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There's A Certain Age When Your Height Stops Growing And You Cannot Change That. This Sort Of Body Growth Cannot Be Fixed. But There Are Many Things That Can Be Changed. You Might Have A Small Body Structure But There Are Opportunities To Make Yourself Very Fit And Healthy. So We'll Have To Work Hard In Many Aspects.

-Aung San Suu Kyi

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There's A Certain Age

Aung San Suu Kyi

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There's A Certain Age When Your Height Stops Growing And You Cannot Change That. This Sort Of Body Growth Cannot Be Fixed. But There Are Many Things That Can Be Changed. You Might Have A Small Body Structure But There Are Opportunities To Make Yourself Very Fit And Healthy. So We'll Have To Work Hard In Many Aspects.

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My Attitude Is, Do As Much As I Can While I'm Free. And If I'm Arrested I'll Still Do As Much As I Can.

Fundamental Violations Of Human Rights Always Lead To People Feeling Less And Less Human.

It Cannot Be Doubted That In Most Countries Today Women, In Comparison To Men, Still Remain Underprivileged.

What Does Burma Have To Give The United States? We Can Give You The Opportunity To Engage With People Who Are Ready And Willing To Change A Society.

Unless There Is Free And Fair Competition, There Can't Be Healthy Economic Development. And What We Have In Burma Now Is Not An Open-market Economy That Allows Free And Fair Competition, But A Form Of Colonialism Makes A Few People Very, Very Wealthy. It's What You Would Crony Capitalism.

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Democracy, Like Liberty, Justice And Other Social And Political Rights, Is Not "given", It Is Earned Through Courage, Resolution And Sacrifice.

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Working Together

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Justice Is A Dream. But It Is A Dream That We Are Determined To Realize.

If You Want To Bring An End To Long-standing Conflict, You Have To Be Prepared To Compromise. If Either Or Both Sides Insist On Getting Everything That They Want - That Is To Say 100 Percent Of Their Demands To Be Met, Then There Can Never Be A Settlement.

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To Have Compromise You Must First Have Dialog. That Is The True Path Of Democracy.

We Have Been Making Constant Efforts, All The Time, To Start Dialogue With The Slorc, But You Know It Takes Two. We Don't Want A Monologue. We Would Like A Substantive Political Dialogue Among The Slorc, Political Leaders Including Myself, And Leaders Of Ethnic Groups-exactly As Stipulated In The U.n. General Assembly Resolution On Burma.

A Most Insidious Form Of Fear Is That Which Masquerades As Common Sense Or Even Wisdom, Condemning As Foolish, Reckless, Insignificant Or Futile The Small, Daily Acts Of Courage Which Help To Preserve Man's Self-respect And Inherent Human Dignity.

The Search For Scapegoats Is Essentially An Abnegation Of Responsibility: It Indicates An Inability To Assess Honestly And Intelligently The True Nature Of The Problems Which Lie At The Root Of Social And Economic Difficulties And A Lack Of Resolve In Grappling With Them.

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You Must Remember That Democracy Is Made Up Not Only Of The Executive, But The Legislature And The Judiciary.

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Basic Human Rights

In Terms Of The History Of A Far Reaching Movement, 20 Years Is Not That Long.

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We Have To Choose Between Dialogue And Utter Devastation.

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University Students

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I Don't Seem To Have Time To Breathe. Everything's Happening So Quickly, And So Much Is Happening All The Time.

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In A System Which Denies The Existence Of Basic Human Rights, Fear Tends To Be The Order Of The Day. The Only Real Prison Is Fear, And The Only Real Freedom Is Freedom From Fear. Never Let Fear Prevent You From Doing Right.

Challenges Mean Opportunities As Well.

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When I Was Under House Arrest, It Was The Bbc That Spoke To Me - I Listened.

Sometimes I Think That A Parody Of Democracy Could Be More Dangerous Than A Blatant Dictatorship, Because That Gives People An Opportunity To Avoid Doing Anything About It.

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I Was A Prisoner, But I Always Felt Free Because I Was Not Frightened So For Me Real Freedom Is Freedom From Fear.

