As they say one thing led to another and ultimately the British and Irish governments asked me to serve as chairman of the peace negotiations which ironically began six years ago this week.

I came here as a practical man to talk not simply on the question of peace and war but to treat another question which is of hardly less importance - the enormous and burdensome standing armaments which it is the practice of modern Governments to sustain in time of peace.

From 1836 down to last year there is no proof of the Government having any confidence in the duration of peace or possessing increased security against war.

We as the Afghan people and government are willing to help Pakistan work for peace in Afghanistan and work for peace in Pakistan together.

I believe however that peace is attainable regardless of the Arabs mentality society or government.

Nothing is more important in the preservation of peace than to secure among the great mass of the people living under constitutional government a just conception of the rights which their nation has against others and of the duties their nation owes to others.

It is not uncommon in modern times to see governments straining every nerve to keep the peace and the people whom they represent with patriotic enthusiasm and resentment over real or fancied wrongs urging them forward to war.

Certainly protecting oppressed people stopping ethnic conflict and promoting responsible governance are worthy goals. But none is as important for American security and prosperity as keeping the peace in the Middle East Europe and East Asia.

When a peace agreement is concluded between the Lebanese government and Israel we would surely disagree with the Lebanese government about that but we would not make any turmoil out of it.

On the other hand if the free world is concerned with how a new Palestinian leader governs then the peace process will have a real chance to succeed.

I think that it's always appropriate for Americans and for American foreign policy to make clear why we feel that self-government is most compatible with peace the well-being of people and human dignity.

Military hardliners called me a 'security threat' for promoting peace in South Asia and for supporting a broad-based government in Afghanistan.

I think peace should be done not only among governments but among people. It was impossible before the Facebook.

I like to believe that people in the long run are going to do more to promote peace than our governments. Indeed I think that people want peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of the way and let them have it.

It is not the Government the members of Parliament to whom the ultimate decision belongs it is up to you to go forward sure of your sacred right of free opinion sure of your patriotism.

If terror groups are to be defeated it is national governments that will have to do so. In nations like India governments will have to call on the patriotism of citizens to fight the terrorists. In a nation like Pakistan the government will have to be persuaded to deal with those in their midst who are complicit.

In all her history from the formation of the federal government until the hour of secession no year stands out more prominently than the year 1858 as evidencing the national patriotism of Virginia.

I think the destructive vicious negative nature of much of the news media makes it harder to govern this country harder to attract decent people to run for public office.

There is but one law for all namely that law which governs all law the law of our Creator the law of humanity justice equity - the law of nature and of nations.

The more a race is governed by its passions the less it has acquired the habit of cautious and reasoned argument the more intense will be its love of music.

I had someone call me this morning telling me they had somebody who would only work a certain number of hours a week because if they worked too many hours a week then they couldn't get their government assistance. And that person has multiple cell phones and gets them new every month with new minutes.

People in Oklahoma don't wake up every morning wondering what the government is going to do for them.

I was scheduled to give my first official press conference that morning anyway 'cause I was chairman of the Governors Energy Council and I was making a press conference with regard to energy policy.

The attorney general would call at 5 o'clock in the evening and say: 'Tomorrow morning we are going to try to integrate the University of Mississippi. Get us a memo on what we're likely to do and what we can do if the governor sends the National Guard there.'