It is a socialist idea that making profits is a vice; I consider the real vice is making losses.
Winston ChurchillRead
In time of war, soldiers, however sensible, care a great deal more on some occasions about slaking their thirst than about the danger of enteric fever. Better known as typhoid, the disease is often spread by drinking contaminated water.
Interpretation
What this quote means
In times of crisis, basic human needs often override concerns for safety and health.
This quote by Winston Churchill highlights how in situations of extreme stress, such as war, soldiers may prioritize immediate physical needs, like quenching their thirst, over more abstract concerns such as the risk of disease. It underscores the instinctual nature of survival, where basic desires can overshadow rational fears, illustrating the human condition in dire circumstances.
Themes
WarSurvivalThirstHealthDanger
In practice
Example use cases
During a military training seminar, to illustrate the importance of prioritizing immediate needs.
More from Winston Churchill
All quotes →The United States is like a gigantic boiler. Once the fire is lit under it, there's no limit to the power it can generate.
Winston ChurchillRead
Politics is almost as exciting as war, and quite as dangerous. In war you can only be killed once, but in politics many times.
Winston ChurchillRead
I will not pretend that if I had to choose between communism and Nazism I would choose communism.
Winston ChurchillRead
Mountaintops inspire leaders but valleys mature them.
Winston ChurchillRead
True genius resides in the capacity for evaluation of uncertain, hazardous, and conflicting information.
Winston ChurchillRead
Similar quotes
I am kind; I am humane. I open to you my fatherly arms. Come, all of you; I will receive you all - no less those of the South than those of the West, and of the North, who, gained over by Rigaud, have deserted your firesides, your wives, your children, to place yourselves at his side.
Toussaint LouvertureRead
We just were saying no more police brutality. And we had enough of police harassment in the Village and other places.
Marsha P. JohnsonRead
Since the birth of our nation, the steady performance of the Marine Corps in fighting America's battles has made it the very symbol of military excellence. The Corps has come to be recognized worldwide as an elite force of fighting men, renowned for their physical endurance, for their high level of obedience, and for the fierce pride they take, as individuals, in the capacity for self discipline.
Clare Boothe LuceRead
First they came for the Jews, but I did nothing because I'm not a Jew. Then they came for the socialists, but I did nothing because I'm not a socialist. Then they came for the Catholics, but I did nothing because I'm not a Catholic. Finally, they came for me, but by then there was no one left to help me.
Martin NiemollerRead
Any soldier worth his salt should be antiwar. And still there are things worth fighting for.
Norman SchwarzkopfRead
Courage isn't the absence of fear, it's just deciding that fear isn't calling the shots anymore
Bob GoffRead