Question:

Does the collection include proverbs and aphorisms?

Answer:

Yes it does. Also slogans from campaigns and nicknames--kindly and derogatory--of many political figures.

Question:

Are all the citations, primary sources?

Answer:

Not all. Many are, but many use secondary sources. This is particularly important with political and historical quotations because often there were never any primary sources or if there were, they have been lost. For example, there is no official transcript of the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates. Our only sources are contemporary newspaper accounts printed at the time. The primary or secondary sources are generally cited with each quotation.

Question:

Why are some citations provided in more detail than others?

Answer:

We have provided what we know. In some cases we might know the exact date that a speech was given and the location. In other cases we might only know the month and year of delivery. In still others, we might only know the year. And we may or may not know the location. Rather than limit information for the sake of consistency-and have the least common denominator of information, we provide all of what we know.

Question:

Does the collection include "attributed" quotations?

Answer:

Yes, but we use the term "attributed" in a different way from most. There are some quotations for which there is general scholarly agreement that the quotation is authentically attributed to a certain person. However, no one ever seems to have ever stated the primary or even a secondary source. At the same time, there are many bogus quotations in the literature and especially on the web. So the singular fact that a quotation appears in someone's web collection, was not sufficient for us to include the quotation. So we reserve the citation "attributed" for those quotations which have been in the literature for a long time, and those which appear in many contemporary sources, not including those who just "scrape" quotations from other web sites. If there are different citations, a primary source is the best. Secondary sources are next best and these vary depending on the particular source. The New York Times, for example, has proven to be very reliable over time; many others, not so. The user can judge the source because it is usually provided. Last in quality is the attributed quotation for which we cannot place as much reliance. Remember, we do not use "attributed" to mean someone claims it is authentic. Our standard is much higher. Therefore you will find many quotations that appear in some collections which we do not include at all.

Question:

Are foreign quotations and foreign language quotations included?

Answer:

Yes, but generally only in English translation. Quotations are included from over a hundred countries.

Question:

What is the source for the context commentaries in the collection?/p>

Answer:

There are no external sources. Dr. Eigen and his staff have written the commentaries and they are their personal views only. They are particularly useful for younger users who may not have the background to understand the implication or meaning or the quotation.

Question:

How does this collection deal with the bias in favor of white males that existed throughout history and the under-representation of the views of people of color and females?

Answer:

It does not solve this problem. Nothing can, as the racism and sexism is a fact of history. However, we have tried to ameliorate it somewhat by going out of our way to find and include quotations from those few public figures from those groups who did exist, and there were some at almost all periods of history. We have included these wherever we had good sources and good quotes.

Question:

Were the same standards for inclusion used for all quotations?

Answer:

No. There have been many cultures, societies and countries where the spoken word was the only means of communication and these oral cultures often had no written literature. For those cultures where history has traditionally been handed down orally from one generation to the next, we have used the quotations based on the oral reports of the historians, story tellers, and culture keepers. Many of the citations of Native American political and historical quotations in this collection are of this form.

Question:

There seem to be, for each quotation, two renditions of the quotation. The first is in the beige box at the top of the screen next to the graphic. The second appears under "Full Quotation."

Answer:

In most cases they are the same. However some quotations are quite large. In those cases, excerpts of the quotation appears next to the graphic, and the entire quotation appears in the section labeled "Full Quotation."

Question:

Is this an American political and historical collection or a world-wide collection.

Answer:

It is a word-wide collection but it is very America and Eurocentricly oriented. Also, it is Americanized in the sense that there is much greater depth of content from American sources than any others. However, since American politics and history have been inextricably connected to English politics and history, there is heavy English content and heavy coverage of the Greek and Roman political classics that so influenced English and American Politics. Further, there is generally heavier coverage of quotations from cultures which have been connected with American subgroups or American policy. Ireland, Canada, Mexico, Israel are a few of those examples.

Question:

The quotations found are listed by a formula that you use to measure "popularity." Can the factors of that formula be customized to meet the needs of individual users?

Answer:

Not at the moment but that is in our design plans. We hope to allow each user to choose his/her own formula for deciding ranking. That is some months off however.

Question:

This is a Herculean accomplishment. Who pays for it?

