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Napolean? Heinlein? (Possibly.) (On MALICE.)

OTHERS? Certainly.

“Never ascribe to malice that which can adequately be explained by incompetence.”

(This particular phrasing is what I’ve seen as coming from Napolean Bonaparte. Robert Heinlein used something similar in a 1940s sci-fi novel. Somebody allegedly called Hanlon is given most modern versions of this quote, and it’s known as “Hanlon’s Razor”, as the famous “Occam’s Razor” is an aid to clear scientific thinking. Some people think Hanlon is/was Heinlein. In any case, it’s a useful antidote to the sloppy assumption that everybody hates you.