, one can honestly find the

good in most things." - JW

DATING

"Dating is a search. The more places you seek the better your chances of finding who you are

really compatible with." - JW


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"Be the type of person you want to have as your mate. If want an honest lover, be honest. If

you want a generous lover, be generous. If you want a romantic lover, be romantic..." - JW

DEALING WITH INSULTS

"You may call me a 'fucking idiot,' but remember a fucking idiot is a happy idiot." - JW

"If what they say about you is true, it is true, learn to change it or accept it, there is no

reason for it to upset you, because you know it is true. If what they say about you is not true.

It's not true, again no reason for it to upset you." - JW

DEALING WITH IDIOTS

"We don't have an enough time for those we love, so why waste your time with those not

important to you and you don't even like?" - JW

"Very often people who talk badly about others says more about them then the people they

are talking badly about." - JW

"Illegitimi non carborundum" Latin for (Don't let the bastards grind you down.) - Gen.

Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell

DEATH PENELITY

"It is interesting how those on the right do not trust government to do much, Yet they trust government

to use the death penalty wisely and without irreversible mistakes." - JW

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegitimi_non_carborundum


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DEBATING

"The objective of a debate is not to convince your opponent, you won't, it is to convince those

on the fence whom are listening." - JW

DIETING

"What is the point of living longer if you're not going to enjoy life? Have a piece of cake once

and a while." - JW

DEMOCRACY

"Majority rule will become tyranny of the masses without the cultural belief in and legal

protection for the rights of the individual." - JW

"Democracy gives the fear of being fired to our government officials. What better motivation

for better quality government?" - JW

"Without the rights for peaceful change, violent change becomes the only option." - JW

“Governments that truly represent the people should never have more power than the people.

They should always serve at our prerogative, not theirs.” - JW

"Democracy does not insure you can get good leaders. but it can insure you can peacefully

get rid of bad ones." - DW (My older brother)


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"It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that

have been tried." - Winston Churchill

DIVORCE

"It takes two to make a great marriage. It takes only one to destroy it." - JW

"You are lucky your parents never divorced. I wanted a big family, but not four parents." -

NTW (My 11 year old son)

DREAMS

"Everything that is was first someone's dream." - JW

"Without dreams mankind would still be living in the trees and picking bugs out of each

other's hair to snack on." - JW

"We are here in the present, who better to help shape the future." - JW

"To achieve our life's dreams, no matter how impossible they may seem, each day do one

thing, no matter how little, to move yourself forward to achieve it." - JW

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein




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ECONOMICS

"Money needs to flow like a river, if it sits in a stagnate pool it is unhealthy for the economy."

- JW

"It is better for a rich man to own three yachts than him just sitting on his money. At least

others make money from building the yachts and maintaining them." - JW

EQUALITARIANISM

"Every since those with clubs could dominate those without clubs there has been inequality.

Having said that the poor in America live better and longer than the nobles and kings

throughout most of human history." - JW

"The only way to make everyone truly equal is to make everyone poor. Except of course for

those in power." - JW

EDUCATION

"Those that stop learning are the living dead." - JW

"The best way to learn something is to try to teach it." - JW

"Teachers should be there for their students, Students are not there for their teachers." - JW

"A good teacher is always a good student." - JW


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"A chair comes to class every day, but a chair is not going to pass the course." - JW

"If a student thinks a teacher is wrong, and does not challenge him, no one learns." - JW

“I do not fail students. My job is to help them pass. But if they do not ask questions, do not

take notes, do not do their homework, and do not study they will fail themselves." - JW

"Like sharks need to always be swimming to live, humans need to always be learning to truly

be alive." - JW

"College is not for everyone, we also need people to make fried chicken, dig ditches, and

sweep the floors. In those jobs you do not need a notebook or pen, never have to take notes,

and never have to study." - JW

"Those who are self educated actually want to learn for the sake of learning. "A" students

usually study, not for knowledge and understanding, but for only grades and diplomas." - JW

"Like perfection, real education can never be reached, all we can do is try to be better each

day." - JW

"Those who have their pieces of paper on their walls and think they are educated, are the

fools. Education is not a destination, it is an endless journey." - JW

"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." - Benjamin

Franklin

"Don't let schooling interfere with your education." - Mark Twain

"The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education." - Albert Einstein

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"Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous." - Confucius

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

"Writing in English is like having many different spices to cook with." - JW

"Learning English itself is not the goal; it is only a tool to help you reach the real goals;

information and clear communication with others." - JW

ENJOYING LIFE

"The difference between being childish and having the heart of child is knowing when it is ok

be child like, yet still be responsible. The problem with many adults is they choose to just

become serious all the time, resulting in them losing their inner child and their ability to truly

enjoy the wonders and joys of life." - JW

The ENVIROMENT

"The Earth will survive humanity. The question is will humanity survive humanity?" - JW

KNOWLEDGE

"A book is filled with knowledge, but it is still as dumb as a rock. Knowledge is meaningless

without understanding." - JW

"No matter how much I know may increase, what I do not know increases even more." - JW


