Charles Barkley Quotes

When you're black, you have to deal with so much crap in your life from other black people. It's a dirty, dark secret; I'm glad it's coming out.

America is divided by economics, and we as Americans, we've got to do a better job of supporting poor people.

My family got all over me because they said Bush is only for the rich people. Then I reminded them, 'Hey, I'm rich'.

If you are an ugly woman, you have no chance of getting a TV job.

Sometimes I have to criticize guys to try to make it fun, I mean, I'm out there trying to bust other people. I want all these guys to do well, but when they do something stupid or don't play well, I try not to kill 'em, I try to make 'em laugh a little bit.

I don't know anything about Angola, but Angola's in trouble.

I'm not paid to be a role model. I'm paid to wreak havoc on the basketball court.

He'll never be Jordan. This clearly takes him out of the conversation. He can win as much as he wants to.

People always say turn the other cheek. If you turn the other cheek, I'm gonna hit you in the other cheek too.

I don't get into the gun stuff. Some guys have guns who go hunting. Where do we stop (the gun control) at? I'm not a hunter, but we can't say people can't have guns.

It's the kind of game that makes you go home and beat your wife.

Anytime a fan touches you, you have the right to beat the hell out of him

As long as anti-gay legislation exists in any state, I strongly believe big events such as the Final Four and Super Bowl should not be held in those states' cities.

If ifs were gifts, every day would be Christmas.

But when I see a story on welfare on television, they only show black people.

I don't mess with that cat. I'm pretty sure he carries a blade under his jersey.

I don't care what people think. people are stupid.

I don't create controversies. They're there long before I open my mouth. I just bring them to your attention.

If a guy drew a charge on me, I tried to kick him in the balls.

Any professional league that goes on strike right now - that's just suicide.

I'm really disturbed about the gay marriage thing. Because I think gay people should get married, cause it's their own business ... Because as a Black man, I think you've got to be against any form of discrimination.

I played against him (Wilkins) in college. Getting nominated with him, that's pretty cool.

I have nothing against old people. I want to be one myself one day.

Well, when I went off to college, the guys I used to hang with were pumping gas and voting Democrat. Today they're still pumping gas and voting Democrat. Guess the Democrats didn't do much for them.

I don't believe athletes should be role models ... We're a one-shot deal, one in a million, so we should be the least likely role models ... I think one of the problems in society today is that we don't stress education enough, because we glorify athletes, actors and actresses.

I was asked for years about being a Republican, probably because most black people are Democrats. My mother heard it once and called me and said 'Charles, Republicans are for the rich people.' And I said, 'Mom, I'm rich.'

I read that heavy drinking is bad for your health. I decided I better stop reading.

You know it's going to hell when the best rapper out there is white and the best golfer is black.

Listening to a woman is almost as bad as losing to one. There are only three things that women are better at than men: cleaning, cooking, and having sex.

Just because you say something doesn't make it controversial, and it doesn't make you a bad person.

One thing about being famous is the people around you, you pay all their bills so they very rarely disagree with you because they want you to pick up the check.

I do not use words like liberal or conservative. You can ask me a question and I will give you an answer. Those are words rich people on television use to divide and conquer.

I don't think of myself as giving interviews. I just have conversations. That gets me in trouble.

What I try to do is, I just want the fans to enjoy the game.

The older I get, the faster I was.

What does politically correct mean? If you're fat, don't ask me if you're fat, because I'm gonna tell you the truth. You're fat.

I'm no role model.

I know a lot of people did a lot of heavy lifting to make me successful and I do everything in my power not to screw it up.

I don't listen to the refs. I don't listen to anyone who makes less money than I do.

Any time a little midget does something like this, you gotta give him a 10!.

He's got to bring something stronger than that. That's like bringing milk to a bar, it's not strong enough

There's nobody you'd rather beat than your good friend.

See, my hope and dream is that people have a good time watching basketball. It's not church. It's not serious.

You know what's amazing to me? America. There have been so many people who have stepped up, and I'm just proud to be an American. Yeah, there were some mistakes made, but I don't play the blame game. Let's move forward and rebuild New Orleans.

We're not all supposed to think alike.

I like to help poor people who got no chance. If rich people don't, who will? Not other poor people, that's for sure.

Poor people cannot rely on the government to come to help you in times of need. You have to get your education. Then nobody can control your destiny.

I'm not paid to be a role model, parents should be role models.

If Michael Jordan was a damn plumber, he couldn't get a date. Any guy got $500 million looks good.

You think your parents are a pain in the ass now, but they're going to get smarter as you get older.

I don't have time to put up with the politics. Who's a Democrat? Who's a Republican? Who's liberal? Who's conservative? Man, can my daughter just go to a school and not get killed? Can these people get a good job? That's what I'm concerned about.

Kids are great. That's one of the best things about our business, all the kids you get to meet. It's a shame they have to grow up to be regular people and come to the games and call you names.

I'm still going to Disney World.

I think it sucks that in our country [the USA] there is such a double standard education-wise. Which part of the city you live in, or something like that, determines if you'll be successful, and that's not fair.

