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H. L. Mencken Quotes

H. L. Mencken quote from classy quote

Puritanism. The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Happy Be Happy Somewhere

It is hard to believe that a man is telling the truth when you know that you would lie if you were in his place.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Man Lie Believe

On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Day Heart Moron

Each party steals so many articles of faith from the other, and the candidates spend so much time making each other's speeches, that by the time election day is past there is nothing much to do save turn the sitting rascals out and let a new gang in.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Time Day Past

For it is mutual trust, even more than mutual interest that holds human associations together. Our friends seldom profit us but they make us feel safe. Marriage is a scheme to accomplish exactly that same end.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Friends Trust Together

Whenever a husband and wife begin to discuss their marriage they are giving evidence at a coroner's inquest.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Wife Giving Husband

Men have a much better time of it than women. For one thing, they marry later; for another thing, they die earlier.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Time Women Men

Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken American Nobody Taste

Say what you will about the ten commandments, you must always come back to the pleasant fact that there are only ten of them.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken You Say Ten Commandments

It is even harder for the average ape to believe that he has descended from man.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Man Believe Average

It is impossible to imagine the universe run by a wise, just and omnipotent God, but it is quite easy to imagine it run by a board of gods.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken God Wise Universe

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Safety Aim Whole

One of the most mawkish of human delusions is the notion that friendship should be eternal, or, at all events, life-long, and that any act which puts a term to it is somehow discreditable.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Events Human Act

The most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to think things out... without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane, intolerable.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Man Think Insane

The worst government is often the most moral. One composed of cynics is often very tolerant and humane. But when fanatics are on top there is no limit to oppression.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Oppression Moral Limit

I believe that all government is evil, and that trying to improve it is largely a waste of time.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Time Evil Believe

All government, of course, is against liberty.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Liberty Against Course

War will never cease until babies begin to come into the world with larger cerebrums and smaller adrenal glands.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken War World Never

Every man sees in his relatives, and especially in his cousins, a series of grotesque caricatures of himself.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Man Cousins Relatives

Poetry has done enough when it charms, but prose must also convince.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Done Enough Convince

It is not materialism that is the chief curse of the world, as pastors teach, but idealism. Men get into trouble by taking their visions and hallucinations too seriously.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken World Teach Seriously

Honor is simply the morality of superior men.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Honor Morality Superior

A society made up of individuals who were all capable of original thought would probably be unendurable.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Thought Up Capable

We must be willing to pay a price for freedom.

~ H. L. Mencken

H. L. Mencken Pay Price Must
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