"When all is said and done, the real citadel of strength of any community is in the hearts and minds and desires of those who dwell there."

Power

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Thematic Reflection

This quotation examines the core nature of Power as articulated by Everett Dirksen. Within historical and literary traditions, reflections on Power provide actionable mental models, challenging individuals to evaluate personal ethics, self-discipline, and daily actions.

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About Everett Dirksen

Everett McKinley Dirksen was an American politician. A Republican, he represented Illinois in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate. As Senate Minority Leader from 1959 until his death in 1969, he played a highly visible and key role in the politics of the 1960s. He helped write and pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968, both landmark pieces of legislation during the civil rights movement. He was also one of the Senate's strongest supporters of the Vietnam War. A talented orator with a florid style and a notably rich bass voice, he delivered flamboyant speeches that caused his detractors to refer to him as "The Wizard of Ooze".

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More by Everett Dirksen

"There is no force so powerful as an idea whose time has come."

— Everett Dirksen
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"I have said, with respect to authorization bills, that I do not want the Congress or the country to commit fiscal suicide on the installment plan."

— Everett Dirksen
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"A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money."

— Everett Dirksen
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More about Power

"I've wanted somehow to convey to you the sensations - the atmospheric pressure, you might say - of what it is to be seriously a long-term prisoner in an American prison."

— Jack Henry Abbott
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"For black Americans, we know that gun control... sprouts from racist soil - be it after the or during the infamous Dred Scott case where black man's humanity was not recognized."

— Niger Innis
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"Blind and unwavering undisciplined at all times constitutes the real strength of all free men."

— Alfred Jarry
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"I grew up with the religion of 'Star Wars,' frankly. That's when I realized there is something bigger out there... and it's called The Force."

— Trey Parker
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