2001 in quotes

“I am Al Gore. I was the future President of the United States of America”.

“Pretty darn good” (George Bush on his first 100 days in office).

“Now I am like the majority of Americans. I have a look through the papers and drink coffee” (Bill Clinton)

“Berlusconi is the sincerest liar in the world, since he is the first to believe his own lies” (Indro Montanelli, Italian journalist).

“I didn’t order anyone to be killed” (Augusto Pinochet).

“That’s your problem” (Slobodan Milosevic, answering a question by the presiding judge at the Hague as to whether he wanted to hear the sentence read against him).

“A deplorable failure” (French newspaper Le Monde on the World Conference on racism in South Africa).

“Once they asked me if in Cuba university students exercises the profession of prostitution. I answered no. It is the prostitutes in Cuba who have a university level of education” (Fidel Castro, 1st may speech).

“In a certain way, we have finished with the pride in our species” (Francis Collins, one of the leaders of the genoma project, on the discovery that the human being has only the double of the number of genes of a worm).

“I had a great trip” (Dennis Tito, on his trip into space with Soyuz).

“It was an act which lasted five seconds” (Boris Becker, on his relationship with Russian tennis star Angela Ermakova in 1999, in which she became pregnant).

“I really loved the first days of The Beatles. But then we became famous and this ruined everything” (George Harrison).

“How can’t you distinguish a vehicle from a camel? One has wheels and the other has long legs!” (Radio communication between US Marines in Afghanistan after chase of an unidentified “vehicle” across the desert).

“It’s better than having sex. You do it eight times a week and don’t get pregnant” (Jerry hall on the stage).

“Wedding contracts should be drawn up like a dog’s licence and be renewed every year”. (Rod Stewart).

“I believe it was he who should have been worrying about what would happen if he allowed an ex-employee of the Soviet secret services to enter his home” (President Vladimir Putin, answering a question about whether he felt uncomfortable visiting George Bush’s ranch).

“No novelist can imagine anything more terrible than the truth” (Italian writer Umberto Eco).

Timothy BANCROFT-HINCHEY PRAVDA.Ru