Responsibility

A man is always in some sense his brother's keeper. He is responsible, not only for himself, but for everyone who comes into contact with him.
~ William Barclay, The Letter to the Romans (1957).

A weakened sense of responsibility does not weaken the fact of responsibility.
~ William John Bennett, The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories (1993).

Democracy presupposes the virtue of its individual citizens.
~ William John Bennett, The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories (1993).

The hard truth is that in a free society the ultimate responsibility rests with the people themselves.
~ William John Bennett, in The Wall Street Journal, (15 March 1993). Quantifying America's Decline

Rules are what the artist breaks; the memorable never emerged from a formula.
~ Bill Bernbach, Bill Bernbach said ... (1989).

To have accountability you must get out and vote!
~ Billy Bragg, CNN TV (17 December 2002). The political music of Billy Bragg

There is a white man's burden -- a burden which the white man should not shirk even if he could, a burden which he could not shirk even if he would. That no one liveth unto himself or dieth unto himself, has a national as well as an individual application. Our destinies are so interwoven that each exerts an influence directly or indirectly upon all others.
~ William Jennings Bryan, in The Public (14 July 1906). The White Man's Burden (Address at the Independence Day Banquet of the American Society of London; 4 July 1906)

I warrant you, if he danced till doomsday, he thought I was to pay the piper.
~ William Congreve, Love for Love (1695). Act II, scene i

Could he with reason murmur at his case,
Himself sole author of his own disgrace?
~ William Cowper, from Poems by William Cowper of the Inner Temple, Esq. (1782). Hope

Liberty trains for liberty. Responsibility is the first step in responsibility.
~ William Edward Burghardt (W.E.B.) Du Bois

Responsibility without power is a mockery and a farce.
~ William Edward Burghardt (W.E.B.) Du Bois, in Outlook magazine (1903). The Training of Negroes for Social Power

The writer's only responsibility is to his art. He will be completely ruthless if he is a good one. He has a dream. It anguishes him so much he must get rid of it. He has no peace until then.
~ William Faulkner, Interview in The Paris Review, Issue 12 (Spring 1956). The Art of Fiction No. 12

No one can learn to assume responsibility unless he is made to assume the consequences of his acts.
~ William Feather, As We Were Saying (1921).

It is hard to feel individually responsible with respect to the invisible processes of a huge and distant government.
~ John William Gardner

To sensible men, every day is a day of reckoning.
~ John William Gardner

The responsibility of any science, any pure pursuit, is ultimately to itself, and on this point physics, philosophy, and poetry unite with Satan in their determination not to serve. Any end is higher than utility, when ends are up.
~ William H. Gass, from The World Within The Word (1978). Carrots, Noses, Snow, Rose, Roses

I believe that all of us have the capacity for one adventure inside us, but great adventure is facing responsibility day after day.
~ (Bishop) William Gordon, quoted in Time Magazine (19 November 1965). Adventure & The American Individualist

Don't get up from the feast of life without paying for your share of it.
~ William Ralph (Dean) Inge

A new position of responsibility, if it do not crush a man, will often, nay, one may say, will usually, show him to be a far stronger creature than was supposed.
~ William James, Presidential Address, American Philosophical Association. Columbia University (28 December 1906). The Energies of Men

Take responsibility and remember, if it can be done, then it must be done!
~ Willie Jolley, A Setback is a Setup for a Comeback (September 1999).

Champions take responsibility. When the ball is over the net, you can be sure I want the ball.
~ Billie Jean King

We have a Bill of rights. What we need is a Bill of responsibilities.
~ Bill Maher, ABC TV (1995). Politically Incorrect

Responsibility's like a string we can only see the middle of. Both ends are out of sight.
~ William McFee, Casuals of the Sea: The Voyage of a Soul (1916). Book Two. The City

We are not responsible for every thought that goes meandering through our mind. We are, however, responsible for the ones we hold there. We're especially responsible for the thoughts we put there.
~ Peter McWilliams, DO IT! Let's Get Off Our Buts (1994). Part Four: Becoming Passionate About Your Dream

[B]oundless risk must pay for boundless gain.
~ William Morris, from The Earthly Paradise (1868-70). Prologue

Freedom is the will to be responsible to ourselves.
~ Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

Being responsible I will direct, and will be responsible for nothing that I do not direct.
~ William Pitt (1st Earl of Chatham), (1761).