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EQUALITARIANISM

"Equalitarian governments cannot make everyone rich, but they can make everyone poor,

except of course the leaders." - JW

"I do not care how rich the rich are, I just care if the standard of living for the majority of us

is improving or not." - JW

"The gap between rich and poor is not the issue. What are the issues are the improvement in

the standard of living for the middleclass, the opportunities for upward advancement for the

poorest in our society, and a safety net that catches those that may fall from the ladder of

success." - JW

"All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others." - George Orwell

FACE

"If you feel you will lose face if others know what you are doing. Perhaps you shouldn't do

it." - JW

"Not having face is very liberating." - JW

"Face does not mean doing the right thing. It means not getting caught doing the wrong

thing." - JW

"Face should never be more important than truth." - JW

http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/122.html


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"Face is worrying what others think about you. Honor is worrying about what you think

about yourself." - JW

" Others can make you lose face when they expose you for who you really are. Others cannot

make you lose your honor, only your own actions can make you lose your honor. - JW

"When you care about Face you will do what you know is wrong to be accepted by others.

When you care about Honor you will refuse to do what you know is wrong no matter what

others think. I choose honor over face." - JW

"Whenever you do a thing, act as if all the world were watching." - Thomas Jefferson

FACING DIFFICULTIES

"The challenges of life are what keep it interesting." - JW

"Only the dead are completely safe. Living means taking chances." - JW

"If you are going through hell, keep going." - Winston Churchill

FEAR

"Worrying is a waste of time." - JW

"Only the weak fear making mistakes." - JW




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"Fear has its place, but do not let it prevent you from living." - JW

"There is nothing to fear, but fear itself." - Franklin D. Roosevelt

FREEDOM TO BEAR ARMS

"You do not win a war by disarming your own people." - JW

"Forbidding the people from bearing arms merely benefits tyrants and gangster, who always

keep their arms." – JW

“Mao said 'political power comes from the barrel of a gun,' if that is true the only way China

can truly be a ‘People’s Republic’ is for the people to have the right to bear arms.” JW

“An unarmed populous is mere sheep for slaughter for the wolves of the world. Best to be a

ram than a sheep.” - JW

"Firearms are second only to the Constitution in importance; they are the peoples' liberty's

teeth." - George Washington

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"Those who know they do not speak the truth will always try to censor those that do." - JW

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"Being able to address those that disagree with you, enables you to refine your own ideas,

and better understand truth. It is just one more reason you should always protect the freedom

of speech of those you disagree with." - JW

"Whenever you try to say anything without upsetting anyone, you end up saying nothing

worth saying." - JW

"When you live in a nation that does not allow its people to speak out, people will speak with

their feet." - JW

"Those on the extreme left agree in free speech, only if they agree with the speech." - JW

"Where the press is free and every man able to read, all is safe." -Thomas Jefferson

"If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the

slaughter." - George Washington

"If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend

nobody, there would be very little printed." - Benjamin Franklin

"Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the

human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things." - Winston Churchill

"Let different beliefs clash in the market of ideas." - Milton Friedman

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FRIENDSHIP

"Real friends can always accept "no" as an answer." - JW

"Being shy is a waste of time." - JW

"Real friends should understand you and support you. If they do not, they are not real friends

and it is time to find new friends." - JW

GHOSTS

"If the dead are someone to fear, than why do you kill your enemies in war, don't you just

make them stronger?" - JW

GOVERNMENT

"The problem is not that we are not spending enough, the problem is how it is being spent.

Anyone can just say "let's invest more." Real leadership is taking our bloated government by

the horns and making it work with what we can afford." - JW

"The nature of all governments that become too big and too powerful is they begin to no

longer serve the people but serve only themselves. They switch from being the protectors of

the people into the enemies of the people." - JW

"Government needs to be at most an impartial judge in the game. Once it becomes connected

or invested with one of the teams, the game is over." - JW


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"Government is a necessary evil, the less the better." - unknown

"Government should be there to protect our rights, not take them away." - JW

"An oppressive government is more to be feared than a tiger." - Confucius

"If men were angels, no government would be necessary." - James Madison

"Potentially, a government is the most dangerous threat to man's rights: it holds a legal

monopoly on the use of physical force against legally disarmed victims." - Ayn Rand

GUARANTEES

"The only guarantee in life is failure when you don't at least try." - JW

"If there was such a thing as a sure thing, without any risk, everyone would do it, and

everyone would be successful." - JW

HEROS

“A hero will not give up his convictions no matter how difficult it gets." - JW

"A hero does what he knows is right, in spite of his fears. A fool feels no fear." - JW but

inspired by words of my father.

“As soon as a man decides that all means are permitted to fight an evil, then their goal

becomes indistinguishable from the evil that they set to destroy.” – Christopher Dawson

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HISTORY

"If you don't know where you have been, how can you really understand where you are and

where you are going?" - JW

"Intelligent people learn from their mistakes, the wise also learn from the mistakes of others.

