I mean, if Pearl Harbor came along, you could have said the planning was wrong by the military ahead of time or maybe the battleships shouldn't have all been in the harbor and all that kind of thing.

The smarter the journalists are, the better off society is.

Derivatives are like sex. It's not who we're sleeping with, it's who they're sleeping with that's the problem.

Charlie and I decided long ago that in an investment lifetime, it's too hard to make hundreds of smart decisions. That judgment became ever more compelling as Berkshire's capital mushroomed and the universe of investments that could significantly affect our results shrank dramatically. Therefore, we adopted a strategy that required our being smart and not too smart at that, only a very few times. Indeed, we now settle for one good idea a year.

All I have to do is think and not be influenced by others.

It makes a difference who the treasury secretary is.

When bills come due, only cash is legal tender. Don't leave home without it.