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I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.

— Isoroku Yamamoto Disputed

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Source, in full

Statement made after the attack on Pearl Harbor by Yamamoto as portrayed in the film Tora! Tora! Tora!, this is one of the most quoted remarks attributed to him. Though it is thought that it summarizes his sentiments well, a definite source for this quote has never been provided. William Safire wrote that there is no printed evidence to support this quote. Safire's Political Dictionary, page 666. For more information see the Wikipedia article "Isoroku Yamamoto's sleeping giant quote".

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Dreams

More quotes by Isoroku Yamamoto

The fiercest serpent may be overcome by a swarm of ants.

In the first six to twelve months of a war with the United States and Great Britain I will run wild and win victory upon victory. But then, if the war continues after that, I have no expectation of success.

A military man can scarcely pride himself on having "smitten a sleeping enemy"; it is more a matter of shame, simply, for the one smitten. I would rather you made your appraisal after seeing what the enemy does, since it is certain that, angered and outraged, he will soon launch a determined counterattack.

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Some of my youthful readers are developing wonderful imaginations. This pleases me.

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Religion in so far as it is a source of consolation is a hindrance to true faith; and in this sense atheism is a purification.

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Isoroku Yamamoto (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.