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The fly that doesn't want to be swatted is most secure when it lights on the fly-swatter.

— Georg Christoph Lichtenberg Aphorisms (1765)

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Variants

The fly that does not want to be swatted is safest if it sits on the fly-swat.

More quotes by Georg Christoph Lichtenberg

It is almost impossible to bear the torch of truth through a crowd without singeing somebody’s beard.

Aphorisms (1765)

If you are going to build something in the air it is always better to build castles than houses of cards.

Aphorisms (1765)

The human tendency to regard little things as important has produced very many great things.

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Nothing can contribute more to peace of soul than the lack of any opinion whatever.

Aphorisms (1765)

Even truth needs to be clad in new garments if it is to appeal to a new age.

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All Georg Christoph Lichtenberg quotes →

Attribution

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