If You Feel Helpless, Go Help Someone.

One Person Alone Can't Do Anything As Important As Bringing Genuine Democracy To A Country.

The Important Thing Is Fear Should Not Control Your Actions. It Should Not Dictate What You Do.

A Revolution Simply Means Great Change, Significant Change, And That's How I'm Defining It - Great Change For The Better, Brought About Through Non-violent Means.

Significant Change

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We Achieve Everything By Our Efforts Alone. Our Fate Is Not Decided By An Almighty God. We Decide Our Own Fate By Our Actions. You Have To Gain Mystery Over Yourself. It Is Not A Matter Of Sitting Back And Accepting.

The Good Ruler Sublimates His Needs As An Individual To The Service Of The Nation.

People Ask Me About What Sacrifices I've Made. I Always Answer: I've Made No Sacrifices, I've Made Choices.

I Think, If You Have Enough Inner Resources, Then You Can Live In Isolation For Long Periods Of Time And Not Feel Diminished By It.

There Are Those Who Argue That The Concept Of Human Rights Is Not Applicable To All Cultures. We In The National League For Democracy Believe That Human Rights Are Of Universal Relevance. But Even Those Who Do Not Believe In Human Rights Must Certainly Agree That The Rule Of Law Is Most Important. Without The Rule Of Law There Can Be No Peace.

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I Look Upon Myself As A Politician. That Isn't A Dirty Word.

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Since We Live In This World, We Have To Do Our Best For This World.

The Root Of A Nation's Misfortunes Has To Be Sought In The Moral Failings Of The Government.

Peace, Development, And Justice Are All Connected To Each Other. We Cannot Talk About Economic Development Without Talking About Peace. How Can We Expect Economic Development In A Battlefield?

Kindness Can Change The Lives Of People.

There Should Be No Political Prisoners In A Democratic Country.

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Where There Is No Justice There Can Be No Secure Peace.

A Lot Of The Roads, Bridges, Railways, And Such Are Built Through The Use Of Forced Labor, And That Is Causing The People Great Suffering. What We Put Into This In The Form Of Human Suffering Is Not Worth What Comes Out Of It.

I Could Listen To The Radio And I Had Access To Books From Time To Time. Not All The Time.

Perhaps Singapore Could Learn From Us A More Relaxed Way Of Life.

In General People Feel More Relaxed About Participating In Politics. They Aren't Frightened As They Used To Be.

It Is Not Power That Corrupts But Fear.

There Is No Intrinsic Virtue To Law And Order Unless 'law' Is Equated With Justice And 'order' With The Discipline Of A People Satisfied That Justice Has Been Done.

Assuming The Chairmanship Of Asean Isn't Going To Do Anything About Improving The Lives Of People.

It Is Undeniably Easier To Ignore The Hardships Of Those Who Are Too Weak To Demand Their Rights Than To Respond Sensitively To Their Needs. To Care Is To Accept Responsibility, To Dare To Act In Accordance With The Dictum That The Ruler Is The Strength Of The Helpless.

Art History Is Always Changing Too.

I Think One Must Take Responsibility For One's Actions And One's Decisions. But One Should Never Take -- One Should Never Assume That Everything That Happens For The Good Is Achieved By One's Self Alone.

When You Feel Helpless, Help Someone.

The Judiciary Must Be Strengthened And Released From Political Interference.

Saints, It Has Been Said, Are The Sinners Who Go On Trying. So Free Men And Women Are The Oppressed Who Go On Trying And Who In The Process Make Themselves Fit To Bear The Responsibilities And Uphold The Disciplines Which Will Maintain A Free Society.

Burma Is Not Yet A Full-fledged Democracy. We Have Started Working On The Road To Full Democracy. We Have A Lot Of Things To Do In Order To Build A Democratic Structure And To Be Become A Full-fledged Democracy.

My Attitude To Peace Is Rather Based On The Burmese Definition Of Peace - It Really Means Removing All The Negative Factors That Destroy Peace In This World. So Peace Does Not Mean Just Putting An End To Violence Or To War, But To All Other Factors That Threaten Peace, Such As Discrimination, Such As Inequality, Poverty.

