On the decline of Rome ...

 "The decline of Rome was the natural and inevitable effect of immoderate greatness. Prosperity ripened the principle of decay; the cause of the destruction multiplied with the extent of conquest; and, as soon as time or accident and removed the artificial supports, the stupendous fabric yielded to the pressure of its own weight. The story of the ruin is simple and obvious: and instead of inquiring why the Roman Empire was destroyed we should rather be surprised that it has subsisted for so long." - Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire.

Every One Shall Sit Safely Under His Own Vine and Fig Tree

 "It is now no more that toleration is spoken of as if it were the indulgence of one class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights, for, happily, the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens in giving it on all occasions their effectual support....

May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants—while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid."  -- George Washington, letter to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport

Persistence

 “In every battle there comes a time when both sides consider themselves beaten. Then he who continues the attack wins.” -- Ulysses S. Grant

Power of Data

 "Portability and the process of decontextualization are responsible for both the power of data and its weakness. Data is powerful because it has been designed to be universally comprehensible. It has more weight in any large-scale social or institutional conversation precisely because it has been engineered for easy use. But that engineering procedure involves, necessarily, cutting out high-context understanding and specialized sensitivity.  The insensitivity and decontextualization nature is also precisely why data speaks so loudly. The power of data is inextricable from its price." C. Thi Nguyen, The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else's Game

Education

“Consider education not as the painful accumulation of facts and dates and reigns, nor merely the necessary preparation of the individual to earn his keep in the world, but as the transmission of our mental, moral, technical, and aesthetic heritage as fully as possible to as many as possible, for the enlargement of man's understanding, control, embellishment, and enjoyment of life." -- Will Durant 

Leadership

 "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." -- John Quincy Adams

Be Curious

 “Ten rules of thumb are still a lot for anyone to remember, so perhaps I should try to make things simpler. I realize that these suggestions have a common thread—a golden rule, if you like. Be curious.”

― Tim Harford, The Data Detective: Ten Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics