"Whether at home or abroad, the task..." - Quote by Margaret Thatcher
Whether at home or abroad, the task of statesman is to work with human nature warts and all, and to draw on instincts and even prejudices that can be turned to good purpose. It is never to try to recreate Mankind in a new image.
More by Margaret Thatcher
More on Statesmanship
“Statesmen have to bend to the collective will of their peoples or be broken.”
“Never, never, never believe any war will be smooth and easy, or that anyone who embarks on the strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events.”
“In statesmanship get formalities right, never mind about the moralities.”
More on Human Nature
“Stupidity talks, vanity acts.”
“Poor human nature cannot bear such strains as heavenly triumphs bring to it; there must come a reaction. Excess of joy or excitement must be paid for by subsequent depressions. While the trial lasts, the strength is equal to the emergency; but when it is over, natural weakness claims the right to show itself.”
“in order to make a man or boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain.”