Answer:

Dr. Eigen obtained royalties from the publication of McMillan Dictionary of Political Quotations. He has spent that money in the continual development of this collection. Dr. Eigen and his wife, Ramona E. F. Arnett, have created and funded a non-profit foundation, the Eigen-Arnett Cultural & Educational Foundation. The foundation is paying for the servers and the bandwidth for serving the material through the web site. Dr. Eigen has given the Foundation the rights to distribute the collection at no charge. We are using Google's Adsense to have some labeled advertising, the revenue from which pays for less than 5% of the costs. We use no income producing revenue gimmicks such as sending spyware or requiring users to supply their names for Spam lists. Thus far, all the costs have been paid by Dr. Eigen and Mrs. Arnett's foundation. Tax deductible contributions to help with this monumental efforts will be gladly accepted-especially from news organizations who use the collection extensively. The Eigen-Arnett Educational & Cultural Foundation is a non-profit, Internal Revenue Service approved, 501(c)(3) institution. Donations to the foundations may be deducted from Federal Income taxes.

Question:

Does the Foundation sponsorship have anything to do with the unprecedented freedom given to the users so that they can create all kinds of products from the copyrighted material?

Answer:

Yes it does. That and the Eigen-Arnett personal view that the Internet should be hospitable to both paid and free use content. Initially the balance was against paid content and the legitimate rights of copyright holders. Then the balance shifted to where it is almost impossible today to identify freely usable content any more.

Question:

Are there any restrictions to the use of this copyrighted collection?

Answer:

Very few. First, we reserve to ourselves the right to distribute the collection to the public. That way we can insure the integrity of the collection as we make daily changes and additions. We want to prevent anyone taking the entire data base or a large chunk of it and distributing that to the public where charges may be imposed or personal information extracted. Nor can anyone sell access to the data base as we are committed to making it available for free. However, we allow users to use the quotations--many--without worrying about what is or is not "fair use"--to write books, articles, add specific quotations to subject oriented websites, make posters and other products, commercial and non-commercial. Also, if a library or internet cafe charges for access, they can use our copyrighted collection without any fee so long as they collect their regular rates and do not charge customers anything specific or unusual for accessing and using this collection. The objective is to make access to the collection without any charges to the user.

Question:

Can the pictures and graphics be used in the same way?

Answer:

Unfortunately, not. Many of the graphics we use, we have only gotten very limited rights to. Others we are making fair use of the pictures but cannot know how you would use them so cannot assure you about your particular planned use as we know not what it is. Therefore treat the photos and other graphics in the collection the same way that you would on any copyrighted web site. Without your getting specific permission, you are only able to make "fair use" of the pictures-"fair use" being the legal definition.

Question:

Many of the pictures of the older figures do not appear to be old. Many have modern touches to them.

Answer:

That is correct. There are several reasons for this. First, when we tested the collection on the web, we found that a large proportion of the audience found many of the pictures-especially the older ones-disconcerting and associated them with shoddy quality. Most of us have developed very sophisticated visual taste from the modern magazines, films, videos and TV programs that we view. So in order to communicate-especially with the younger audiences-we improved the graphics and modernized the look. We radically changed many photos so that the contrasts and colorization was more appealing and retouched many so that details could be discerned.

Question:

How do you get pictures of Aristotle or William the Conqueror for example?

Answer:

Photography did not exist until the 19th century. But before that some of the greatest painters and sculptors the world has ever known created images of many of the public figures. Some of these were created from life, but many were imagined images based on descriptions of the person. In some cases, they were complete creative works and no one has any idea what the person actually looked like. Also, it was an artistic tradition for artists and sculptors to idealize the images of important persons-who very often were paying them. So the user should take the photos with the caveat that many are idealized forms and some have no relationship to the unknown original visage other than the imagination of some artist.

Question:

Can users suggest quotations for the collection?

Answer:

Yes, we welcome suggestions. There is a form on the website whereby suggestions can be made to Dr. Eigen and the editors. To protect the integrity of the collection, users cannot make any direct additions on their own, but we will certainly consider any and all suggestions. We will use the same criteria that we currently do, so please provide a source or citation if you know of one. But all suggestions will be authenticated and vetted before being added.

Question:

What about corrections?

Answer:

We definitely want to hear from the public if there are any errors. Even if you are not sure there is an error but just suspect, please bring these to our attention. There are forms for that on the website. Just click the button while displaying the quotation in question.

Question:

Can we submit pictures?

Answer:

Yes, especially for those quotations where we have no image presently. Even if you do not have a picture but think you know where there might be one, please let us know. Any format graphic is useful. Jpeg is preferable.

Question:

What about bugs?