There Can Be No Civil Peace Without The Rule Of Law.

I Only Used A Cell Phone For The First Time After I Was Released. I Had Difficulty Coping With It Because It Seemed So Small And Insubstantial.

I've Always Been Strongly On The Side Of Non-violence. Also, I Think That If You Use The Wrong Means, The Ends Themselves Get Distorted.

It Is Essential To Institute A Legal Framework That Would Ensure Justice And Improve The Quality Of Life In Burma Immediately, Because The Greatest Suffering Among The People At The Moment Is Caused By Lack Of Justice And Lack Of The Rule Of Law.

The Value Systems Of Those With Access To Power And Of Those Far Removed From Such Access Cannot Be The Same. The Viewpoint Of The Privileged Is Unlike That Of The Underprivileged.

Underprivileged

I Was Given Some Harry Potter Books By A Young Friend. I Wanted To Know Why Young People Liked It So Much. And I Noted That There Were Some Values In Harry Potter That Are Common To Many Books That Are Popular All Over The World. In The End, I Think People Prefer The Good To Win, Rather Than The Bad.

When I Was In London A Kachin Youth Criticized Me For Not Condemning The Burmese Military For Their Offensive In Kachin State. I Answered "condemnation Is Not The Solution." We Want To Build Reconciliation, Not Condemnation.

Freedom And Democracy Are Dreams You Never Give Up.

Maybe It Is Something To Do With Age, But I Have Become Fonder Of Poetry Than Of Prose.

Burmese Political Culture Lacks An Understanding Of Negotiated Compromise. We Have To Build Up That Kind Of Culture.

People Must Have Freedom And At The Same Time They Must Have Security. They Must Not Be Using Freedom To Fight With Each Other. When They Have Security Of The Mind, Their Fears Will Subside, And Their Mistrust Of Others Will Also Decline. There Will Be No Need To Worry That Somebody Will Be Looking At You With Jealousy. They Won't Have To Worry That Someone Will Report Some Lies To Their Superiors And Get Them Into Trouble. This Fear Of Being Unjustly Punished Would Disappear And I Believe Confidence And Trust Will Mount And People Will Have More Love And Respect Towards One Another.

How Can You Call It A Sacrifice When You Choose To Do Something Because You Believe In It?

I Am Not Unaware Of The Saying That More Tears Have Been Shed Over Wishes Granted Than Wishes Denied.

I'm Feeling A Little Delicate.

I Think By Now I Have Made It Fairly Clear That I Am Not Very Happy With The Word Hope. I Don't Believe In People Just Hoping. We Work For What We Want. I Always Say That One Has No Right To Hope Without Endeavor, So We Work To Try And Bring About The Situation That Is Necessary For The Country, And We Are Confident That We Will Get To The Negotiation Table At One Time Or Another. This Is The Way All Such Situations Pan Out Even With The Most Truculent Dictator.

There Is A Special Charm To Journeys Undertaken Before Daybreak In Hot Lands: The Air Is Soft And Cool And The Coming Of Dawn Reveals A Landscape Fresh From The Night Dew.

After I Was Released, People Used To Keep Asking Me, 'what's It Like To Be Free? And It Was Very Difficult For Me To Answer. I'd Always Felt Free. As Far As My State Of Mind Was Concerned, I Didn't Feel Any Different...people Ask Me About What Sacrifices I've Made. I Always Answer: I've Made No Sacrifices, I've Made Choices.

One Prisoner Of Conscience Is One Too Many.

Some Of The Most Relaxing Weekends I Have Ever Enjoyed Were Those I Spent Quietly With A Sense Of All Work To Date Completed, And An Absorbing Mystery.

It Is The Love Of Ordinary People, In Burma, In Japan Or Anywhere Else In The World, For Justice And Peace And Freedom That Is Our Surest Defense Against The Forces Of Unreason And Extremism.

I've Always Said That The Most Important Thing Is Job Creation. Jobs Will Earn People Money And Build Self-confidence.