The word conservative means discriminatory practically. It's a form of political discrimination. What do the Republicans run on? Against gay marriage and for a war that makes no sense. A war that was based on faulty intelligence. That's all they ever talk about. That and immigration. Another discriminatory argument for political gain.

I'm so sick and tired of people in the media telling us that because of the war, sports aren't important. Fans need sports. We'd have only crime and war to watch on TV if not for sports.

I just wish all these young black kids would realize how significant it is to stop acting a fool out there, killing each other, not getting their education. You know, people have died to put us in a situation to be successful.

I think you have an obligation to be honest.

Every team in the Western Conference has flaws.

I don't believe professional athletes should be role models. I believe parents should be role models ... It's not like it was when I was growing up. My mom and my grandmother told me how it was going to be. If I didn't like it, they said, "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out." Parents have to take better control.

This place? Nothing positive. OK, I want to say something positive. It's positively a dump.

I didnt wear the pink panties because I didnt want America going crazy with excitement.

I'm serious. I've got to get people to realize that the government is full of it. Republicans and Democrats want to argue over stuff that's not important, like gay marriage or the war in Iraq or illegal immigration ... When I run - if I run - we're going to talk about real issues like improving our schools, cleaning up our neighborhoods of drugs and crime and making Alabama a better place for all people.

People always say he can run and he can jump. So can a deer and you wouldn't put a deer in the game.

Yeah Ernie, its called defense, I mean I wouldn't know anything about it personally but I've heard about it through the grapevine.

I love New York City; I've got a gun.

There's only 5 real jobs in the world. Teacher, fireman, policeman, doctor and somebody who is in the armed service. If you don't have one of those 5 jobs, you shouldn't take your life that serious.

I want her to understand that it's going to be a factor in her life. I just want her to know that (racism) does exist, and I want her to always be diligent, and if she sees it, address it and fight it.

Somebody hits me, I'm going to hit him back. Even if it does look like he hasn't eaten in a while.

I'm just what America needs: another unemployed black man. (on his retirement from basketball)

Well, all I can say is that people know I'm not saying anything out of malice.

I can be bought. If they paid me enough, I'd work for the Klan.

I think the biggest problem is parents are so concerned with being friends with their kids. You're not their friend. You're their parent.

On game days, I could be in the worst mood imagiable-a really bad mood. But sometimes, I'd get a call from the Make-A-Wish Foundation-there would be people, sometimes kids, who anted to meet me before they died. And the foundation would call on a game day and say, "There's kid dying here whose last wish is to see you. Can you just come and see him?" I'd get there and sometimes the kid would be comatose. One day, a kid woke up for a split second and smiled at me. I was told he'd been hanging on. The mom and dad called me later and said, "I don't know what yu did to him, but those few moments were wonderful." And I cried all the way to the game, just cried my eyes out.
It's very scary. It's uplifting, too, but so scary. And then ... I'm bitching because my breakfast is cold?

I'm never embarassed.

Stevie Wonder could make one of 23 shots. - On North Carolina missing 22 of its last 23 shots in losing to Georgetown in the NCAA tournament.

White folks are not going to come to see a bunch of guys with tattoos, with cornrows. I'm sorry, but anyone who thinks different, they're stupid.

I believe ghosts are like dogs and they just sort of do things arbitrarily.

I think anybody who is racist is an idiot whether they are black or white.

Everybody in the world has an ego. The only difference between us is we have a reason to have an ego.

They run like deer, jump like deer and think like deer.

We're just playing basketball. It's not like we're going out to have unprotected sex with Magic.

If I weren't earning $3 million a year to dunk a basketball, most people on the street would run in the other direction if they saw me coming.

My wife's married. I'm not.

I always laugh when people ask me about rebounding techniques. I've got a technique. It's called just go get the damn ball.

I don't worry about playing basketball; that comes natural. I just want to have fun. David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Michael Jordanthis is like spring break in the ghetto.

Christian is going to be the strongest man in the NBA next year, because all he's been doing all summer is carrying around the luggage for 11 guys.

It's kinda great to see the Celtics doin well again cuz that was so much fun in my day to go to the Boston Garden and they spit at you and throw things at you and talk about your mom. It sounds like dinner at Kenny Smith's house.

They don't let many black people in the governor's mansion in Alabama, unless they're cleaning.

Poor people have been voting for big government liberalism for 50 years... and they are still poor.

My message is simple: take control of your life

Only poor people go to jail.

All I know is, as long as I led the Southeastern Conference in scoring, my grades would be fine.

I want to be a politician. I think I understand how the system works, I think a lot of politicians are corrupt, and it's about time we put some people in there who are going to look out for the majority of the people instead of the rich people.

Thank God for Jerry Springer's show. I thought only black folks were that screwed up until I watched Jerry Springer.

Jerry Krause must have pictures of his boss's wife having sex with a monkey.

You can't start a diet in the middle of the week, that's just stupid.

It bothers me when I hear these reporters and jocks get on TV and say: 'Oh, no guy can come out in a team sport. These guys would go crazy.' First of all, quit telling me what I think. I'd rather have a gay guy who can play than a straight guy who can't play.

Man, everything gets blamed on the Clintons, every single thing in this world. I think Bill Clinton shot JFK, too.

Those Grizzlies are more like pandas.