Answer:

If you think that you have found a bug, or some part of the web site appears not to work properly, please click on the button and fill out the form telling us about your finding.

Question:

Why do we have to use forms for contact. Can't we just e-mail you?

Answer:

Unfortunately, this is where the spammers have hurt us all. If we have any e-mail address in a web site, there are spammers out there who have written programs that search entire websites "scraping" all e-mail addresses and putting them in their mailing lists. Once they do this, we will get thousands of spam e-mails a day, and will not be able to read any legitimate communications. So we, like most other web site operators, use forms whereby we get the message, but no-one ever sees the e-mail address. However, when we communicate with you regarding a form message that you send us, we will use e-mail and give you our return e-mail address. Please use it only to communicate with us and do not post it on any website where the spammers will get it.

Question:

What is Dr. Eigen's profession? Is he a historian?

Answer:

Dr. Eigen is the President and the CEO of a midsize professional services company of almost 300 people. He has served in both the public and private service. He served as the Associate Director of the U. S. Job Corps. He has also written speeches for high level government officials including cabinet members. He has been a university professor, a elementary and secondary school teacher and held executive positions in several major publicly held corporations. In addition he has served on government advisory boards and commissions, consulted for many of America's leading high technology companies and has distinguished himself as a leading innovator of the use of modern technology in education and public information. He is the author of 13 books and hundreds of educational multi-media materials, over 100 research articles and papers, and is a frequent public speaker. Quotations have been his "hobby" for over 30 years. As such he is an amateur historian but his formal academic fields have been mathematics, psychology and education.

Question:

There are a large number of religious quotations in the collections. Why is that?

Answer:

Separation of church and state is a relatively modern notion. For thousands of years, the governments of the Jewish people was the religion. Early Christians had no power of governance as they were a small minority. However when Christianity became the majority religion in countries, the Christian peoples governed by a combination of Kings and Clerics. It was impossible to separate the religion from the government. For almost two thousand years since the birth of Christ, the most consistent political struggle in the Christian world was between the Church and the secular authorities for power and governance. Since the 6th Century and the advent of Islam, the Moslem world has historically made little or no distinction between civil governance and religion. So until the United States was formed, religion and politics were very much synonymous. Even today, one great struggle of moderate and conservative forces in Islam is the very issue of theocracy. So secular government has, in a historical sense, a much shorter history than religious government. Therefore many of the historical and older political quotations of the world emanate from religiously affected, if not dominated, government. The collection does not include theological quotations dealing with the spirituality of the religion unless those treat how societies should be governed or civil functions organized and administered.

Question:

I have done the same search on different occasions and obtained slightly different results. Why is that?

Answer:

There are additions and changes made virtually every day. Whenever you submit a search, the Dynamic Quotesearcher™ conducts a fresh search of the data base. Any changes made in the data base will reflect in all new searches thereafter. So a quotation may have been added, modified, or occasionally even have been deleted. In addition, the Popularity Index is affected by what you and the other users actually find and view. So the order of presentation of even the same search with the same quotations will change over time and use.

Question:

Can I search for quotes made on specific dates, years, or other time frames?

Answer:

Somewhat, but not completely. For example, you can search "all fields" for "1864." This will produce many of the quotations from 1864. But not all. For example, the citation for a quotation from 1864 might not contain that date; it might only say "19th Century." Or it might just give the name of the publication without the date. Also, there might be a comment that refers to 1864 and this quotation will also be found. Also, since many of the quotation citations are secondary sources, there may be a quotation from 1864 but the secondary source was 1968. These will not show up unless the number "1864" also appears.

Question:

Can I search for quotes from specific countries?

Answer:

To a great extent. Generally, if you want quotations from French politicians, search for "France" under the conceptual index terms. You will get French quotations. However, you will also get quotations about France which might have been made by an Englishman or a German. It is easy to tell the difference upon inspection of the quotes found. Typically, the country of origin of the author is listed as one of the conceptual index terms, but where expatriates are involved or people have changed their citizenship, this is not always reliable. For example. Albert Einstein's quotes would not have "Germany" as one of the conceptual terms as he became an American and felt little affinity with Germany.