Self Confidence

I Worry That Even Those Who Want To Reform Are Not Quite Sure How To Go About It. There Is So Much To Be Done.

The Quintessential Revolution Is That Of Spirit. Without This, The Forces Which Produce The Inequalities Of The Old Order Will Continue To Operate.

Young People Drift Away From Society Because, In Many Cases, They Have No Hope Or Goals. So, Hope Will Have To Be Given To The Young.

As The Twentieth Century Draws To A Close It Has Become Obvious That Material Yardsticks Alone Cannot Serve As An Adequate Measure Of Human Well-being. Even As Basic An Issue As Poverty Has To Be Re-examined To Take Into Account The Psychological Sense Of Deprivation That Makes People Feel Poor.

The Greatest Gift For An Individual Or A Nation... Was Abhaya, Fearlessness, Not Merely Bodily Courage But Absence Of Fear From The Mind.

It Is Often In The Name Of Cultural Integrity As Well As Social Stability And National Security That Democratic Reforms Based On Human Rights Are Resisted By Authoritarian Governments.

If You Want Democracy, You Have Got To Be Prepared To Accept The Responsibilities Of Democracy. The People Have To Take Part. They Have To Understand That They Have The Power To Move Things, And They Must Really Commit Themselves To Change If They Want It.

For Me, 'revolution' Simply Means Radical Change.

I Can Say With Absolute Confidence That The General Public Of Burma Would Be Very Little Affected, If At All, By Sanctions. So Far, The Kind Of Investments That Have Come In Have Benefited The Public Very Little Indeed. If You Have Been In Burma Long Enough, You Will Be Aware Of The Fact That A Small Elite Has Developed That Is Extremely Wealthy. Perhaps They Would Be Affected, But My Concern Is Not With Them But With The General Public.

Agreeing To Disagree Is A Prerogative Only Of Those Who Live Under A Democratic System.

I Was Heartened That People Everywhere Want Certain Basic Freedoms, Even If They Live In A Totally Different Cultural Environment.

We Cannot Be Caught In The Bond Of Suspicion. We Have To Carry Out What We Should Be Doing With A Firm Determination.

I Was Surprised By The Response Of Young People Because There Is A Perception That Those Younger Than The 1988 Generation Are Not Interested In Politics.

I've Never Thought Of Myself As Being Particularly Brave - I Used To Be Frightened Of The Dark When I Was Small. And I'm Not Very Good With Dead Rats And Things Like That. But I Face What Has To Be Faced And I Hope As Best As I'm Able.

Peace As A Goal Is An Ideal Which Will Not Be Contested By Any Government Or Nation, Not Even The Most Belligerent.

At The Moment I Would Like To Emphasize The Need For Vocational Training, For Non-formal Education In Burma To Help All Those Young People Who Have Suffered From A Bad Education. They Have To Be Trained To Earn Their Living. They Have To Have Enough Education Vocational Training To Be Able To Set Up Respectable Lives For Themselves.

I Don't Like To Be Called A Symbol. And I Don't Like To Be Called An Icon. I Will Just Say That I Have To Work Very, Very Hard. So I'd Rather Be Known As A Hard Worker. I Don't Think Symbols Do Much, Nor Icons.

I Do Not Like To Encourage Personalized Politics, So We Would Not Like It To Be Thought That Just Because Certain Political Personalities Were Attacked, This Means The Situation Is Very Grave. The True Gravity Of The Situation Comes From The Fact That Ordinary Members Of The Nld Are Repressed All The Time. We Don't Want A Completely Paralyzed Political Organization, While A Select Few Leaders Are Protected By International Attention.

Human Beings Want To Be Free And However Long They May Agree To Stay Locked Up, To Stay Oppressed, There Will Come A Time When They Say 'that's It.' Suddenly They Find Themselves Doing Something That They Never Would Have Thought They Would Be Doing, Simply Because Of The Human Instinct That Makes Them Turn Their Face Towards Freedom.

Natural Instinct

My Top Priority Is For People To Understand That They Have The Power To Change Things Themselves.

