“man cannot control the current of events. he can only float with them and steer”

“Only a fool learns from his own mistakes. The wise man learns from the mistakes of others.”

“Hounds follow those who feed them.”

“Laws are like sausages. It's better not to see them being made.”

“Faust complained about having two souls in his breast, but I harbor a whole crowd of them and they quarrel. It is like being in a republic.”

“The statesman's task is to hear God's footsteps marching through history, and to try and catch on to His coattails as He marches past. ”

“I have a burden on my soul. During my long life, I did not make anyone happy, neither my friends, nor my family, nor even myself. I have done many evil things...I was the cause of the beginning of three big wars. About 800,000 people were killed because of me on the battlefields., and their mothers, brothers, and widows cried for them. And now this stands between me and God.”