Quote of the Day: Last Words to the Firing Squad

 

The Spanish Civil War gets short shrift in many history books and classes. Perhaps some of the best last words ever came out of the conflict:

“I am starting to believe you are not intending to count me among your friends!” — Pedro Muñoz Seca

These were the final words of Muñoz Seca as he faced a firing squad. He was a Spanish playwright. Perhaps it should be added that he was a comic playwright. Unfortunately, funny men who are critical of communist governments usually do not live very long. Communists do not appreciate ridicule. And when a war breaks out, it’s a great time to declare martial law and get rid of those who point at you and laugh.

Muñoz Seca was brought before a court-martial, and giving a second quote of the day from a man who could be funny when facing death, he is said to have said this before the court: “You can take my hacienda, my land, my wealth, even—as you are going to do—my life. But there is one thing that you cannot take from me—the fear that I have!”

Be assured that as the communists and socialists and other fools take over this country, that we will all be going up against the wall. Let us do so in good humor as Pedro Muñoz Seca did. Let us also know, that we will not be the last up against the wall. Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

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  1. MWD B612 "Dawg" Member
    MWD B612 "Dawg"
    @danok1

    One of my favorites is from the Boer War. Harry “Breaker” Morant’s last words to the firing squad right as the order to “Aim!” was given:

     

    • #1
  2. Jimmy Carter Member
    Jimmy Carter
    @JimmyCarter

    • #2
  3. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Jimmy Carter (View Comment):

    I love how neutral the executioners are about it. “Meh, just another day.”

     

    • #3
  4. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception?  The American Revolution . . .

    • #4
  5. Adios Muchacho Member
    Adios Muchacho
    @OldDanRhody

    Here’s a more recent example:

    In 2004, an Italian security contractor in Iraq named Fabrizio Quattrocchi, captured by the Army of Islam, yelled, “I’ll show you how an Italian dies!” and tried to remove his hood right before being shot.
    (Tampa Bay Times, September 25, 2014)

    • #5
  6. Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw Member
    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw
    @MattBalzer

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Jimmy Carter (View Comment):

    I love how neutral the executioners are about it. “Meh, just another day.”

     

    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work. 

    • #6
  7. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    • #7
  8. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work. 

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    • #8
  9. Jimmy Carter Member
    Jimmy Carter
    @JimmyCarter

    Arahant (View Comment):
    I love how neutral the executioners are about it. “Meh, just another day.”

    I think the big can opener to take His head off is hilarious. 

    • #9
  10. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Jimmy Carter (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):
    I love how neutral the executioners are about it. “Meh, just another day.”

    I think the big can opener to take His head off is hilarious.

    Yes, it is.

    • #10
  11. Old Bathos Member
    Old Bathos
    @OldBathos

    There is the story of St Lawrence, tortured to death tied to a spit and slow roasted over a fire. Given a final chance to tell authorities what they wanted from him, he whispered to his interrogator: “Tell him I’m done on this side.”

    • #11
  12. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    Old Bathos (View Comment):

    There is the story of St Lawrence, tortured to death tied to a spit and slow roasted over a fire. Given a final chance to tell authorities what they wanted from him, he whispered to his interrogator: “Tell him I’m done on this side.”

    That’s why he’s the patron saint of comedians.

    • #12
  13. Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw Member
    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw
    @MattBalzer

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Old Bathos (View Comment):

    There is the story of St Lawrence, tortured to death tied to a spit and slow roasted over a fire. Given a final chance to tell authorities what they wanted from him, he whispered to his interrogator: “Tell him I’m done on this side.”

    That’s why he’s the patron saint of comedians.

    And of cooks.

    • #13
  14. Sisyphus Member
    Sisyphus
    @Sisyphus

    Old Bathos (View Comment):

    There is the story of St Lawrence, tortured to death tied to a spit and slow roasted over a fire. Given a final chance to tell authorities what they wanted from him, he whispered to his interrogator: “Tell him I’m done on this side.”

    And that’s how you get a river named after you.

    • #14
  15. Lilly B Coolidge
    Lilly B
    @LillyB

    Starting April off with the wisdom of fools.

    *****

    This post is part of the Quote of the Day (QOTD) Series, which is one of the group writing projects here on Ricochet. The other is the monthly group writing theme organized by @cliffordbrown, currently featuring musings from members on “Folly.” The QOTD Signup Sheet for April is here

    • #15
  16. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Exactly!  And that makes us unique . . .

    • #16
  17. Suspira Member
    Suspira
    @Suspira

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Indeed. The American Revolution is ill-named from a modern point of view. It was a war of independence, but even in that it was unique. The “revolutionaries” didn’t seek so much to throw off a despised foreign system as to claim and re-establish their rights under that system.

    • #17
  18. EHerring Coolidge
    EHerring
    @EHerring

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    • #18
  19. MiMac Thatcher
    MiMac
    @MiMac

    A good review of a book on the Spanish Clvil War:

    https://claremontreviewofbooks.com/arming-the-people-against-revolution/

    • #19
  20. EHerring Coolidge
    EHerring
    @EHerring

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    • #20
  21. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    That’s odd.