It is why the wise always study history." - JW

" The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you can see." - Winston Churchill

"He, who controls the past, controls the future. He, who controls the present, controls the

past." - George Orwell

HOMOSEXUILITY

"I never could understand why any straight man would be upset that another man is gay. I

wish more men would chose to remove themselves from the competition" - JW

"If I were a woman, I would be a lesbian." - JW

HONESTY

"Honesty must first begin with oneself." - JW

"I rather be an honest loser, than a dishonest winner." - JW



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"Honesty, it has been my weakness, and at times my greatest strength. Too often people do

not want to hear or face the truth. In the short run being honest can hurt you, but in the long

run others will learn who they can really trust and who they cannot." - JW

"Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom." - Thomas Jefferson

"Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools, that don't have brains enough to be honest." -

Benjamin Franklin

"Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones

either." - Albert Einstein

“The blackest despair that can take hold of any society is the fear that living honestly is

futile” - Corrado Alvaro

HUMBLE

"Being humble is not being honest." - JW

IDEAS

"It is the thoughts behind the words that give them real meaning." - JW

"Only those with weak ideas fear the ideas of others and will use force or censorship against

them." - JW





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"Some may say ideas are just words, but words are what separate us from the animals they

are the building blocks of civilization." - JW

"If you are the type to get emotional and upset every time someone disagrees with you, you

will end up either having no friends, friends who are not honest with you, or friends with no

brains." - JW

"Thinking with your emotions is not thinking." - JW

"Nearly every man who develops an idea works it up to the point where it looks impossible,

and then he gets discouraged. That's not the place to become discouraged." - Thomas A.

Edison

"No one is thinking if everyone is thinking alike." - Gen. George Patton

IDEALOGY

"The right ideology can give us guidelines to be sure that we respect the rights of others. Just

going with the flow is being vulnerable to mob rule; the Reign of Terror, the Cultural

Revolution, the Killing Fields, the Holocaust, etc..." - JW

IGNORANCE

"No one chooses to be stupid. Stupid is the reason they are not smart. One though can choose

to be ignorant by refusing to learn." - JW

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" Too often stupid people have no interest in learning, compounding their problem." - JW

"The stupidest thing in the world is a stupid person who thinks he is smart." - JW

"Only the incompetent fear the competent." - JW

"Intelligent people always appreciate others of intelligence, it is the fool who hates the

intelligent." - JW

"Those who use absolutes like "everyone", "No one" , "always", "never" and/or "every time"

clearly do not understand people or the universe we live in." - JW

"Stupid is stupid at any age." - JW

"Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn." - Benjamin Franklin

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." - Albert

Einstein

INDIVIDUALISM

"Individualism is not selfishness, it is respecting the differences of others and their right to

also be happy." - JW





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"Sometimes choices are only choosing the lesser of the two evils, but if you live in society that

has no choices, people feel completely helpless and lose all hope. Real men need to feel they

have control over their own lives." - JW

"A person who really understands you, loves you, and cares for you, understands that what is

best for them does not mean it is best for you." - JW

KINDNESS

"If you expect something in return for your kindness or generosity, is it really kindness or

generosity?" - JW

"I have always found it much more pleasurable to give than receive." - JW

LAW

"Law should be based on common sense and simple enough for the average citizen to

understand. If you need a lawyer to decipher the law - the law is an unjust law." - JW

LEADERSHIP

"A really good leader leads from the front by example, making people want to follow them.

A bossy person (da lao ban*) pushes, prods, and nags from behind. Demoralizing their

people and making them hate their jobs. Which in turn diminishes quality, efficiency, and

raises costs." - JW

*Da Lao Ban - Chinese for "Big Boss"


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LEARNING A SECOND LANGUAGE

"Learning a second language is like learning to play a musical instrument. Even the best

need to practice every day." - JW

"Like teaching a musical instrument, no matter how great a language teacher may be, if the

student does not practice he will never master the subject." - JW

LENDING MONEY

"Never lend what you cannot give. If they don't pay you back it is ok, it was a gift. If they do

pay you back it is a pleasant surprise." - JW

"Neither a borrow nor a lender be." - William Shakespeare

LOVE

"Love is not for the weak" - JW

"You can make anyone hate you if you want to, but you cannot make someone fall in love with

you. So there is no point in trying. Just be yourself and they will love you for who you are or

not." - JW

"'I am in love with you.' is the most wonderful words any one can say to another. One should

always be appreciative." - JW

"There is no such thing as love at first sight. There is only lust at first sight." - JW


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"Love without romance and passion is like food without spices; bland and tiresome." - JW

"It is those that follow love that make this a better world. " - JW

"Love should not have to be taught, it should be experienced and all around us and from us.

If it needs to be taught, there is something wrong." - JW

"When you are first in love your lover "seems" perfect. Real love is still loving

them once you realize they are not." - JW

"I rather live in small poor home filled with the warmth of love then live in a large expensive

mansion, cold and empty of love" - JW.

"The woman you love is the most important love. She shares your bed, she is your best friend,

she is your partner in life's struggles, and She is the mother of your children. All the other

loves are meaningless without her." - JW

"It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All

good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get." - Confucius

MANKIND

"If an animal does not adapt to the environment, it will go extinct. Man adapts the

environment to survive, it is why we were able to travel to the moon." - JW


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"The human condition cannot be illustrated in a mathematical formula." - JW

MANAGEMENT

"A supervisor who wants to micro-manage should just do the job themselves. If they do not

want to do the work themselves then they should hire people who know how to do the job and

let them be." - JW

"People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. The leader leads, and the boss

drives." - Theodore Roosevelt

"The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants

done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it." -

Theodore Roosevelt

"Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don't interfere

as long as the policy you've decided upon is being carried out." - Ronald Reagan

MARRIAGE

"It is easy to get someone to marry you. Making them happy that they did is the real

challenge." - JW

"For a marriage to be successful it must be good inside and outside the bedroom." - JW

"A girlfriend is not a wife, but a wife should always be your only girlfriend." - JW

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"It is always easy to get along when times are good. The real test of any relationship is when

times are bad." - JW

"The only difference between a whore and a woman who marries for money is that the latter

has only one client." - JW

MATERIALISM

"No need. Perhaps, but I want." - JW

My ex-girlfriend in Chongqing would fight with me not to use the clothes

dryer.

