Ben Stein

“Faith is not believing that God can. It is knowing that God will.”

“I don't believe the most successful people are the ones who got the best grades, got into the best schools, or made the most money.”

“It's really amazing that in the age of unbelief, as a smart man called it, there isn't even more fraud. After all, with no God, there's no one to ever call you to account, and no accounting at all if you can get away with it.”

“The people who did the collateralized mortgage obligations, sold them to pension funds, then sold them short, then bought credit default swap insurance on them, are just amazing. They are a law unto themselves.”

“I love sleeping in a moving car more than sleeping in bed.”

“I do all of the grocery shopping in my little family. I buy cheese, of many different kinds, sliced packaged meats and poultry, bagels, immense quantities of eggs, pre-made fried chicken. Milk. Bacon. It is insane how much dairy, deli and bakery stuff I buy.”

“Americans are terrified because so many of them have been laid off in recent years and months and they fear that they may be next. Even if they have not been laid off or have not known anyone laid off, they definitely know someone who has lost his home.”

“If you want to fight the evil you see in finance and industry, get to work reading the corporate filings, see if there has been fraud, and where you find it, report it to the SEC or write about it or blog about it.”

“I thought that all of the sacrifices and blessings of the whole history of mankind have devolved upon me. Thank you, God.”

“Sleep more at night. If it's allowed at work or home, take a nap in the afternoon. You'll be amazed at how much better you'll feel.”

“Yes, Americans can still get credit for cars and trucks and refrigerators, and those businesses are doing well. But just try to get a home loan now.”

“The ordinary American - as far as I can tell - knows so much less than he did fifty years ago and has such poor work habits compared with fifty years ago that the average multiplicand of knowledge/capabilities is a much smaller number than it was in 1961.”

“The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: decide what you want.”

“Greed is a basic part of animal nature. Being against it is like being against breathing or eating. It means nothing.”

“If there are finer beings than German short hairs, I don't know what they are. In their eyes is peace.”

“When I seemed to be irritable or sad, my father would quote the learned Dr. Knight, and then say, 'Just go to sleep.' Like all smart aleck kids, I thought the advice was silly. But as I've grown older, I've realized just how smart Knight was.”

“If we try to engineer outcomes, if we overturn tradition to make everyone the same, we ruin society. If we upset tradition to allow for an equal shot at the starting gate, everyone wins, except for the charlatans and would be dictators.”

“Personal relationships are the fertile soil from which all advancement, all success, all achievement in real life grows.”