Sometimes, 24 Hours Can Bring A Total Revolutionary Change.

You Should Never Let Your Fears Prevent You From Doing What You Know Is Right.

Early Childhood Development Has Proved To Be Very Beneficial And Very Cost-effective In Societies Where This Is Been Tried. So Let's Not Confine Ourselves To Primary Education. Let's Think Of Early Childhood Development And Education As A Whole.

[t]here Is A Vast Difference In The Attitude Of A Man With A Gun In His Hand And That Of One Without A Gun In His Hand. When A Man Does Not Have A Gun In His Hand, Or A Woman For The Matter, He Or She Tries Harder To Use His Or Her Mind, Sense Of Compassion, And Intelligence To Work Out A Solution.

As We Strive To Teach Others We Must Have The Humility To Acknowledge That We Too Still Have Much To Learn.

I Think Corporations Should Give More Attention To This Suffering And Should Wait To Invest Until There Is A Responsible Government In Burma. I Do Not Think It Is A Good Idea To Separate Economics From Politics; In Fact, I Do Not Think Economics Can Be Separated From Politics It's Quite Understandable That Many Business Concerns Think Only About Their Own Profits It's Up To The Public To Put As Much Pressure As It Can On These Companies, Through Shareholder Resolutions And Public Actions.

Responsible Government

There's A Certain Age When Your Height Stops Growing And You Cannot Change That. This Sort Of Body Growth Cannot Be Fixed. But There Are Many Things That Can Be Changed. You Might Have A Small Body Structure But There Are Opportunities To Make Yourself Very Fit And Healthy. So We'll Have To Work Hard In Many Aspects.

More People, Especially Young People, Are Realising That If They Want Change, They've Got To Go About It Themselves – They Can't Depend On A Particular Person, Ie Me, To Do All The Work. They Are Less Easy To Fool Than They Used To Be, They Now Know What's Going On All Over The World.

My Opinion Is The Greatest Reward That Any Government Could Get Is The Approval Of The People. If The People Are Happy And The People Are At Peace And The Government Has Done Something For Them, That's The Greatest Reward I Think Any Government Could Hope For.

Every Thought, Every Word, And Every Action That Adds To The Positive And The Wholesome Is A Contribution To Peace. Each And Every One Of Us Is Capable Of Making Such A Contribution.

Please Use Your Freedom To Promote Ours.

All Right, Your Knees May Be Knocking But That Shouldn't Prevent You From Going Ahead And Doing What You Need To Do.

The Terms Of The 2008 Constitution [which Ensures The Military Will Continue To Be The Ultimate Authority] Could Not Benefit Burma In The Long Run. I Think This Constitution Should Be Revised.

If You Can Make People Understand Why Freedom Is So Important Through The Arts, That Would Be A Big Help.

European And American Companies Companies Do Create Jobs For Some People But What They're Mainly Going To Do Is Make An Already Wealthy Elite Wealthier, And Increase Its Greed And Strong Desire To Hang On To Power. So Immediately And In The Long Run, These Companies - Harm The Democratic Process A Great Deal.

There Is Nothing To Be Gained By Being Unnecessarily Nasty. Violence Begets Violence.

I Don't Want Burma To Be A Basket Case Forever.

The Act Of Willingly Subtracting From One's Own Limited Store Of The Good And The Agreeable For The Sake Of Adding To That Of Others Reflects The Understanding That Individual Happiness Needs A Base Broader Than The Mere Satisfaction Of Selfish Passions. From There, It Is Not Such A Large Step To The Realization That Respecting The Susceptibilities And Rights Of Others Is As Important As Defending One's Own Susceptibilities And Rights If Civilized Society Is To Be Safeguarded.

Individual Happiness

I Wish People Wouldn't Think Of Me As A Saint - Unless They Agree With The Definition Of A Saint That A Saint's A Sinner Who Goes On Trying.

Human Beings The World Over Need Freedom And Security That They May Be Able To Realize Their Full Potential.

In Burma, Our Main Goal In Amending The Constitution Is Not To Phase Out The Military From Politics. Our Main Point Is To Put The Constitution In Line With International Standards And Norms.

