The most important lesson in the writing trade is that any manuscript is improved if you cut away the fat.
Robert A. HeinleinRead
Goodness without wisdom always accomplishes evil.
Interpretation
Good intentions can lead to harmful outcomes if not guided by wisdom.
This quote by Robert A. Heinlein suggests that simply having good intentions is not enough; without the guidance of wisdom, those intentions may result in negative consequences. It emphasizes the importance of pairing moral actions with thoughtful consideration and understanding of the impact they may have.
In practice
During a discussion about charity work, one could use this quote to emphasize the need for thoughtful planning.
The most important lesson in the writing trade is that any manuscript is improved if you cut away the fat.
An armed society is a polite society.
Democracy is a poor system of government at best; the only thing that can honestly be said in its favor is that it is eight times as good as any other method the human race has ever tried.
Long human words (the longer the better) were easy, unmistakable, and rarely changed their meanings . . . but short words were slippery, unpredictable, changing their meanings without any pattern.
Progress is made by lazy men looking for easier ways to do things.
When a place gets crowded enough to require ID's, social collapse is not far away. It is time to go elsewhere. The best thing about space travel is that it made it possible to go elsewhere.
Wait for the idea. It may not come at first, but you must be patient, never doubting, waiting in faith. It will come.
The fool who persists in his folly will become wise.
It seems to be a rule of wisdom never to rely on your memory alone, scarcely even in acts of pure memory, but to bring the past for judgment into the thousand-eyed present, and live ever in a new day.
Spend each day trying to be a little wiser than you were when you woke up. Day by day, and at the end of the day-if you live long enough-like most people, you will get out of life what you deserve.
Discretion of speech is more than eloquence, and to speak agreeably to him with whom we deal is more than to speak in good words, or in good order.
To be idle requires a strong sense of personal identity.
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