"No Need." she would say concerned about my spending money for the

electric, "you can just hang the clothes in the window to dry."

I then asked her "Is ok to use the washing machine?"

"Yes." she replied.

"No need ." I parroted her " You can just go to the river and bang our clothes

out on a rock."

I am not the things I own. " - JW

"A Man should be judged by his character, not by his designer labels." - JW

"It is the man in the clothes that matters, not the clothes he wears." - JW


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MEDIA

"Never learn anything from movies alone. Especially from Hollywood films

where entertainment is first, propaganda is second, and truth is often last." - JW

"People like to watch a car accident, they do not enjoy watching people driving safely to

work, so the media gives them what they want." - JW

"Watching or reading only news you already agree with will never make you wiser." - JW

MISTAKES

"Even the greatest writers need editors." - JW

"The mistakes of our past are the lessons that have made us the better people we are today." -

JW

"Do not fear mistakes. You will know failure. Continue to reach out." - Benjamin Franklin

"The only man who never makes a mistake is the man who never does anything." - Theodore

Roosevelt

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." - Thomas A. Edison

"A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new." - Albert Einstein







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MODERATION

"Without water we dehydrate and die. Too much water we drown and die." - JW

MORALITY

"When you force others to be moral, you become immoral." - JW

"If it is wrong, it is wrong, it does not matter if most people do it or not." - JW

"I do not do the wrong thing not because others may know or God may know. I do not do the

wrong thing, because I would know." - JW

MUSIC

"If you need to understand the words, it is not music it's poetry. Good music transcends all

languages." - JW

"Music should generate at least one of four passions; to dance, to cry, to make love, or go

into battle." - JW

"I could never understand why people would go to a music concert and spend the time

screaming at the musicians. Could one imagine the audience at the philharmonic doing the

same?" - JW

NATIONALISM

"Nationalism is a 19th and 20th century concept that will soon disappear as the concepts of

principalities, and the city state mostly have. " - JW


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"I think we all need to strive to be citizens of this world, not just citizens of the country we

are born in." - JW

NORMAL

"100% normal is not normal. Each of us and all of us are abnormal in some way. It is why

laws need to protect the uncommon man, without dictating behavior upon the rest of us." -

J.W.

ONE-PARTY REPUBLICS

"The major disadvantage of one-party states, and theocracies, is that it is nearly impossible

for them to make changes in policy for the better without bloodshed." - JW

OPEN MINDEDNESS

"Understanding the other side does not mean you have to agree with them." - JW

"Ideas should always be judged by their content, not for who is saying them" - JW

OPINIONS

"I don't know anything, I am just opinionated." - JW

"If you get angry by the opinions of others, it is best then not to first give out your own." -

JW.


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PARENTING

"Children are a responsibility, not an investment. They should not be responsible for our well

being, but to the well-being of our grandchildren." - JW

"A parent that will hate who your love more than how much they love you, is not a parent

worth loving." - JW

"There is much more to being a parent than just paying the bills." - JW

"Sometimes parents need to grow up. They need to learn their children are no longer

children." - JW

"The best security for children are parents that really love each other." - JW

"It's my job to teach you to be a man, not to always be a child." - JW (Joan Wdowski - My

mother)

"It is better to gain a son-in-law or daughter-in-law than to lose a daughter or son because

you don't improve of who they love." - - JW (Joan Wdowski - My Mother)

"The one thing I want to leave my children is an honorable name." - Theodore Roosevelt

PERCEPTION

"Caring only about perception, leads to prejudging, which leads to narrow mindedness, and

bigotry." - JW



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"You can never tell a book by its cover." - Mary Ann Evans

PERFECTION

"One can never be perfect, but one should always strive to be better than yesterday." - JW

"Nothing can ever be perfect, at best only better." - JW

"I have met people who are extremely good and much better than me in many things, but

never perfect in anything. We all have room for improvement." - JW

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS

"If we push the line to include words, physical violence will seemed sanctioned against those

that only use words, and those that are censored will feel that physical violence is their only

alternative to be heard." - JW

"Perhaps instead of teaching our children to be more sensitive, we should be teaching them

to have thicker skins." - JW

"Words can only hurt you, if you allow them to." - JW

"If it is inappropriate for a minor character to die in a children's book, it then goes to reason

it is inappropriate to buy a goldfish for a child, because it will die someday." - JW


