"WE WANT our money back. My commitment is to recover every single dime the American people are owed. My determination to achieve this goal is only heightened when I see reports of massive profits and obscene bonuses at some of the very firms who owe their continued existence to the American people." — US president Barack Obama in January on the big banks
"THERE'LL BE a population of demented old people, like an invasion of terrible immigrants." – Novelist Martin Amis, who called for euthanasia booths on street corners where elderly people could end their lives "with a Martini and a medal".
"I THINK the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn't turn out very well for the Native Americans." – Physicist Stephen Hawking on what would happen if aliens visited Earth.
"WE . . . insistently beg forgiveness from God and from the persons involved." – Pope Benedict XVI, marking the end of his church's Year of the Priest celebrations.
"THERE IS no denying the fact that the worldwide system of covering up cases of sexual crimes committed by clerics was engineered by the Roman Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under Cardinal Ratzinger." – Theologian Hans Kung on the role of Pope Benedict in abuse scandals.
"MANY WOMEN who do not dress modestly . . . lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which increases earthquakes." – Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi, Iranian cleric, after a severe earthquake warning in Tehran.
"P LEASE DO something! We don't want to die of hunger . . . I give glory to God that I am still alive, but I would like to stay that way!" – Marjorie Saint Hilaire, in a letter from a Haitian tent city that lacked vital provisions almost nine months after the earthquake.
"I SRAELI GOVERNMENT policies are not supported by all Jews." – Richard Kuper, member of Jews for Justice for Palestinians, which tried to send supplies to Gaza.
"I WAS with God and I was with the devil. They fought over me but God won. I think I had extraordinary luck." – Mario Sepulveda, one of the 33 Chilean miners rescued after being trapped below ground for 69 days.
"FECKLESS, VAIN and ineffective as a modern European leader" whose "frequent late nights and penchant for partying mean he does not get sufficient rest." – A description of Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi from one of 250,000 US diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks.
"I HAD a sickening feeling every time I thought about it. I still do." – George W Bush in his memoir Decision Point, on how he still feels badly that no weapons of mass destruction were found in Iraq.
"THIS IS something that I think every president needs to go through . . . Now, I'm not recommending for every future president that they take a shellacking like I did last night. I'm sure there are easier ways to learn these lessons." – Obama on the Democrats' losses in midterm elections.