I believe that religion, generally speaking, has been a curse to mankind – that its modest and greatly overestimated services on the ethical side have been more than overcome by the damage it has done to clear and honest thinking. I believe that no discovery of fact, however trivial, can be wholly useless to the race, and that no trumpeting of falsehood, however virtuous in intent, can be anything but vicious. I believe that the evidence for immortality is no better than the evidence of witches, and deserves no more respect. I believe in the complete freedom of thought and speech – alike for the humblest man and the mightiest, and in the utmost freedom of conduct that is consistent with living in organized society. I believe in the capacity of man to conquer his world, and to find out what it is made of, and how it is run. I believe in the reality of progress. I –But the whole thing, after all, may be put very simply. I believe that it is better to tell the truth than to lie. I believe that it is better to be free than to be a slave. And I believe that it is better to know than be ignorant. . H.l. Mencken
About This Quote

Teddy Roosevelt said, "I believe that it is better to tell the truth than to lie. I believe that it is better to be free than to be a slave. And I believe that it is better to know than be ignorant." He believed in "the capacity of man to conquer his world, and to find out what it is made of, and how it is run." He believed in "progress." Roosevelt believed in all these things without believing in blind allegiance to any one creed. He believed in the value of science and technology for progress, but he did not believe they were the only means for progress. He called for a return to the values of the American Revolution and the Jeffersonian ideals of individualism and equal rights — with a healthy respect for nature and all its laws — but he did not see these as absolutes.

Source: The Artist: A Drama Without Words

Some Similar Quotes
  1. We have to allow ourselves to be loved by the people who really love us, the people who really matter. Too much of the time, we are blinded by our own pursuits of people to love us, people that don't even matter, while all that... - C. Joybell C.
  2. The love of learning, the sequestered nooks, And all the sweet serenity of books - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
  3. Most of us must learn to love people and use things rather than loving things and using people. - Roy T. Bennett
  4. Before, I wanted to say: "I found love! " But now, I want to say: "I found a person. And he belongs to me and I belong to him. - C. Joybell C.
  5. Because I trust in the ever-changing climate of the heart. (At least, today I feel that way.) I think it is necessary to have many experiences for the sake of feeling something; for the sake of being challenged, and for the sake of being expressive,... - Jason Mraz
More Quotes By H.l. Mencken
  1. It takes courage to love, but pain through love is the purifying fire which those who love generously know. We all know people who are so much afraid of pain that they shut themselves up like clams in a shell and, giving out nothing, receive...
  2. The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.
  3. Happiness is not a goal...it's a by-product of a life well lived.
  4. Life was meant to be lived, and curiosity must be kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life.
  5. Never allow a person to tell you no who doesn't have the power to say yes.
Related Topics