--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They tell us, Sir, that we are weak…" description: "\"“They tell us, Sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be next week? Will it be n..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg" --- # They tell us, Sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with… ![“They tell us, Sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be next week? Will it be next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed and a guard stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Sir…” quote by Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg) > ““They tell us, Sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be next week? Will it be next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed and a guard stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Sir, we are not weak if we make proper use of those means which the God of nature has placed in our power.”” [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Argues that true strength comes from using natural resources wisely, not from fear or inaction. **In simple terms:** Use nature's gifts wisely. Key Takeaway Leverage natural means for strength. Themes survival resourcefulness strength Mood determined pragmatic Type adventure survival When to use this quote - wilderness survival - military strategy - community defense - disaster preparedness Key Concepts environmental ethics strategic planning Questions to Reflect On - What natural resources can you responsibly harness? - How do you avoid complacency in preparation? A Different Perspective Overreliance on nature may ignore technological advances. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Strength](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strength/) ## Related quotes > [“They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable-to-cope-with-so-formidable-2/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable-to-cope-with-so-formidable-3/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/shall-we-gather-strength-by-irresolution-and-inaction/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [You've blown my mind in 2 hours time and I'm so weak and unable to picture you with someone other than me but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angel-taylor/you-ve-blown-my-mind-in-2-hours-time-and-i-m-so-weak-and-unable-to/) [Angel Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angel-taylor/) > [“I suddenly felt entirely weak, unable, and inadequate to bridge the gap between myself and these men. Then I realized I didn't have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-yankoski/i-suddenly-felt-entirely-weak-unable-and-inadequate-to-bridge-the-gap/) [Mike Yankoski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-yankoski/) > [We call them strong, those who can face this world alone. Who seem to get by on their own, those who will never take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garth-brooks/we-call-them-strong-those-who-can-face-this-world-alone-who-seem-to/) [Garth Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garth-brooks/) > [When you're young, you always feel that life hasn't yet begun—that "life" is always scheduled to begin next week, next month, next year, after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/when-you-re-young-you-always-feel-that-life-hasn-t-yet-begun-that/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [“I want a family, Friday. Not just a fuck. Tail is easy to come by. You, on the other hand…” He lets his voice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-falkner/i-want-a-family-friday-not-just-a-fuck-tail-is-easy-to-come-by-you-on/) [Tammy Falkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-falkner/) > [“Would you mind if that post, pic, comment or content was seen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year? If the answer is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loren-weisman/would-you-mind-if-that-post-pic-comment-or-content-was-seen-tomorrow/) [Loren Weisman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loren-weisman/) > [A politician needs the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month, and next year. And to have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/a-politician-needs-the-ability-to-foretell-what-is-going-to-happen/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [recurrence is sure. What the mind suffered last week, or last year, it does not suffer now; but it will suffer again next week…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-meynell/recurrence-is-sure-what-the-mind-suffered-last-week-or-last-year-it/) [Alice Meynell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-meynell/) > [Politics is the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. And to have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/politics-is-the-ability-to-foretell-what-is-going-to-happen-tomorrow/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“ Exposition: the workings of the actual past + the virtual past may be illustrated by an event well known to collective history, such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/exposition-the-workings-of-the-actual-past-the-virtual-past-may-be/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [“Just that what happens today or next week or next year isn't necessarily the way things are always going to be. As soon as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-reynolds-naylor/just-that-what-happens-today-or-next-week-or-next-year-isn-t/) [Phyllis Reynolds Naylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-reynolds-naylor/) > [“It's a promise ring. A long time ago, they would be engraved with the words Pour route ma vie, de tout mon coeur, For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-meredith-walters/it-s-a-promise-ring-a-long-time-ago-they-would-be-engraved-with-the/) [A. Meredith Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-meredith-walters/) ## More by Louis L'Amour > [“If you play games with men,” he replied, “you’ll play by men’s rules.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/if-you-play-games-with-men-he-replied-you-ll-play-by-men-s-rules/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [He never knew when he was whipped ... So he never was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/he-never-knew-when-he-was-whipped-so-he-never-was/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [“It is through wonder that we come to know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/it-is-through-wonder-that-we-come-to-know/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [We are, finally, all wanderers in search of knowledge. Most of us hold the dream of becoming something better than we are, something larger,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/we-are-finally-all-wanderers-in-search-of-knowledge-most-of-us-hold/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [Much of command is the ability to take command.