Imagine an irresponsible teenager with an …

Imagine an irresponsible teenager with an unlimited line of credit. The parents, teachers, pastors, and authorities in his life are ultimately powerless to change his habits. Now imagine that teenager armed to the teeth and also immune even from the rule of law. This is what we have with a government backed by a central bank.

– from End the Fed book by Ron Paul

People universally tend to think that …

People universally tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will maybe descend upon you like fine weather if you’re fortunate enough. But that’s not how happiness works. Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings. And once you have achieved a state of happiness, you must never become lax about maintaining it, you must make a mighty effort to keep swimming upward into that happiness forever, to stay afloat on top of it.

– from Eat, Pray, Love book by Elizabeth Gilbert

When powerful countries have disputes, they …

When powerful countries have disputes, they don’t get their lawyers to plead their cases to judges. Instead, they threaten each other and either reach agreements or fight. The international order follows the law of the jungle much more than it follows international law.

– from Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order book by Ray Dalio

The great irony of investing is …

The great irony of investing is that the more you watch and fiddle with your holdings the less well you are likely to do. Fill your basket, add as much as you can along the way and ignore it the rest of the time. You’ll likely wake up rich.

– from The Simple Path to Wealth book by J. L. Collins