It is the responsibility of leadership to provide opportunity, and the responsibility of individuals to contribute.
~ Bill Pollard

I have to say as the one responsible for shuttle and (space) station within NASA, I know the people in NASA did everything possible preparing for this flight to make it as perfect as possible. My promise to the crew and the crew families is the investigation we just launched will find the cause. We'll fix it. And then we'll move on.
~ William Readdy, quoted in CBS News "Status Report" (2 February 2003). Update: Shuttle Columbia destroyed in entry mishap

The nidus of the malady from which our civilization suffers lies in the individual soul and is only to be overcome within the individual soul.
~ Wilhelm Röpke, in Modern Age (Summer 1959). The Economic Necessity of Freedom

This would be a great world to dance in if we didn't have to pay the fiddler.
~ Will Rogers, Daily Telegrams (27 June 1930)

I hold myself accountable. It was a classless move by me.
~ Bill Romanowski (on punching teammate Marcus Williams in the face, breaking his left orbital bone and chipping his tooth), Remarks at News Conference, Oakland Raiders headquarters in Alameda CA (26 August 2003).

Leisure is the most challenging responsibility a man can be offered.
~ William F. Russell

It is a moment of shame, a moment of anger, a moment of sadness -- and a moment of opportunity -- as we attempt to deal with this issue in a more responsible way than we did in the past. ... It's a watershed moment. Everyone in the church, including the Vatican, knows we have to do something and do it quickly.
~ Bishop William S. Skylstad, The Salt Lake Tribune (8 June 2002). Catholic Bishop: 'We Have to Do Something and ... Quickly'

Action, however far it spreads, comes back to its recorded page, black or white, to the one man that sent it forth, that he must read it to the last syllable in the Presence where there is no deceiving.
~ William Laurence Sullivan, Under Orders (1944).

I think it's a responsibility, not an obligation, to do the best you can. I play to win. I don't like to lose. And when you win, you know you've earned it.
~ Bill Veeck, Jr., in Marketing Your Dreams: Business And Life Lessons From Bill Veeck, Baseball's Marketing Genius (2000).

The whole pleasure for me is having the opportunity to do a comic strip for a living, and now that I've finally got that I'm not going to give it away. ... Any time somebody else has their hand in the ink it's changing the product, and I enjoy the responsibility for this product. I'm willing to take the blame if the strip goes down the drain, and I want the credit if it succeeds. So long as it has my name on it, I want it to be mine.
~ Bill Watterson, Honk Magazine (Interview; 1986).

Let us invoke the cooperation we have the right to expect around the world, and with that cooperation let us shrink the dark and dank areas of sanctuary until these cowardly marauders are held to answer as criminals in an open and public trial for the crimes they have committed, and receive the punishment they so richly deserve.
~ Judge William H. Webster, (15 October 1985).

The most important quality I look for in a player is accountability. You've got to be accountable for who you are. It's too easy to blame things on someone else.
~ Lenny Wilkins

Oh, how I longed to put my arms 'round your neck and beg you to let me take part of the weariness, part of the responsibility ...
~ Edith Wilson, in The Papers of Woodrow Wilson, Volume 33: April 17-July 21, 1915 (1980).

The problem of providing decent leadership for our people is not that our leaders don't know better. It is that they don't act better.
~ William F. Winter, from The Measure of Our Days: Writings of William F. Winter (2006). On Civic Reponsibility (orig. "The Meaning of Responsible Citizenship" speech to students at the University of Mississippi, February 23, 1965)

'Tis well! from this day forward we shall know
That in ourselves our safety must be sought;
That by our own right hands it must be wrought.
~ William Wordsworth, from Poems in Two Volumes, Volume I (1807). November, 1806

All that I have said and done,
Now that I am old and ill,
Turns into a question till
I lie awake night after night
And never get the answers right.
~ William Butler Yeats, from Last Poems (1938-39). The Man and the Echo

I bear a burden that might well try
Men that do all by rule,
And what can I
That am a wandering-witted fool
But pray to God that He ease
My great responsibilities?
~ William Butler Yeats, from The Wild Swans at Coole (1919 edition). Two Songs of a Fool

In dreams begins responsibility.
~ William Butler Yeats, from Responsibilities (1914).

[P]eople are responsible for their opinions, but Providence is responsible for their morals.
~ William Butler Yeats, quoted in Edward Marsh, Patron Of The Arts: A Biography (1959).

Responsibilities and expectations are the basis of guilt and shame and judgment, and they provide the essential framework that promotes performance as the basis for identity and value.
~ William P. Young, The Shack (2007).