    • #21
  22. EHerring Coolidge
    EHerring
    @EHerring

    Arahant (View Comment):

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    That’s odd.

    Blazing Saddles has been around since 1975. Who hasn’t seen it 25 times? We don’t need no stinking video clips. The sheriff is near.

    • #22
  23. Arahant Member
    Arahant
    @Arahant

    No, @eherring, I meant it was odd that your comment showed up twice hours apart. Note that I did not quote the same comment twice.

     

    • #23
  24. EHerring Coolidge
    EHerring
    @EHerring

    Arahant (View Comment):

    No, @ eherring, I meant it was odd that your comment showed up twice hours apart. Note that I did not quote the same comment twice.

     

    I see that now that you mentioned it.

    • #24
  25. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    EHerring (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Matt Balzer, Imperialist Claw (View Comment):
    I like the hangman in the Mel Brooks movies. That guy loved his work.

    I looked for the clip with the horse, but couldn’t find it.

    We can all visualize it.

    That’s odd.

    Blazing Saddles has been around since 1975. Who hasn’t seen it 25 times? We don’t need no stinking video clips. The sheriff is near.

    I haven’t seen it. I’ve seen a few clips from it, though, and I’ve heard people talk about it.  

    Who has time to watch all those movies? 

    • #25
  26. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Suspira (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Indeed. The American Revolution is ill-named from a modern point of view. It was a war of independence, but even in that it was unique. The “revolutionaries” didn’t seek so much to throw off a despised foreign system as to claim and re-establish their rights under that system.

    Who knows?  If England had granted us full rights as British subjects, we might be part of the United Kingdom today . . . but noooooooo!

    • #26
  27. Flicker Coolidge
    Flicker
    @Flicker

    Stad (View Comment):

    Suspira (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Indeed. The American Revolution is ill-named from a modern point of view. It was a war of independence, but even in that it was unique. The “revolutionaries” didn’t seek so much to throw off a despised foreign system as to claim and re-establish their rights under that system.

    Who knows? If England had granted us full rights as British subjects, we might be part of the United Kingdom today . . . but noooooooo!

    I miss my royalty.  That’s why I secretly so admire the Bush, Clinton, and 0bama dynasties.  Michelle/ Hillary in 2024!

    • #27
  28. Sisyphus Member
    Sisyphus
    @Sisyphus

    Flicker (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Suspira (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Indeed. The American Revolution is ill-named from a modern point of view. It was a war of independence, but even in that it was unique. The “revolutionaries” didn’t seek so much to throw off a despised foreign system as to claim and re-establish their rights under that system.

    Who knows? If England had granted us full rights as British subjects, we might be part of the United Kingdom today . . . but noooooooo!

    I miss my royalty. That’s why I secretly so admire the Bush, Clinton, and 0bama dynasties. Michelle/ Hillary in 2024!

    Excellent. It’s barely on the horizon but we can already assess the blame.

    • #28
  29. Flicker Coolidge
    Flicker
    @Flicker

    Sisyphus (View Comment):

    Flicker (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Suspira (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Indeed. The American Revolution is ill-named from a modern point of view. It was a war of independence, but even in that it was unique. The “revolutionaries” didn’t seek so much to throw off a despised foreign system as to claim and re-establish their rights under that system.

    Who knows? If England had granted us full rights as British subjects, we might be part of the United Kingdom today . . . but noooooooo!

    I miss my royalty. That’s why I secretly so admire the Bush, Clinton, and 0bama dynasties. Michelle/ Hillary in 2024!

    Excellent. It’s barely on the horizon but we can already assess the blame.

    Hey.  I’m a monarchist.  I still have my 12-piece Charles and Diana china set with tureen, and I use it every day.

    • #29
  30. Sisyphus Member
    Sisyphus
    @Sisyphus

    Flicker (View Comment):

    Sisyphus (View Comment):

    Flicker (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Suspira (View Comment):

    Arahant (View Comment):

    Stad (View Comment):

    Arahant: Communist revolutions are voracious. They will soon be eating their own. Give the firing squad something to remember, as they, too, will soon face a firing squad of their own.

    The revolutionaries never consider how the revolution eats its own.

    Exception? The American Revolution . . .

    That’s because that was a different sort of Revolution. That was to retain the old laws, rights, and privileges, not overturn them.

    Indeed. The American Revolution is ill-named from a modern point of view. It was a war of independence, but even in that it was unique. The “revolutionaries” didn’t seek so much to throw off a despised foreign system as to claim and re-establish their rights under that system.

    Who knows? If England had granted us full rights as British subjects, we might be part of the United Kingdom today . . . but noooooooo!

    I miss my royalty. That’s why I secretly so admire the Bush, Clinton, and 0bama dynasties. Michelle/ Hillary in 2024!

    Excellent. It’s barely on the horizon but we can already assess the blame.

    Hey. I’m a monarchist. I still have my 12-piece Charles and Diana china set with tureen, and I use it every day.

    Like Hillary is going to let Michelle be on top.

    • #30
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