Political Quotes

Teddy Roosevelt: “If you choose to have high ideals so fantastic that they are of no use when you try to apply them in practical life, do…”

On the record
If you choose to have high ideals so fantastic that they are of no use when you try to apply them in practical life, do not for one moment delude yourself into the belief that to have these fantastic ideals shows that you are more virtuous than the man who has not got them.
Said by
Teddy Roosevelt
Republican · New York

Editor's note · Context

Roosevelt critiques the notion that having impractical ideals is a sign of virtue compared to practical individuals.

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Oct 13, 1912

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