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POLITICAL PARTIES

"Allegiance to one political party, or ideology, too often hampers one's ability to be flexible

and open to superior ideas." - JW

"They serve to organize faction, to give it an artificial and extraordinary force; to put, in the

place of the delegated will of the nation, the will of a party, often a small but artful and

enterprising minority of the community." - George Washington

REASON

"Reason is the first step for a savage or barbarian in becoming a civilized man." - JW

"Reason without empathy may often lead back to savagery." - JW

RELIGION

"All religions claim to be the one true religion, but they cannot all be true, although they can

all be false." - JW

"Religion is a crutch for the weak in heart and/or mind. Like any real crutch we all may from

time to time need to lean on it." - JW

"Do not condemn religion too easily. Most people need religion, the fear of damnation, and

the award of Heaven, as incentives to live moral and just lives. " - JW


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"If people truly followed the teachings of the religions they say they believe in, this would be

a much, much better world." - JW

"Even if you are an atheist, do not completely dismiss religion, even fables and mythology

can teach us much." - JW

"A militant atheist can become just as evil and intolerant as the most extreme religious

fanatic." - JW

"If a neurosurgeon like Dr. Ben Carson can see the miracle of God in the brain of a child,

who am I, an atheist, to say he is wrong?" - JW

RESPECT

"Respect is something you earn for yourself. No one else can give it or take it from you." - JW

"Respect for tyrants is a one way street. Respect among free men is a two way street." - JW

"Even a whore does not want to be called a whore. If you want the respect of others, you need

to behave respectability. - JW

"Everyone should be respected as an individual, but no one idolized." - Albert Einstein

RESULTS

"If it isn't toasted, it is not toast, it is just plain bread." - JW

"It is not a job until the check clears." - JW



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ROMANCE

"To keep a kettle boiling it takes one to add fuel to the fire and one add water to the kettle,

much like it takes two to keep passion and romance alive in a relationship." - JW

"Being romantic just means expressing your love for another." - JW

"If the parents have romance, they have real love for each other. If the parent's love is real,

the children feel safe and secure. Those who really love each other will face problems

together and solve them together, not fight with each other and blame each other. What can

be better for society than happy and loving families?" - JW

"When you're 'practical' and start a relationship by asking 'Does he have a house? Does he

have a car? Who are his parents? How much money does he make a month' How can you

ever expect to ever have a truly loving and romantic marriage?" - JW

"Telling your daughter not to marry for love, but to marry for money, is the same as telling

her to be prostitute with only one client." - JW

SECURITY

"When we try to eliminate all risk in life we also eliminate all opportunities." - JW

" As for the state making us 'safe', I prefer liberty and our own better judgment." - JW

"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither

liberty nor safety. " - Benjamin Franklin



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SEX

"I do not understand the desire for virgins. They have no experience and can contribute little

to a sexual relationship? Give me a woman who knows what she wants and knows what she is

doing." - JW

"A great lover is someone who's pleasure is their partner's pleasure." - JW

"The mind is the sexiest part of the human body." - JW

"I could never understand the appeal of one night stands. I find the concept of the first night

of many much more exciting." - JW

"When it comes to sex, women are like children taking a bath. They never want to go in, but

once in they never want to get out." - DW * (My older Brother)

SOCIAL WELFARE

"It is easy to be generous ... with someone else's money. Never trust those who want the

government to pay for things, it means they want you to pay instead of themselves." - JW

"Charity is only charity if it is from your own pocket, not from reaching into the pockets of

others." - JW

"Charity is from the heart of the individual, not from the barrel of the taxman's gun." - JW

"It is a much more wonderful feeling to help others, than to be in the position of being

helped." - JW


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"Those that wish for the state to provide and regulate our lives, seek freedom from personal

responsibility." - JW

"No such thing as "free" anything, even in a socialist nation. Someone always pays. The

argument is to make the rich pay, but those with money and power always find a way to pass

the costs to the little guys through higher prices, higher rents, and worse of all and too often

lose of jobs." - JW

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting

the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them. " - Thomas Jefferson

"Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another, but let him work diligently and

build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when

built." -Abraham Lincoln

"How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do

you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin. " - Ronald

Reagan

SOCIALISM

"I could never could understand how those that do not trust large corporations, will instead

trust even larger government that has the power of law, regulations, and the policeman's

gun." - A Joe Saying

SOCIETY

"We are society!" - JW


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"I refuse to be part of the problem, I rather be part of the solution." - JW

"I rather be a lone tiger, than a dog in a pack of dogs." - JW

"A society that does not give freedom and respect to the arts and the creative is a stagnant

society." - JW.

"Great men do not adapt to society, they change society for the better." - JW

"You can never make everyone happy. When you try to you usually only make everyone

unhappy, especially yourself." - JW

"If you tolerate wrongs because you think it is take too long to change society, society will

never change." - JW

"Things can change if people have the courage to fight for it." - JW

"If we live in society that has no choices we are no longer men but sheep. Real men need to

feel they have at least some control over their own lives." - JW

" 'Well everyone does it.' is only an excuse to justify what we know in our hearts is wrong." -

JW

"One man with courage is a majority." - Thomas Jefferson



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"Associate with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation; for it is better to be

alone than in bad company." - George Washington

"I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I

do! That is character!" - Theodore Roosevelt

"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because

of the people who don't do anything about it" - Albert Einstein

"Be the change that you want to see in the world." - Mohandas Gandhi

"First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Trade

Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out -- Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me." - Martin Niemöller

