Top 41 Quotes & Sayings by Paul Martin

Reasonable people can have differences.

My view was that if you're going to make a mistake in your predictions, make sure you make them the right way. Don't put yourself into a situation where, in fact, you say you're going to do something, and then all of a sudden you can't.

Most Canadians previously had no idea what went on in the residential schools. You tell Canadians the last one closed in 1996, they are appalled. So now that Canadians are aware of residential schools, you'd think there would be a huge impetus for progress. It hasn't, and that's amazing.

Canadians would not tolerate it if they really knew there was a whole generation of aboriginal Canadians who have a chance at a better education and are being denied it.

I rise today in support of Bill C-38, the Civil Marriage Act. I rise in support of a Canada in which liberties are safeguarded, rights are protected and the people of this land are treated as equals under the law.

If we do not step forward, then we step back. If we do not protect a right, then we deny it.

We, as Canadians, have no hesitation lecturing the rest of the world on what they should be doing, how they shouldn't discriminate, and how they should treat the poor. That same discrimination - unfairness that exists in so many of these countries - has been practised for years in our own country.

Every Canadian who wants to learn should have the opportunity to do so.

One of the first things that the First Nations are going to have to decide is, is it going to 640 communities, or is it, in fact, going to be some 50 to 60 nations.

The achievements we forge in this place and in our nation will not be those of one person or one party.

I rise in support of a Canada in which liberties are safeguarded, rights are protected and the people of this land are treated as equals under the law.

The vicious circle has been shattered. Canadians now enjoy the benefits of the virtuous circle.

At a moment that comes rarely in the life of a country. It is a time when destiny is ours to hold.

You do not want to get your debt ratio out of whack.

If you take a look at the breaches of rights, whether it's the underfunding of education or health care, and all these issues which accentuate the poverty of Canada's indigenous people, and the lack of reaction to them - it becomes clear that if Canadians understood what's at stake, they wouldn't stand for it.

I got a call from a group saying they'd like to have a roundtable with the reserve next door, and would I help to set it up. I said, 'Sure, what's the name of the chief?' I asked, 'Do you know any members of the band council?' They didn't.

For years governments have been promising more than they can deliver, and delivering more than they can afford.

I had - and have - huge respect for John Crow.

As a people, we know what we can do, we know how to do it, and we just want to get on with it. How? By ensuring that Canada's place in the world is one of influence and pride.

It is racist, and it was racist when it was created. The Indian Act controls, or seeks to control, the lives of all indigenous people in a way that you and I would never accept.

Have you ever, on a cloudless night, looked down from a passing aircraft flying over Canada? Endless, glowing strings of cities, towns, and homesteads. Stretching on and on, one province to the next. With only the stars in the distance.

The facts are plain: Religious leaders who preside over marriage ceremonies must and will be guided by what they believe. If they do not wish to celebrate marriages for same-sex couples, that is their right. The Supreme Court says so. And the Charter says so.

In Canada, women's rights are a vital part of our effort to build a society of real equality - not just for some, but for all Canadians. A society in which women no longer encounter discrimination nor are shut out from opportunities open to others.

I really think Canada should get over to Iraq as quickly as possible.

The people of Canada have worked hard to build a country that opens its doors to include all, regardless of their differences; a country that respects all, regardless of their differences; a country that demands equality for all, regardless of their differences.

Since one never knows what will be the line of advance, it is always most rash to condemn what is not quite in the fashion of the moment.

Mr. Anwar is a respected colleague and a man of integrity, who in his capacity as finance minister showed strong dedication to enhancing the financial well-being of the Malaysian people.

The fact is that there is now, we know well, a proliferation of nuclear weapons, and that many weapons that Saddam Hussein had, we don't know where they are. That means terrorists have access to all of that.

The main goal in any criminal statute is to produce what's best for the victim. And sometimes, a mandatory minimum doesn't accomplish that.

In Canada, women's rights are a vital part of our effort to build a society of real equality - not just for some, but for all Canadians. A society in which women no longer encounter discrimination nor are shut out from opportunities open to others

Now the bad guy's not targeting cash. He's targeting narcotics. And he's robbing a pharmacy because that's where the narcotics are.

I am personally against abortion on demand, but I believe it is very clear that there must be legislation brought in that will deal with what is becoming simply a mish-mash of approaches

It's very clear that we are going to have 10 different [abortion] laws and that we are going to have these laws made by judges

Put simply, we must always remember that separate but equal is not equal.

Canada is our country. It belongs to us and we belong to it. Let us join together, in our time, and make history once again.

Our veterans connect generations and Canadians. As a country and as individuals, we gain in pride and in purpose from their deeds and their service.

There are nations that resist, voices that attempt to diminish the urgency or dismiss the science, or declare, either in word or indifference, that this is not our problem to solve. Well, let me tell you, it is our problem to solve... To the reticent nations, including the United States, I say this: There is such a thing as a global conscience.

I mean if there are going to be missiles that are going off and there are going to be going off over Canadian airspace whether we want it or not, no I don't think that is acceptable. I think that we want to be at the table.

Don't tell me what's in the Red Book. I wrote the goddamned thing. And I know that it's a lot of crap.

The fact is the statements are perfectly consistent, but more importantly, I don't have all the facts.

This is the province that pioneered dreaming big.