This isn't life in the fast lane, it's life in the oncoming traffic.

The jurisdiction of a good man extends to the end of the world.

It's never a good idea to ask a man on a tight-rope how he keeps his balance: a) he would probably fall off and b) he probably doesn't know what the muscles are called in any case.

The presence of those seeking the truth is infinitely to be preferred to the presence of those who think they've found it.

But the helmet had gold decoration, and the bespoke armorers had made a new gleaming breastplate with useless gold ornamentation on it. Sam Vimes felt like a class traitor every time he wore it. He hated being thought of as one of those people that wore stupid ornamental armor. It was gilt by association.

Cheery was aware that Commander Vimes didn't like the phrase 'The innocent have nothing to fear', believing the innocent had everything to fear, mostly from the guilty but in the longer term even more from those who say things like 'The innocent have nothing to fear'.

There can be no better grounding for a lifetime as an author than to see humanity in all its various guises through the lens of the reporter for the town.