SPECTATOR SPORTS

"I would rather spend my time girl watching than watching a ball move back and forth on a

playing field." - JW

"Rich men play sports, poor men watch it on TV." - JW

"I could never understand the emotional attachment sports fans have to a team, where the

team's own players and coaches will leave in a heartbeat for a higher salary." - JW




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SPORTS

"Learning to lose with grace is more important than actually learning to win." - JW

STUBBORNESS

"Why is that I am stubborn for not agreeing with you, but you are not stubborn for not

agreeing with me?" - JW

"Stubbornness is when being right is more important than being correct." - JW

"When arguing with a stubborn person, the objective is not to change their mind, but to sway

the minds of those listening." - JW

SUCCESS

"One never succeeds by giving up." - JW

"Everything worth doing is difficult. If it were easy everyone would be successful." -JW

"Success comes to those that do not fear failure." - JW

"Money is only a means, it is not success." - JW

"My ex-wife says I am a loser. Since good guys finish last, at least I Know I am a good guy."

- JW


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"Believe you can and you're halfway there." - Theodore Roosevelt

"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try

just one more time." - Thomas A. Edison

"Never, never, never give up." - Winston Churchill

"If you look at...obstacles as containing fences, they become your excuse for failure. If you

look at them as a hurdle, each one strengthens you for the nest." - Dr. Ben Carson

SUICIDE

"Suicide is the most selfish act." - JW

TEACHING

"I try to make my classes as interesting as possible so I am not bored. I have discovered if I

am not bored, my students are not bored, If they are not bored they are paying attention. If

they are paying attention they are learning." - JW

"People learn better when they can associate what they learn with clear patterns. we are

visual animals." - JW

"When you teach understanding, memorization of the basics comes naturally, but when you

teach memorization understanding does not come naturally." - JW





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TIME

"One can always make more money, but time is lost forever" - JW

TOLERENCE

"It is easier to be tolerant or your own short comings than it is be tolerant of the short

comings of others. What is really difficult is learning to be tolerant of the intolerant." - JW

TRUST

"When you first meet others with distrust, it is difficult for them to prove they can be trusted.

If you first trust others, it is easy for them to prove they do not deserve your trust." - JW

"Not giving others the benefit of the doubt is trait of the weak and cowardly." - JW

"Contracts, constitutions, and money only have value if people value them, if not they are

only pieces of paper." - JW

"It is more shameful to distrust our friends than to be deceived by them." - Confucius

TRUTH

"The only thing that is absolute is that nothing is absolute." - JW

"Only by examining all points-of-view can we even come close to understanding the truth." -

JW


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"He who is true to himself can never be hurt by the words of others." - JW

"Bad will fester and grow in the dark. Truth brings it into the light and shrivels it up. " - JW

"In the long run truth always wins." - JW

"Even liars hate being lied to." - JW

"Anyone who thinks they can find truth from reading only one book, be it a holy scripture or

a political manifesto, do not and will not ever get close to knowing he truth." - JW

"The object of superior man is truth." - Confucius

"You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you

cannot fool all the people all the time." - Abraham Lincoln

"Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth." - Mohandas Gandhi

"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." - George Orwell

"Facts are stubborn things." - Ronald Reagan

"The truth is not for all men, but only for those who seek it." - Ayn Rand

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/abrahamlin110340.html

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TYRANTS

"The difference between a statesmen and a tyrant is that statesmen lead in front by example

and with reason, while a tyrant leads by prodding from behind with the point of a bayonet

and the fear of the state." - JW

"What do fundamentalist, fascists, Nazis, socialists, mercantilists, oligarchists, monarchists,

progressivists, communists, and environmentalists all have in common? - They all want to

use the power of the state to enforce their will and opinions on everyone" - JW

"A person who wants to protect you from yourself is a person who wants to control you." -

JW

"A ruler that fears his own people is the real enemy. Not the foreigners at the gates." - JW

"When tyrants know they are losing against the tide of history they will become more

oppressive, fighting back like a wounded cornered animal." - JW

"Tyrants with absolute power may make the trains run on time, the problem is where those

trains are taking us." - JW

"The guns of the state are not always for pointing outwards, very often they are used to point

inwards.” - JW

"All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent." -

Thomas Jefferson



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"Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its

limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves." - Ronald Reagan

VIOLENCE

"Violence must be met with violence until the instigator is forced to surrender

unconditionally." - JW

"Being offended due to your racial, political, religious, or cultural sensitivities by the non-

violent actions, opposing beliefs, or words of others is never a justification for violence." -

JW

WAR

"History has proven that if an unethical enemy perceives you as weak, or that you lack the

resolve to fight, they will view it as an opportunity to strike.” - JW

"War is something I wish I had experienced, yet extremely glad I actually have not." - JW

"Anyone can destroy, building bridges between sides is a skill few have." - JW

"If you know your enemy and yourself, you may destroy an enemy. If you can try to

understand your enemy and help him understand you, you may still destroy an enemy but

also make a friend." - JW



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"If you look at history, two free societies have never gone to war against each other. All wars

in history have been fought by tyrannical governments against free societies or each other." -

JW

“It is much easier for governments to get into wars then it is for them to get out of them”

- JW

"We maintain the peace through our strength; weakness only invites aggression." - Pres.

