Power over the world

"It is by means of names and numbers that the human understanding obtains power over the world"
Oswald Spengler, The Decline of the West.

More detail

"An attribute that is measurable defines the associated objective in more detail than that provided by the objective alone"
Keeney, R.L. 1992. Value-focused thinking. Cambridge: Harvard University press, 113.

Measuring objectives

"(...) the assignment of attributes to measure objectives always requires value judgements".
Keeney, R.L. 1992. Value-focused thinking. Cambrige: Harvard University Press, 100.

"(...) any attribute, even a natural attribute, requires subjective judgement" (ibid., 104)

Risk

"He who chops wood takes a risk from it"
Ecclesiastes: 10.9

La sagesse du pauvre

"La sagesse vaux mieux que la force
mais la sagesse du pauvre est meconnue
et ses paroles, personne les ecoute"
Ecclesiastes, 9.16.

Strategic decisions

"[Strategy is] the employment of the battle as the means towards the attainment of the object of war".
Clausewitz, On war.

"Strategic decisions are] decision contingent on the possible decisions of others, which, in turn, are assumed to be contingent on our possible decisions".
Clausewitz, On war.

Political advice

"In decision situations where making value judgements public is politically difficult or unwise, do not publicly communicate them, but use them to guide (...) a sensitivity analysis of the alternatives that can be made public"
Keeney, R.L. 1992. Value-focused thinking. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 151.