Pulling Up

There are two ways of exerting one's strength: one is pushing down, the other is pulling up. - Booker T. Washington


Putting down is the same as pushing down.

Not Malice

Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by stupidity. - Unknown


Few are truly malicious.

Getting Behind

I don't want people to kiss my ass, I just want to get to the point where they can't kick it. - Michael J. Fox


All of us are better off left alone.

Gossip?

You will never keep people from talking. But you can take actions to influence the content of what they say. - Seth Godin


Good or bad.

Insults

A gentleman will not insult me, and no man not a gentleman can insult me. - Frederick Douglass 


If you throw out an insult you are not a gentleman.


(Other posts on Manners) 

True to Yourself

I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence. - Frederick Douglass 


Come on Fred, go ahead and substitute the word "demand" for the word "prefer."


(Other posts on Character) 

Rejected Gifts

If someone offers you a gift, and you decline to accept it, the other person still owns that gift. The same is true of insults and verbal attacks. - Steve Pavlina 


It takes two to Tango.


(Other posts on Ridicule) 

Touchiness

People are, if anything, more touchy about being thought silly than they are about being thought unjust. - EB White

This must be why ridicule is often more persuasive than reason, if you've got the stomach for it.

Dirty Mouth

If you push someone’s face in the dirt, don’t be surprised if when they talk to you (or about you) dirt comes out of their mouth. – Anon



No matter how tempting, we all need to remember to speak kindly of others or not say anything.

Ford on Faults

Don't find fault, find a remedy. - Henry Ford



I sure see a lot of folks who stop at finding faults. It's the ol' "If they are bad, then I am better." attitude. Push them down so I appear higher. If I prove they are garbage they I must be gold.



One of my hobbies is BBQ so I search for recipes and I always read the reviews. Invariably, if you find a recipe which overwhelmingly receives five stars (out of five) there will be one or two which say it is the worst thing they have ever cooked. Those folks find fault but almost never offer a remedy. They don't say "It was too salty for me so next time I won't use as much." They say "Yuk." They are the ones Henry was speaking to.



The more I learn about Henry Ford the more I like him - I find it hard to find fault with his quotes and I see why he was so successful.