Ronald Reagan

"Next to a battle lost, the saddest thing is a battle won." - Duke of Wellington

"Si vis bellum, para pacem." - Vegetius (Latin for "If you want peace, prepare for war.")

WEALTH

"Money is only a tool to have the freedom to do what and when you want to." - JW

"What is the point of working all the time to make money, if you never make the time to enjoy

spending money?" - JW

"Rich is when your money works for you, and you do not have to work for your money." - JW

(Joan Wdowski - Joe's Mother Saying)

"Money has never made man happy, nor will it, there is nothing in its nature to produce

happiness. The more of it one has the more one wants" - Benjamin Franklin



Page 78 of 92

WISDOM

"Knowledge is power, only if you are intelligent and creative enough to understand how to

use it." - JW

"A wise man realizes that for every one thing he does know there are a million more things

he doesn't know." - JW

"A wise man is open to learn from anyone, no matter their age, education, or stature in life."

- JW

"Being honest with oneself is the first step to wisdom." - JW

"He who knows best knows how little he knows." - Thomas Jefferson

"We don't know a millionth of one percent about anything." - Thomas A. Edison

WOMEN

"What they will do when they want you, but won't when they have you." - JW

"Women always say they want a good man, but are often attracted to the bad boy. They

always fool themselves that they will be the ones to tame him and change him." - JW

"Women; if their hair is straight, they want to curl it. If their hair is curly they want to

straighten it." - JW




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"Women want so much to find a man that can understand them, mainly because so many of

them don't understand themselves." - JW

"Women do not dress for men, they dress for other women. When a woman does dress for

men, other women will berate her." - JW

"Women talk with each other about food the way men talk with each other about women." -

JW

"Do not be too concerned if you don't understand women, too often they don't even

understand themselves." - JW

"I guess I am more selfish than most men. When it comes to women I don't just want thier

bodies, I want their hearts and minds too." - JW

WORK

"One should work to live, not live to work." - JW

"The person who loves his work will pay to do it. Unfortunately most of us need money to

live. " - JW

"If you choose a career only for money, you are condemned to hate Mondays." - JW

"It better to be busy at work than spending the time watching the clock." - JW


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"Very often being appreciated for a job well done is much more important than the money

earned for doing the job." - JW

"I never did a day's work in my life. It was all fun." - Thomas A. Edison

"Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." - Confucius

WORKING WITH OTHERS

"Don't worry what others do or don't do. Worry only what you do." - JW

"We often have no power over the work quality of others, but we always have the power over

our own." - JW

THE UNIVERSE

"What is the universe without man to appreciate it?" - JW



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Also quoted

Confucius 孔丘 (206 BC – AD 220) Chinese, Philosopher.

Father of Confucianism a cornerstone of Chinese culture. Gave

the world the first golden rule.

Jesus Christ (7 -2 BC - AD 30-36) Jewish founder of the

Christian religion, believed by Christians to be the son of God or

God in the form of man. Muslims regard Jesus as messenger of

God (Allah.) By non-believers he is considered a philosopher and

teacher. Gave the world the second golden rule.

Vegetius (4th century AD) Roman author of military tactics.

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E5%AD%94

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E5%AD%94


Page 82 of 92

William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616) English Playwright and

poet. Considered one of the greatest writers in the English

language. His plays: Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar,

the Temptress, Taming of the Shrew, Macbeth, Henry III and

more, had a deep understanding of the human condition,

centuries before the development of psychology as a science,

making his works timeless classics.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American writer, inventor,

scientist, and founding American father that rebelled against

British tyranny for American independence. Ambassador to

France during the American Revolution.

Adam Smith (1723-1790) Scottish social and economic

philosophy, author of The Wealth of Nations and father of

modern economics and capitalism.



Page 83 of 92

George Washington (1732-1799) American. First President of the

United States. Known as the Father of his Country. Was the

commanding General of the American Army against the British.

When the war was over and won, he had the love of the army and

could have easy established himself as King. He refused his

officers that he did not fight to ride the nation of one king to only

replace him for another. When he did serve as America's first President he set the custom to

only serve two terms, stepping away from power that he could have held onto if he wished.

Every other future President followed his example of only serving at most two four year

terms, until Franklin D. Roosevelt who ran and served for four terms until his death in office.

After F.D.R. the American Constitution was changed that Presidents can only serve two

terms. On his dark side Washington was a slave owner although had his slaved freed after his

death.

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) American President, primary

author of the American Declaration of Independence from British

rule. One of the American founding fathers. Ironically Jefferson

was a slave owner and did not free his slaves until after his death,

he though in his first draft of the Declaration of Independence

wrote to abolish slavery in the founding of the new nation but

many of the Southern States refused to sign the document unless it

was removed from the document.


Page 84 of 92

James Madison (1751-1836) American President and known as

the Father of the American Constitution and principle author of the

Bill of Rights which put limits on what the government could not

do. Guaranteeing Americans freedom of Speech, freedom of

assembly, the right to bear arms (have guns) and to protect their

property and legal rights. Ironically he was a slave owner. As

fourth President of the United States he lead the nation against the British in the War of 1812.

