An idealist believes the short run doesn't count. A cynic believes the long run doesn't matter. A realist believes that what is done or left undone in the short run determines the long run. - Sydney J. Harris
I'm a realist, but sometimes I find myself floating in fantasy. - Brittany Perloff
Of course, that’s one of the dreams of modernist literature, whether realist or fantastic: that the more stories we tell each other about such tragedies, the fewer of them there will be. We’re still waiting for the results. - Charles Finch
A realist is a slave to reality. - Mokokoma Mokhonoana
If a pessimist is always right, is he a realist? - Unknown
The leader has to be practical and a realist, yet must talk the language of the visionary and the idealist. - Eric Hoffer
In order to be a realist you must believe in miracles.
A Cynic is what an Optimist calls a Realist
I'm a realist, I'm not an optimist. I don't want false hope. I don't know where this is going for me.
In the defense of our nation, a president must be a clear-eyed realist. There are limits to the smiles and scowls of diplomacy. Armies and missiles are not stopped by stiff notes of condemnation. They are held in check by strength and purpose and the promise of swift punishment. - George W. Bush
I'm not a cynic. I am a realist. - Sonya Watson