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William Bennett

William Bennett Quotes

Former United States Secretary of Education

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Famous William Bennett Quotes

“Loving your homeland is just as natural as loving your father or mother - after all, your country nourishes you, protects you, and in many ways makes you who you are. Just as it's a virtue to honor your parents, it's a good and admirable thing to honor the land you call home.”

WayCountryHomeMotherFatherParentNaturalVirtueLandHonorProtectWho You AreHomelandAdmirableLoving YouProtect You
Book:The American Patriot's Almanac: Daily Readings on America
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“The history of our nation is intertwined with a certain religious tradition, and that the First Amendment was not intended to result in the complete exclusion of religious beliefs from our public classrooms.”

FirstsChristianCertainBeliefNationsReligiousResultsTraditionClassroomAmendmentsFirst AmendmentReligious BeliefExclusionIntertwinedReligious Traditions
Book:The De-valuing of America: The Fight for Our Culture and Our Children
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“"Honor never grows old, and honor rejoices the heart of age. It does so because honor is, finally, about defending those noble and worthy things that deserve defending, even if it comes at a high cost. In our time, that may mean social disapproval, public scorn, hardship, persecution, or as always, even death itself. The question remains: What is worth defending? What is worth dying for? What is worth living for?”

IfsHeartMayMeanDoeAgeSocialGrowsDyingHonorCostDeserveRemainsWorthyNobleOur TimeHardshipRejoicePersecutionScornWorth LivingDisapprovalWorthy ThingsSheepdogs
Author:William Bennett
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“There are no menial jobs, only menial attitudes.”

CharacterMotivationalJobsBusinessAttitudeSelf HelpPositive ThinkingArmyInspirational AttitudePositive AttitudeDispositionBeing PositiveMy AttitudePositive Thinking And AttitudeBest AttitudeKeep A Positive AttitudePositive Thinking AttitudeGreat AttitudeLife AttitudeAttitude And LifeGreat Positive AttitudePositive Thinking SuccessAttitudes And SuccessInspirational Positive AttitudePositive Attitude And SuccessPositive Thinking InspirationalCool Attitude
Author:William Bennett
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“The formation of character in young people is educationally a different task from and a prior task to, the discussion of the great, difficult ethical controversies of the day.”

PeopleDifferentCharacterYoungDifficultEducationTasksDiscussionEthicalControversyFormationGreat Day
Book:Our Children and Our Country: Improving America's Schools and Affirming the Common Culture
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“If we want our children to possess the traits of character we most admire, we need to teach them what those traits are and why they deserve both admiration and allegiance. Children must learn to identify the forms and content of those traits.”

IfsWantNeedsChildrenCharacterFormSpiritualityConsciousnessTeachAngelDeserveOur ChildrenAdmireAdmirationTraitsAllegiance
Book:The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories
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“People of good character are not all going to come down on the same side of difficult political and social issues. Good people - people of character and moral literacy - can be conservative, and good people can be liberal. We must not permit our disputes over thorny political questions to obscure the obligation we have to offer instruction to all our young people in the area in which we have, as a society, reached a consensus: namely, on the importance of good character, and some of its pervasive particulars.”

PeopleCharacterYoungPoliticalSocialDifficultSidesMoralIssuesOffersAreasImportanceConservativeObligationPermitGood PeopleInstructionObscureLiteracyDisputesSocial IssuesConsensusGood Character
Author:William Bennett
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“The formation of character in young people is educationally a different task from, and a prior task to, the discussion of the great, difficult, ethical controversies of the day. First things first. And planting the ideas of virtue, of good traits in the young, comes first. In the moral life, as in life itself, we take one step at a time. Every field has its complexities and controversies. And so does ethics. And every field has its basics. So too with values.”

PeopleFirstsDoeIdeasDifferentCharacterYoungValuesDifficultMoralStepsVirtueFieldsEthicsTasksDiscussionComplexityEthicalTraitsControversyFormationBasicsOne Step At A TimeFirst Things FirstMoral Life
Author:William Bennett
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