Duke of Wellington (1759-1852) British Field Marshal and

Prime Minister. winner of the Peninsular War during the

Napoleonic Wars. Defeated Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of

Waterloo. As Prime Minister he gave civil rights to Catholics in

Great Britain.

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) American President during the

American Civil War and credited for freeing the slaves. Self

educated lawyer who was literally born in a log cabin. Also

known as honest Abe.


Page 85 of 92

Mary Anne Evans (George Eliot) (1819-1880) English Novelist

who wrote under a male pen name so her novels would be taken

more seriously; Adam Bede (1859), The Mill on the Floss (1860),

Silas Marner (1861), Middlemarch (1871–72), and Daniel

Deronda (1876)

Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) (1835-1910) American author and

humorist. He is most noted for his novels, The Adventures of Tom

Sawyer (1876), and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

(1885), the latter often called "the Great American Novel."

Thomas A. Edison (1847-1931) American Inventor. Father of the

modern "electric" world.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Bede

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mill_on_the_Floss

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silas_Marner

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middlemarch

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Deronda

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Deronda


Page 86 of 92

Louis Brandeis (1856-1941) American lawyer and Supreme Court

Judge. Author of Other People's Money and How Bankers Use it

Supporter of the Zionist movement. When finically secure became

a "people's lawyer" serving on cases without pay. Nominated to the

supreme court by President Wilson in 1916.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) American President. Was the

police commissioner in New York City and later Secretary of the

Navy. He resigned from secretary of Navy to actually fight in the

Spanish American war seeing action in Cuba with the Rough

Riders. Afterwards he was elected Governor of New York State.

As President he fought to break up large business monopolies,

established national parks and the Food and Drug Administration

Covert action and military show of might, helped Panama break from Colombia and saw to

the construction of the Panama canal. Nobel Peace Prize for brokering Peace between Russia

and Japan. The Teddy Bear was named after him.

Henry Ford (1963-1947) American industrialist founder of the

Ford Corporation. Henry Ford advanced assembly line

construction and bringing the automobile to the common man.

Henry Ford also brought about higher wages for his employee

and the forty hour work week.



Page 87 of 92

Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948) Indian leader of the Indian

nationalist movement against British rule. His doctrine of non-

violent protest to achieve political and social progress has been

hugely influential.

Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965) British statesman, prime

minister during World War II. Warned the world of Hitler's Nazi

Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union before most realized the true

nature of their threats to world peace and human rights. He

coined the phrase the "Iron Curtain" that dropped across Europe

and divided it between the free west and the communist held

east. Years later the communist built the Berlin Wall to prevent

their citizens from fleeing to the west.

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German-American Jew who

emigrated to America with the raise of Hitler in Germany. Father

of the nuclear age he was physicist and considered one the most

intelligent men that ever lived. His name is equivalent to genius:

"He is an Einstein"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/churchill_winston.shtml



Page 88 of 92

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) American President during

the Great Depression and World War II. Only President to server

four terms.

Joseph W. Stilwell (1883-1946) American general who fought

with the Chinese against the Japanese in World War II. Also

known as "Vinegar Joe" for his straight talking.

George Patton (1885-1945) American general fought against

the Germans in North Africa and in Europe. Was the most

feared of the Allies commanders by the Germans. Hitler called

him "that crazy cowboy general."


Page 89 of 92

Christopher Dawson (1889-1970) British historic scholar and

author of many books on Western Civilization and religion.

Martin Niemöller (1892-1984) German nationalist and

prominent Protestant pastor who emerged as an outspoken

public foe of Adolf Hitler and spent the last 7 years of Nazi rule

in concentration camps.

Corrado Alvaro (1895-1956) Italian journalist and writer.

George Orwell (1903-1950) British novelist author of 1984 and

Animal Farm. Warned of the evils of tyrannical states.

http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007391


Page 90 of 92

Ayn Rand (1905-1982) Russian-American, Philosopher and

Author. Promoted the positives of unrestricted capitalism and

the rights of the individual over the state. Her most popular

books were written as fictional novels that illustrated her

philosophies. The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas Shrugged

(1957) were her two most influential books.

Ronald Reagan (1911-2001) American President, credited for

winning the Cold War against the Soviet Union. Famous movie

star, Trade Union Leader for the Actors' Guild, and Governor of

California.

Milton Friedman (1912-2006) American Economist, Nobel

Prize Winner in Economics, Professor of Economics University

of Chicago, author with his wife Rose Free To Choose (1980)


Page 91 of 92

Malcolm X (1925 -1965) American Muslim and Civil Rights

Leader. His family in Michigan were assaulted by the Klu Klux

Klan (a White racist group.) By 1963 Malcolm X was the

second most sought out public speaker in America.

Dr. Samuel P. Huntington (1927-2008) American Political

Scientist, author of The Third Wave; Democratization in the

20th

Century (1991) and Clash of Civilizations (1993)

Dr. Benjamin Carson (1951- ) American Neurosurgeon,

Political Commentator, and Author. At only 33 he become the

youngest director of pediatric neurosurgery in John Hopkins

University's history. He is the winner of the Presidential Medal

of Freedom, and has written six bestselling books.

joe saying

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