James Otis Quotes

You shall hear a good account of me or of my death.

The general who advances without coveting fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is the jewel of the kingdom.

Civic courage is the kind of valor to which the monuments of nations should most of all be reared.

When were the good and the brave ever in a majority?

Part of the American dream is to live long and die young. Only those Americans who are willing to die for their country are fit to live.

Conquest is the missionary of valor, and the hard impact of military virtues beats meanness out of the world.

It is not in giving life but in risking life that man is raised above the animal; that is why superiority has been accorded in humanity not to the sex that brings forth but to that which kills.

A short, glorious life in service of a greater good - say, the life of the Spartans at Thermopylae, or the pilots in the Battle of Britain, of whom Winston Churchill said 'Never have so many owed so much to so few,' - that is worth praising. But for glory alone? I think not.

I admire the military. I guess in a world of villains and heroes, they're my heroes. Their dedication, their commitment, their discipline, their code of ethics.

And as a child I was filled with passionate admiration for acts of civic courage I had seen performed by an elderly military doctor, who was a friend of my family.

It is up to you to decide who to believe: the same people as usual or those who endanger their lives to save the country.

A man must be willing to die for justice. Death is an inescapable reality and men die daily, but good deeds live forever.

It is part of a good man to do great and noble deeds, though he risk everything.

Brave men, and worthy patriots, dear to God, and famous to all ages.

Gold is good in its place, but living, brave, patriotic men are better than Gold.

My mother and father were partisan national heroes: I learned sacrifice and discipline from them and that a private life is not as important as the message you want to leave.

Perhaps the right to authenticity and the reverence of authenticity should be reserved for people like John McCain. John McCain who at his most authentic chose to stay and face years of torture rather than leave before his brothers.

Chris Kyle was a human being, a Texan, Navy SEAL, father, husband, brother, friends to many, and a hero to many; this, at a time when we need all the heroes we can get. I knew him to be a good person, regardless of all the hype floating around in the media.

A hero usually rises above the ordinary because he or she exemplifies some virtue that everyone can recognize.

Heroes aren't perfect.

You cannot throw words like heroism and sacrifice and nobility and honor away without abandoning the qualities they express.

Young people are so brave when they go to fight.

Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge. It brings out all that is best; it removes all that is base. All men are afraid in battle. The coward is the one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty. Duty is the essence of manhood.

A hero cannot be a hero unless in a heroic world.

A hero is someone we can admire without apology.