Verbatim

'In all seriousness, this is really quite unfair.' ALAN GREENSPAN, former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman, on his policies being blamed for the nation's economic woes

'Our readiness is being consumed as fast as we build it.' GENERAL RICHARD A. CODY, Army Vice Chief of Staff, testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the strain on U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan

'The people are afraid of the government, but the government is as afraid of the people.' ABDEL WAHAB EL-MESSERY, an organizer with Kifaya, an Egyptian opposition coalition, on the recent demonstrations and riots signaling discontent with President Hosni Mubarak's government

'I have absolutely nothing against rich people.' HILLARY CLINTON, Democratic presidential hopeful, after the release of her and Bill Clinton's tax-return documents showed that the couple have earned $109 million over the past seven years

'We are not the 51st state of the United States of America.' BOB BROWN, leader of the Australian Greens party, criticizing Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for a playful salute he gave President Bush at a NATO summit. Critics say the gesture suggested subservience to Washington

'Pavarotti's great career therefore ended with a virtual performance, something sad but inevitable.' LEONE MAGIERA, right, Luciano Pavarotti's longtime pianist and conductor, revealing that the opera singer lip-synched his final public performance at the opening of the 2006 Winter Olympics

MORE AT TIME.COM For more daily sound bites, visit time.com/quotes

Sources: Wall Street Journal; New Yorker; New York Times; AP (2); Guardian