P.J. O'Rourke

Quotes

1. When Adam Smith was being incomprehensible, he didn't have the luxury of brief, snappy technical terms as a shorthand for incoherence.

   • Words

   p. 22

2. 

   The Australian language is easier to learn than boat talk. It has a vocabulary of about six words.

   • Humor

3. 

   Earnestness is just stupidity sent to college.

   • Stupidity

4. 

   In Western Australia they don't even know how to make that vital piece of sailing-boat equipment, the gin and tonic.

   • Humor

5. 

   The interesting thing about staring down a gun barrel is how small the hole is where the bullet comes out, yet what a big difference it would make in your social schedule.

   • Death

6. 

   There are a lot of mysterious things about boats, such as why anyone would get on one voluntarily.

   • Humor

7. 

   I am no stranger to loud noise. I've been to a Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels concert. I once dated a woman with two kids.

   • Humor

8. 

   I've always figured that if God wanted us to go to church a lot He'd have given us bigger behinds to sit on and smaller heads to think with.

   • Religion

9. 

   Only one way to cover a story like this, and make that a double, bartender, please.

10. 

    Civilization is an enormous improvement on the lack thereof.

    • Society

11. 

    I can understand why mankind hasn't given up war. During a war you get to drive tanks through the sides of buildings and shoot foreigners— two things that are usually frowned on during peacetime.

    • War

12. 

    Harvard has been almost as important to the American Jewish community as the pork-sausage industry.

    • Humor