History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely once they have exhausted all other alternatives.
—Abba Eban
A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past, he is one who is prematurely disappointed in the future.
—Sydney J. Harris
Idealism is what precedes experience; cynicism is what follows.
—David T. Wolf
Cynically speaking, one could say that it is true to life to be cynical about it.
—Paul Tillich
Ninety-eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hard-working, honest Americans. It's the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity. But then—we elected them.
—Lily Tomlin
Cynics regarded everybody as equally corrupt… Idealists regarded everybody as equally corrupt, except themselves.
—Robert Anton Wilson
A cynic is a man who, when he smells flowers, looks around for a coffin.
—H. L. Mencken
We have men loosening the nails on Noah's ark.
—Robert Bly
We can destroy ourselves by cynicism and disillusion, just as effectively as by bombs.
—Kenneth Clark
If we listened to our intellect, we'd never have a love affair. We'd never have a friendship. We'd never go into business, because we'd be too cynical. Well, that's nonsense. You've got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down.
—Annie Dillard
Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it.… It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more.
—Erica Jong
The word 'politics' is derived from the word 'poly', meaning 'many', and the word 'ticks', meaning 'blood sucking parasites'.
—Larry Hardiman
The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it.
—George Bernard Shaw
Cynicism is an unpleasant way of saying the truth.
—Lillian Hellman
No matter how cynical you get, it is impossible to keep up.
—Lily Tomlin