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It's the age of 24-hour cable news, the age of U-Tube and Facebook, the age of cell-phone cameras, the age of instant reporting. The grapevine has extended its tendrils all over the world; if it's been said or done, we know it instantly. Politicians--and celebrities in general--are cautioned by their "handlers" to speak circumspectly, lest they be caught off guard making a strong statement about what they truly think and feel and thus set themselves up to be "spun" and probably pilloried. Imagine the giants of the past tempering their language to avoid giving offense. Below are revised statements from the following sources: Leo Tolstoy, Henry Ford, Yogi Berra, Douglas MacArthur, Thomas Paine, Greta Garbo, Mao Tse Tung, John F. Kennedy, William Shakespeare (more than one), Karl Marx, the Bible (more than one), Chief Joseph, Lord Acton, Joyce Kilmer, Alexander Pope (more than one), Barack Obama, W.E. Henley, Voltaire, Harry S. Truman, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Dorothy Parker, Samuel Johnson, Benjamin Franklin, George Santayana, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Frances Edward Smedley, John Keats, Charles Dickens, Antoine Brillat-Savarin, Rene Descartes, Charles Wilson, the Gadsden Flag, the movie Network, Abraham Lincoln, and Ronald Reagan. Your challenge is to recall the unforgettable words of the original statement and identify its source.
1. A kind of communal giving and taking of resources and assets commensurate with one's status and potential could possibly help to produce a more desireable society.
2. A mid-sized government, approved and made possible by a slight majority of the citizens of the country, administered by some of those same citizens for the benefit--if that's not too strong a word--of at least many of the citizens of the country, shall last for several years.
3. For me at least, the feeling in America is kind of like that time of day between, say, 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m., though it could be a little different for you if you are a night owl or work the graveyard shift.
4. You know what, I might not fight in the future. It all depends. I'll keep my options open.
5. Maybe some of us will be able to, a little bit.
6. Always remember to use your words in preference to any baton you might happen to be carrying.
7. I might come back, I might not--you never know.
8. It could possibly help the country a little if we took some modest steps to bail out General Motors.
9. You can't always know how others want to be treated, but you might try imagining how you would want to be treated--if that works for you.
10. If it's not asking too much, give me a little bit of freedom--or else give me a reprimand for speaking a little too bifurcatively.
11. I'm really not overly pleased and am considering not completely accepting "it" in the near future.
12. Please avoid stepping on me if you can. If not, I understand.
13. It's possible that the final outcome might not be determined until a large part of the event has been completed.
14. I'm not positive, but I sort of think that not too many things, other than the eventual cessation of one's life and the governmental extraction of a part of one's income, are certain.
15. There are probably several things that we might be a bit afraid of, and let us not completely overlook fear itself as one of them.
16. If your right hand does something that you may possibly not be comfortable with, gently reprimand it.
17. Okay, go ahead and borrow or lend--the economy needs your participation, after all. But regardless of how favorable the interest rates are, it might be best to do what you can to avoid borrowing or lending too much.
18. These are the times that can make one think a little bit about the pros and cons of serving one's country.
19. Something beautiful can sometimes bring a modicum of pleasure--at least for a little while.
20. When the buck comes to me, I won't act on my own but will seek input from my advisors as to what to do with it..
21. We hold this possibility to be arguable: that most humans are created, or have evolved into becoming, sort of equal.
22. I'll do my best to go to several of the places where you go, and I'll lodge in most places where you lodge (though I may have to draw the line at Motel 6).
23. Sometimes, happy families resemble each other; the same may be true of unhappy ones--or not.
24. I'd like to think that I am the governor of my destiny but I acknowledge that circumstances may also play a role; I'd like to think that I am the director of my inner spirit, but I admit to sometimes being outer-directed.
25. Men may occasionally make advances toward bespectacled girls (especially if the eyewear is by Calvin Klein).
26. The flowers of the field may appear to be exerting no effort, but actually they are partaking in the process of photosynthesis.
27. It is at least possible that I might see a man-made verse as beautiful as an artifact of nature.
28. Tell me all about yourself, including what you like to eat, and that will help me to get an inkling of what kind of person you are.
29. He who does not always pay attention to what he eats may sometimes be indiscriminate in other matters as well.
30. On occasion, persons somewhat lacking in judgment act precipitously when even messengers of God would be hesitant to do so.
31. Sometimes I agree with what you say, sometimes I don't, but I sort of believe that you have the right to say it and would defend that right somewhat physically.
32. Retiring before 10:00 p.m. and arising before 6:00 a.m. may sometimes contribute a bit to one's health, wealth, and wisdom.
33. History may sometimes be somewhat inaccurate and not always useful as a guide to the future.
34. To learn a bit about a subject can sometimes lead to less than desireable consequences.
35. On thing we might consider doing early on is to inhibit the lives of those who make their living at the bar.
36. Life can sometimes be a story told by a not always reliable narrator and characterized sometimes by noise and emotion, the meaning of which may not be immediately forthcoming.
37. You may perhaps find that, although you no longer have a relationship with a certain lover, you are more enriched that you would have been had you never had that relationship.
38. Ordinary scruples do not always apply to situations involving amorousness or pitched battles.
39. What you call something or someone may not always be quite as important as you might think. A saint named Hitler may yet have some redeeming qualities. I'm just saying....
40. Those who have difficulty calling to mind previous actions may sometimes end up doing some of them again.
41. By all means, ask for things, but when doing so consider asking not just how your country can assist you but also if you may in some small way assist your country.
42. While those who have it may occasionally do some good things, power may sometimes lead them to do unjust things, and total power may lead them to do even more unjust things.
43. Political power may indeed come at times from winning the hearts and minds of the governed, but do not underestimate the occasional efficacy of physical force.
44. Those who speak for God sometimes receive more recognition from outsiders than from their own family or community.
45. What I'm about to do might be a little better than some of the things I've done before; and hopefully the restful place I go to will be at least as good as other places I have known.
46. I am somewhat inclined to prefer not being in the company of another person at this time.
47. There are times when a person may encounter some form of precipitation; some days will probably be less than sunny and cheerful.
48. I am capable of mental activity at times; therefore, it is possible that I may exist.
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