November 8, 2013

Marcus Aurelius on Assholes

When you are outraged by somebody’s impudence, ask yourself at once, ‘Can the world exist without impudent people?’ It cannot; so do not ask for impossibilities. That man is simply one of the impudent whose existence is necessary to the world.

From Marcus Aurelius’ always timely Meditations (Book 9, chapter XLIII).

I choose to modernize that sentiment by swapping out ‘impudent people’ with ‘assholes’ and it seems to work pretty well…