Question:

Some cultures have different rules of personal names and alphabetizing. Which one is followed in this collection

Answer:

We have, after much consideration, decided not to force a particular convention on all names. This is different from most publications where the editors choose a particular convention to follow. Rather, we have generally followed the principle that whatever the person did to describe him or herself, we would use also. As a result, most names of South and Central Americans use the compound last name which includes the maternal compound name. For example, for the Mexican President, Adolfo Lopez Mateos, the last name is Lopez Mateos, not Mateos. On the other hand, the Mexican President, Porfirio Diaz, did not use this convention and he is referred to using only two names. In earlier times first names were often coupled with a place as with Bernal Diaz del Castillo, and in that case we used Diaz del Castillo as the last name. Or in the case of the Scottish historian Walter of Gaisborough, that is the only name--no last name, just a location. Indonesians often use a single name such as Sukarno or Suharto. So there is little consistency in this collection as there is little consistency across cultures. When searching for names, just listing the various name elements--in any order-will almost always find the right name if you use the expanded quote screen. However, be careful not to put a name in quotation marks, because that will cause a literal searching for that exact string. So if you search for "Mateos, Adelfo Lopez" using the quotation marks you will not find Adolfo Lopez Mateos because he is listed alphabetically as "Lopez Mateos, Adolfo." However if you search for Mateos Alfredo Lopez without quotes, you will find it.

Question:

How are foreign accents handled in Eigen's Political & Historical Quotations?

Answer:

Generally, they are not. Searching becomes very complicated as it is not clear whether searching for an accented word will find the unaccented version and visa versa. For the most part we have eliminated foreign accents. So first search for the unaccented versions of a name or other word. If that is not found, try the accented version as a last resort.

Question:

Are archaic and older grammatical forms and spelling used in the collection.

Answer:

Sometimes. As a result of editors producing different versions of the same material over the years, some have changed the forms and others have not. By the time we get the passage in the 21st century, it is hard to tell which was the original form. So some material is in the older, authentic spelling, capitalization and grammar while other material from the same age might have been modernized. There is no safe assumption that can be made regarding the authenticity of the spelling. In Colonial times for example there were few rigid spelling conventions and it was common for different individuals to spell the same word differently. Some people were not even consistent from document to document or even within a single document.

Question:

Some of the quotations of the collection differ slightly from versions of the same quotations in other collections and sources. Which is the authentic version?

Answer:

In most cases there is no way of knowing. Many political quotations come down to us from scribes, journalists and historians. Even in modern times, two different reporters from different newspapers will write the same quotation but they might be slightly different. Transcribing from oral speech to writing produces slight human error variations. In other cases, some journalists or editors, will slightly alter a quotation to correct a grammatical error. Others will leave the original. In the Congress, members make a speech, and later can "revise and extend" their remarks. So even the Congressional Record may have an entirely different quotation than the member actually spoke on the floor of Congress. In general, the gist is the same and the alterations minor, but occasionally they are material. Another reason for changes and differences is alternative translations of foreign language materials. With translation, this is always a possibility but usually the meaning is preserved. Further, in the oral age of media, people hear the same quotations slightly differently. We have for example carefully noted a quotation of a politician on a network talk show only to find that the official transcription is slightly different, and that in turn, is still different from the official closed captioning for the deaf.

Question:

How are titles of nobility handled?

Answer:

In addition to all the other reasons that America opposes titles of nobility, one we would endorse is that they give editors fits. The British in particular have heredity titles which cause more than a little confusion. Many titled politicians use their titles only and are referred to by a single name, such as "Mountbatten". However it is difficult to know that for example, Prime Minister Clement Attlee is Viscount Prestwood. This is especially true for those of us who have no idea what a Viscount is. And since the title is hereditary, there are several Lords Baltimore or Lords Sedgwick. In this collection we have taken the practical approach which most helps the reader of using both the real name and the title in most cases. Searching for either should have successful results. However, searching for the title sometimes also finds, fathers, sons and long lost relatives.

Question:

When a source is cited as a web site, why is a contemporary date listed?

Answer:

Books and journals, once printed, are static. Web sites are dynamic in that they can and are frequently changed and updated. Content that might be on a web site today, might not be there tomorrow. So, many scholars urge that when a reference to a web site is made, the date of the reference appear also. We have adopted this convention in most cases. We do not with dynamic web sites that are really data bases generating content on the fly such as ours www.politicalquotes.org. Remember however, that a date of publication of a book indicates the date of the publication not the date that it was read. The convention with the web we use is contrary. It indicates the date we read the web site, not the date that it was first published as there is often no way of knowing that since a web site is a dynamic publication, potentially changing at any moment. When a particular piece of a web site was added to the site is almost always unknown.