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/much-of-command-is-the-ability-to-take-command/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [Out here you better have a gun, and a gun in the wagon ain't good for nothin'. I believe what the old Quaker said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/out-here-you-better-have-a-gun-and-a-gun-in-the-wagon-ain-t-good-for/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [“he had been so right, and she hated him for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/he-had-been-so-right-and-she-hated-him-for-it/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [“I will go with you, and when you make your camp, I will cook your meat, and when you wish to sleep, I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/i-will-go-with-you-and-when-you-make-your-camp-i-will-cook-your-meat/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [Men strive for peace, but it is their enemies that give them strength, and I think if man no longer had enemies, he would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/men-strive-for-peace-but-it-is-their-enemies-that-give-them-strength/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. Yet that will be the beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/there-will-come-a-time-when-you-believe-everything-is-finished-yet/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [“Destarte! How musical! What does it mean?” “You can’t say it except in Mescalero. It means Morning, but that isn’t what it means, either.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/destarte-how-musical-what-does-it-mean-you-can-t-say-it-except-in/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [You can't fight the desert... you have to ride with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/you-can-t-fight-the-desert-you-have-to-ride-with-it/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [“Must one seek something? I seek to be seeking, as I learn to be learning. Each book is an adventure as is each day’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/must-one-seek-something-i-seek-to-be-seeking-as-i-learn-to-be/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [A man in his life may have many teachers, some most unexpected. The question lies with the man himself: Will he learn from them?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/a-man-in-his-life-may-have-many-teachers-some-most-unexpected-the/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [“Like I say, I killed a man or two but I'm no thief. My ma raised me better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/like-i-say-i-killed-a-man-or-two-but-i-m-no-thief-my-ma-raised-me/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) [Explore all 337 Louis L'Amour quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) ## More Nature quotes > [It is indeed a surprising and fortunate fact that nature can be expressed by relatively low-order mathematical functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-carnap/it-is-indeed-a-surprising-and-fortunate-fact-that-nature-can-be/) [Rudolf Carnap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-carnap/) > [Remember that your natural state is joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/remember-that-your-natural-state-is-joy/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Borrow trouble for yourself, if that's your nature, but don't lend it to your neighbours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/borrow-trouble-for-yourself-if-that-s-your-nature-but-don-t-lend-it/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [There is no human nature, since there is no god to conceive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/there-is-no-human-nature-since-there-is-no-god-to-conceive-it/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“Men mistook measurement for understanding. And they always had to put themselves at the center of everything. That was their greatest conceit. The earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/men-mistook-measurement-for-understanding-and-they-always-had-to-put/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“She was, he knew- and had known very early, he supposed- one of those rare and always lovely humans whose moral nature was so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-williams/she-was-he-knew-and-had-known-very-early-he-supposed-one-of-those/) [John Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-williams/) > [“When the water covers the earth the sun will vanish the darkess and the cold will come.When the last dragon and the last Elf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silvana-de-mari/when-the-water-covers-the-earth-the-sun-will-vanish-the-darkess-and/) [Silvana de Mari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silvana-de-mari/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [“It is not the force of the wind, but the depth of the roots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/it-is-not-the-force-of-the-wind-but-the-depth-of-the-roots/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) [Browse all 47,383 Nature quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“They tell us, Sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be next week? Will it be next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed and a guard stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Sir, we are not weak if we make proper use of those means which the God of nature has placed in our power.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Louis L'Amour" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable-to-cope-with-so-formidable/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Nature" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable-to-cope-with-so-formidable/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/785/louis-l-amour-876_nature_they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable_543950.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They tell us, Sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be…” — Louis L'Amour", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Louis L'Amour", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“They tell us, Sir, that we...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable-to-cope-with-so-formidable/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/they-tell-us-sir-that-we-are-weak-unable-to-cope-with-so-formidable/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```