Penn Jillette quotes - page 3

Penn Jillette is an American magician, entertainer, and writer, best known as half of the magic duo Penn & Teller. His performances often combine comedy, magic, and social commentary. He has also written several books and is a well-known advocate for atheism and free thought. Here are 223 of his quotes:

And I've always said, you know, that I don't respect people that don't proselytize. I don't respect that at all. If you believe that there's a heaven and hell, and people could be going to hell - or not getting eternal life, or whatever - and you think that, "Well, it's not really worth tellin' 'em this, because it would make it socially awkward", and atheists who think that people shouldn't proselytize, "Just leave me alone. Keep your religion to yourself"... How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? I mean, if I believe, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that a truck was coming at you and you didn't believe it -that truck was bearing down on you - there's a certain point where I tackle you, and this is more important than that. (Penn Jillette)
It's amazing to me how many people think that voting to have the government give poor people money is compassion. Helping poor and suffering people is compassion. Voting for our government to use guns to give money to help poor and suffering people is immoral self-righteous bullying laziness. People need to be fed, medicated, educated, clothed, and sheltered, and if we're compassionate we'll help them, but you get no moral credit for forcing other people to do what you think is right. There is great joy in helping people, but no joy in doing it at gunpoint. View quote
Penn Jillette
But it's much more exciting to make Die Hard. One of the reasons that I think that movie is so successful is it deals with those very important blue-collar relationship themes. But it's more visually beautiful to show things blowing up. It just gives you more on the screen. View quote
Penn Jillette
I'm saying, "This I believe: I believe there is no God." View quote
Penn Jillette
When you're watching Psycho, there' s that moment when you have a visceral reaction to watching someone being stabbed. And then you have the intellectual revelation that you're not, and that's where the celebration comes in. View quote
Penn Jillette
Before you can read, you know the difference between a story and reality. And, of course, by the time you're old enough to do any real damage with an Uzi, you've learned that difference. View quote
Penn Jillette
I'm a hardcore libertarian - I want everything legal - but I also believe that you have the right to free association. View quote
Penn Jillette
The only place we were really told to tone it down - where other people would use the word censorship, but I wouldn't - was when we did MTV right after the Beavis and Butt-head thing. View quote
Penn Jillette
Rabbi Daniel Lapin: Here's a really blunt question: would the world be a better or a worse place if a billion Muslims became evangelical Christians tomorrow? Penn: [long pause] Everything else being equal, I think "yes". Rabbi Daniel Lapin: Then we agree. Penn: The argument is made by me that the celebration of faith, the glorification of faith, and faith being defined as The Bible kind of does as belief without proof, is not something that I feel is good to celebrate. To answer the question about evil, I always find that evil takes responsibility away. I want to have-whether it's me or whether it's a criminal-I want to have full responsibility of my mistakes. And I think when you have this image, whether it's the Disney image of devil Pluto and angel Pluto on your shoulders, pulling you one direction or another, I think that idea of evil is an idea that is anti-responsibility. View quote
Penn Jillette
My friend Richard Feynman said, "I don't know." I heard him say it several times. View quote
Penn Jillette
It's a simple statement of fact. When Richard Feynman didn't know, he often worked harder than anyone else to find out, but while he didn't know, he said, "I don't know." (Penn Jillette)
Channeling is just bad ventriloquism. You use another voice, but people can see your lips moving. View quote
Penn Jillette
I don't travel in circles where people say, 'I have faith, I believe this in my heart and nothing you can say or do can shake my faith.' That's just a long-winded religious way to say, 'Shut up.' View quote
Penn Jillette
Interviewer: Are there any groups you won't go after? Penn: We haven't tackled Scientology [in Penn & Teller: Bullshit! ] because Showtime doesn't want us to. Maybe they have deals with individual Scientologists-I'm not sure. And we haven't tackled Islam because we have families. Interviewer: Meaning, you won't attack Islam because you're afraid it'll attack back ... Penn: Right, and I think the worst thing you can say about a group in a free society is that you're afraid to talk about it-I can't think of anything more horrific. View quote
Penn Jillette
Take some time and put the Bible on your summer reading list. Try and stick with it cover to cover. View quote
Penn Jillette
Someone who is paying attention can do the same thing that Trump is doing with hate, and do it with love, and become president ... That's kind of beautiful. There's nothing more optimistic than that. View quote
Penn Jillette
The cynicism of the Clintons, the careful, tightrope walk of all politicians, forced me, as an atheist, to get down on my knees and pray that someone would come along with some kind of authenticity ... Well, someone called my bluff, goddamn it. View quote
Penn Jillette
I do rape all I want. And the amount I want is zero. And I do murder all I want, and the amount I want is zero. View quote
Penn Jillette
The problem is, I know Trump, so my optimism has been squashed like a baby bird. View quote
Penn Jillette
I don't think anyone really knows how to help everyone. I don't even know what's best for me. View quote
Penn Jillette
There are really good sociobiological reasons for why we evolved to cooperate. It really is good for all of us. (Penn Jillette)
Whatever you do, don't read the Bible for a moral code: it advocates prejudice, cruelty, superstition, and murder. Read it because: we need more atheists - and nothin. View quote
Penn Jillette
If you just want to help people out you end up being a good person. View quote
Penn Jillette
If you told me right now I could have another eight years of Obama, I would not hesitate to grab at it. View quote
Penn Jillette
Every nut who kills people has a Bible lying around. View quote
Penn Jillette

Penn Jillette

Penn Jillette - Image
Photo: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0
Occupation: American Entertainer
Born: March 5, 1955
Quotes count: 223
Wikipedia: Penn Jillette

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