It's Very Difficult To Have Any Faith In The Sincerity Of The Slorc About Stamping Out Drug Production If They Find It So Easy To Forgive A Drug Baron Whom At One Time They Said They Would Never, Never Forgive And Would Never, Never Regard As Anything But A Drug Runner. The Slorc Is Far More Aggressive In Its Attitude Toward The National League For Democracy Than Against Drug Traffickers.

I Think Sometimes If You Are Alone, You Are Freer Because Your Time Is Your Own.

There Have Been Many Claims That [u.s.] Sanctions Have Hurt Burma Economically, But I Did Not Agree With That Point Of View. If You Look At Reports By The Imf, For Example, They Make Quite Clear That The Economic Impact On Burma Has Not Been That Great. But I Think The Political Impact Has Been Very Great And That Has Helped Us In Our Struggle For Democracy.

I Don't Believe In Professional Dissidents. I Think It's Just A Phase, Like Adolescence.

Because Of Rampant Inflation, Living Standards Have Been Dropping For The Great Majority Of The Population. The People Are Poorer Because Standards Of Health And Education Have Fallen. And Conditions In The Rural Areas Are Worse Off Than They Have Ever Been. So, You Cannot Equate The So-called Open-market Economy Adopted By The Slorc With Any Real Development That Benefits People.

Burma Wants To Have Good Relations With Our Neighboring Countries, China And India. I Do Believe The United States Itself Wants To Live In Harmony With China And India. That's Why We Have To Lay Down Political Policies That Are Fair For Everyone.

The Education And Empowerment Of Women Throughout The World Cannot Fail To Result In A More Caring, Tolerant, Just And Peaceful Life For All.

Part Of Our Struggle Is To Make The International Community Understand That We Are A Poor Country Not Because There Is An Insufficiency Of Resources And Investment, But Because We Are Deprived Of The Basic Institutions And Practices That Make For Good Government.

With The Right Kind Of Institutions, Starting With The Rule Of Law, Burma Could Progress Very Quickly.

I Do Not Hold To Non-violence For Moral Reasons, But For Political And Practical Reasons.

To View The Opposition As Dangerous Is To Misunderstand The Basic Concepts Of Democracy. To Oppress The Opposition Is To Assault The Very Foundation Of Democracy.

Fearlessness May Be A Gift, But Perhaps Most Precious Is Courage From Cultivating The Habit Of Refusing To Let Fear Dictate One's Actions.

In Burma, We Need To Improve Education In The Country - Not Only Primary Education, But Secondary And Tertiary Education. Our Education System Is Very Very Bad. But, Of Course, If You Look At Primary Education, We Have To Think In Terms Of Early Childhood Development That's Going Back To Before The Child Is Born - Making Sure The Mother Is Well Nourished And The Child Is Properly Nurtured.

Fires Of Suffering And Strife Are Raging Around The World.

So, I Think That For The Authorities To Say Now That Calling For Sanctions Will Prevent Dialogue Is A Ploy To Stop Us From Supporting Sanctions. It Has To Be The Other Way Around: Dialogue First, Then We Stop Our Call For Sanctions, Because Sanctions Make People Understand That You Cannot Exercise Repression And At The Same Time Expect International Support.

All Repressive Laws Must Be Revoked, And Laws Introduced To Protect The Rights Of The People.

While It Is Undeniable That Many Have Been Driven To Immorality And Crime By The Need To Survive, It Is Equally Evident That The Possession Of A Significant Surplus Of Material Goods Has Never Been A Guarantee Against Covetousness, Rapacity And The Infinite Variety Of Vice And Pain Which Spring From Such Passions. Indeed, It Could Be Argued That The Unrelenting Compulsion Of Those Who Already Have Much To Acquire Even More Has Generated Greater Injustice, Immorality And Wretchedness Than The Cumulative Effect Of The Struggles Of The Severely Underprivileged To Better Their Lot.

When You Decide To Follow A Certain Path, You Should Follow It To The End And Not Be Diverted From It For Personal Reasons.

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