Top 130 Unintended Quotes & Sayings

Probably the most visible example of unintended consequences, is what happens every time humans try to change the natural ecology of a place.

God always saves the world from the consequences of unintended errors of men who live in fear of Him.

We don't want to repeat the unintended consequences that surfaced following the NAFTA agreement.

At heart, I would have to say I'm a pantser. I fully embrace the chaos of letting the unintended happen, on life and on the page.

The A.M.T. is much reviled by tax experts across the political spectrum for its unintended consequences and fiendish complexity.

parenting is an exercise in unintended consequences.

Happiness cannot be attained by wanting to be happy - it must come as the unintended consequence of working for a goal greater than oneself.

For the U.S., as the largest player in the global environment, unintended consequences are magnified.

If there is one lesson for U.S. foreign policy from the past 10 years, it is surely that military intervention can seem simple but is in fact a complex affair with the potential for unintended consequences.

The law of unintended consequences is the only real law of history.

Contraceptives have a proven track record of enhancing the health of women and children, preventing unintended pregnancy, and reducing the need for abortion.

The greatest thing that science teaches you is the law of unintended consequences.

It is...highly probable that from the very beginning, apart from death, the only ironclad rule of human experience has been the Law of Unintended Consequences.

There is a real danger of unintended consequences, of encouraging people to give up. Pessimism, if it becomes a habit, can reinforce a narrative of unstoppable decline. If there is nothing we can do, that releases us from our obligations.

Every government intervention [in the marketplace] creates unintended consequences, which lead to calls for further government interventions.

The law of unintended consequences pushes us ceaselessly through the years, permitting no pause for perspective.

As a teenager, my dad taught me about the idea of unintended consequences, and I've had the experience, and how to deal with it, pounded into my soul over the years.

We have a lot of talented people in this Congress, and we can avoid a lot of unintended consequences if we just included them.

Unintended Consequences is full of substance, it is one of the must-read books of the year, and once I finish it I will be giving it a second read through right away.

I do think that I have a better sense of how military action can result in unintended consequences.

Don't get stubborn, flow with the go. The key is to be open to unintended success. Some companies just can't take yes for an answer.

Good intentions can often lead to unintended consequences. It is hard to imagine a law intended for the workforce known to Henry Ford can serve the needs of a workplace shaped by the innovations of Bill Gates.

There is no question but that when one is engaged militarily that there are going to be unintended loss of life.

If they are opposed to abortion, they should be for preventing unintended pregnancies.

I'm gonna take this world by storm. Pun unintended.

The flow of action continually produces consequences which are unintended by actors, and these unintended consequences also may form unacknowledged conditions of actions in a feedback fashion. Human history is created by intentional activities but is not an intended project; it persistently eludes efforts to bring it under conscious direction.

It sometimes seems to me that the whole course of English history was one of accident, confusion, chance and unintended consequences - there's no real pattern.

Politics is tricky; it cuts both ways. Every time you make a choice, it has unintended consequences.

I am not out to destroy Microsoft, that would be a completely unintended side effect.

We need different perspectives here in Washington - someone who has private-sector experience, somebody who's actually created jobs, manufactures products, understands the incentives and disincentives, the intended and unintended consequences of legislation.

Clearly there are always unintended consequences of any legislative or regulatory act that's taken in the heat of battle.

The main thing people took from 'Night of the Living Dead' was that it was a racial statement movie, and that was completely unintended.

Because my business partner, Mitt Romney, was running for president when 'Unintended Consequences' was published, the media held up my book as a defense of the 1 percent.

It is not enough to simply dismiss policy, because it's too complicated or we're scared about what the unintended consequences might be.

Even limited military actions end up carrying with them great costs and unintended consequences.

I thank heaven that the 4th. of July is over. It is always a day of great fatigue to me, and of some embarrassments from improper intrusions and some from unintended exclusions.

Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequences, and failing to achieve anything useful.

My experience in government is there is a whole host of unintended consequences you have to think through. I can't un-know that, I find it harder now to offer simple solutions.

What I have learned from studying counterfactual history is that the law of unintended consequences always kicks in no matter how secure you are in your plan. We have to live with the historical record as it is, like it or not.

Before I came out, people always asked me math questions. But once I became a woman, they stopped. There's unintended discrimination.

New Zealand needs to balance its environmental responsibilities with its economic opportunities, because the risk is that if you don't do that - and you want to lead the world - then you might end up getting unintended consequences.

Conservatives tend to be very skeptical of change. When something could be improved, they often get in the way of those improvements because they fear the unintended consequence perhaps more than they should.

District attorneys are often some of the finest public servants. However, the system in which they operate to investigate cases of police misconduct leaves a huge window for unintended bias.

Nothing is better than the unintended humor of reality.

I do try to let what is obviously unintended yet naturally good stay in.

I'm just worried about the unintended consequences of the laws.

Unintended consequences, he thought miserably. He was angry at his anger, the way it surged up and took over.

Fate has to do with events in history that are the summary and unintended results of innumerable decisions of innumerable men.

I just think everything we do has an unintended consequence. We take out Saddam Hussein in Iraq, and Iraq was the check against Iran.

Many people recognize that technology often comes with unintended and undesirable side effects.

I have deep sympathy with the hundreds of my constituents who fear that legislation for same-sex marriage will profoundly encroach - although this may be unintended - on their right to live according to their faith.

Call me an extremist but killing a few hundred million people seems like the sort of method that might have unintended consequences.

Jim Crow had unintended benefits. It forced blacks to build and rely on their own economic, educational and social systems.

The sweeping, unfocused cuts of sequestration are certain to have unintended negative consequences, including for America's small businesses.

'You, too, can be the President,' every American kid is told. But one unintended consequence of this belief, it is that, as a result of our being a meritocracy, if you have not succeeded, you are of lesser merit. It is shameful to be a failure in this country.

Each money-printing exercise brings about unintended consequences. These unintended consequences are higher inflation rates than had no money been printed.

In an ideal world, you don't want creatures where they shouldn't be because there's always unintended consequences.

There are downsides to everything; there are unintended consequences to everything.

It seems to be a law of design that for every advantage introduced through redesign, there is an accompanying unintended disadvantage.

Most of us tend to be swayed by what we read. Judges are not superhuman. They, too, are mortals. This is why they have to be exceptionally careful in rendering decisions, which cause unintended consequences.