Presidential ambition is a disease that can only be cured by embalming fluid.
Interpretation
John McCain criticizes the unhealthy obsession with presidential ambition, suggesting it's detrimental to the person pursuing it.
This quote by John McCain reflects a cynical view of the relentless pursuit of presidential power, comparing it to a disease that consumes individuals. It implies that those who are overly ambitious in seeking the presidency may lose their moral compass and humanity, and that the only way to end such ambition is through a fatal conclusion, symbolized by 'embalming fluid'. This presents a stark warning against the dangers of unchecked political aspiration.
In practice
This quote can be used in a political debate to highlight the negative aspects of political ambition.
Giap was a master of logistics, but his reputation rests on more than that. His victories were achieved by a patient strategy that he and Ho Chi Minh were convinced would succeed - an unwavering resolve to suffer immense casualties and the near total destruction of their country to defeat any adversary, no matter how powerful.
Whenever America sends its citizens into harm's way, it must do so with eyes wide open.
For decades we have been living lives of abundance, with little regard for our natural resources or global health. But we are now facing hard choices in our energy policy. Future generations - my children and grandchildren, along with yours - will have to live with the decisions we make today. And so it is time for us to make some tough and - hopefully - smart choices regarding our energy use and production before it is too late.
We need a free press. We must have it. It's vital.
I appreciate our government's determination to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of the Bytyqi brothers, which Serbia's Interior Minister has rightly called 'an exceptionally serious crime,' and hope the Serbian government's pledge of full cooperation... is matched by a final accounting of their murder.
What is most troubling about Mr. Putin's aggression in Crimea is that it reflects a growing disregard for America's credibility in the world. That has emboldened other aggressive actors - from Chinese nationalists to Al Qaeda terrorists and Iranian theocrats.
The potential for the abuse of power through digital networks - upon which we the people now depend for nearly everything, including our politics - is one of the most insidious threats to democracy in the Internet age.
Nobody should have any illusions. The United States has essentially a one-party system and the ruling party is the business party.
I recognize the Republican Party as the sheet anchor of the colored man's political hopes and the ark of his safety.
All political power comes from the barrel of either guns, pussy, or opium pipes, and people seem to like it that way.
Wealthy individuals bought themselves a radical right party, believing - correctly - that it would cut their taxes and remove regulations, but failed to realize that eventually the craziness would take on a life of its own, and that the monster they created would turn on its creators as well as the little people.
Fundamentalists are not friends of democracy. And that includes your fundamentalists in the United States.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.