History Quotes / IDidWhatIHadToDo

->''"I'm not sorry about what I did, Maxwell.... but I am sorry I had to do it."''

->"There's what's right and then there's what's necessary. They ain't always the same."

->Since Kira has appeared six years ago, [[TheExtremistWasRight wars have stopped and global crime rates have been reduced by over 70%]]. But, it's not enough. [[CrapsackWorld This world is still]] [[BlackAndWhiteInsanity rotten with too many rotten people!]] Somebody has to do this! When I first got that notebook all those years ago, I knew I had to do it. No, I was the only one who could. I understood that killing people was a crime. ''[[HannibalLecture There was no other way! The world had to be fixed!]] [[MotiveRant A purpose given to me!]]'' Only I could do it. ''[[VillainousBreakdown Who else could have done it and come this far?!]] [[FreakOut Will they keep going?!]]'' [[AGodAmI The only one, who can create a new world, is me]].

->We Anti-Spirals were once a Spiral race like yourselves. But when we learned that the evolution of Spiral Power would lead to the destruction of the universe, we annihilated all those who possessed the power of the Spiral, and drove the few surviving life forms to the far corners of the universe. We halted our own evolution and locked ourselves away into this pocket universe! On our homeworld we sealed away our bodies and any hope of evolution!\\

This form is the symbol of our determination! Foolish creatures, drunk on Spiral Power! Do you possess the resolve to do that?! We defended the universe by killing our fellow spirals and halting our own evolution! Do you possess the sheer fortitude that is on par with that?! DO YOU?! '''WE SAY NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! ''NOT! AT! ALL!!!'''''

->I heard you, [[Comicbook/{{Supergirl}} Kara]]. You longed to return to Argo City. I did only what needed to be done to give you that.

->[[UsefulNotes/TheLawsAndCustomsOfWar Adam did things to the Pykkts.]] [[ObligatoryWarCrimeScene I won't deny it.]] Things that don't conform to what the [[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica League of Justice]] likes to judge. These aliens tortured him. They killed his only child. And in return, he treated them poorly. It's all ''true.'' Every word. But let me ask you this: [[Main/AlienInvasion at this time, when your life is at stake,]] do you want someone who treated the Pykkts with kid gloves? Someone who coddled these monsters, defending your children? Is that really what you want? After Phoenix, after the next horror they do, do you want to fight fairly? Or, even if it's damning...do you want someone who fought like Adam fought on Rann? In other words, in the ''only'' words...do you want to ''win?''

->The only way to make certain future generations will know this was our only hope... is to ensure there will BE future generations.

->I hated to use a hostage to force your surrender, but it means the saving of thousands of lives!

->'''Shinji:''' Me too. I... we did what we had to do. I feel terrible about it, but we really didn't have a choice. They had... they had to be stopped, right?"\\
'''Asuka:''' Right. We didn't have a choice. Really. They invaded our base and wanted to use us to fight for their madness [...] And they had... they had Katsuragi-san."

(silence)\\

->The bridge crew had performed admirably given the circumstances, as Fuyutsuki had come to expect, even if they all knew that in following his orders they would be crippling themselves beyond repair. It was, as always, a necessary sacrifice.\\
Fuyutsuki almost laughed. He had lost track of how many times Ikari had used that justification for what NERV had done, and the atrocities they had committed. Lazy minds tended to drift towards the excuses that were familiar to them, usually as a simple matter of expediency; who could come up with a new excuse every time their decisions were questioned? But eventually the sacrifices deemed necessary added up to even greater costs than the things they were determined to prevent in the first place.

->That was a reminder that you know nothing about the decisions I have to make! [[ShutUpKirk How dare you, what fucking gives you the right to question me]] you stupid dog? What gives you the fucking right to think that you know better? I have kept this Fleet safe for millennia, always trying to choose the best option when the choices are either blood or ash!

->"Val, the act of killing is the gravest act of man. Both on Krypton, and on Earth. Once upon a time, Lex died, and I brought him back to life. This time... I didn't do it. So we both have something to bear away from this one. We both have each other’s secret. Your action was basically justified. You kept him from killing Kal and Ardora. Maybe he would have killed you and Lena afterward. There’s no telling. If a cop had come in there with a gun, he probably would have used it on Lex, as well. He might have had to yell 'Freeze!' beforehand, and he’d have to face a review board afterward. But Lex was about to commit murder again. He’d already done it once, today. And you— saw it. So you did what you had to do. You reached out with that PK power and stopped his heart. Lex Luthor is dead, now, and neither Kal nor I are responsible, except maybe in a secondary way. As I say, Val, you did what you had to do."
-->-- '''Kara''', ''Fanfic/KaraOfRokyn''

->'''Captain America:''' I also caused quite a few deaths, personally, on the other side. I killed a lot of people, Carol. A lot of people.\\
'''Binary:''' You were a soldier, Cap.\\

->Your [[EvilVersusEvil Blood War]] can be summed up with the two most evil phrases my people know. Your foes, the demons, have the phrase, '[[ForTheEvulz Because I can]]' on their side. You devils however have 'Because I had to' on yours. These two phrases, when distilled down to their essence, account for all suffering, and in the end, the latter is more destructive. The truest evil is not achieved by [[CardCarryingVillain the men who think themselves the villain]]. The truest evil is done by [[KnightTemplar the good man]] who does what he feels he must, and thus he does it without hesitation.

[[folder: Film - Animated]]

-->--''WesternAnimation/HotelTransylvania''

-->--''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017''

[[folder:Film - Live-Action]]

'''Thanos:''' Going to bed hungry. Scrounging for scraps. [[OverpopulationCrisis Your planet was on the brink of collapse.]] I was the one who stopped that. You know what's happened since then? The children born have known nothing but full bellies and clear skies. It's a paradise.\\

-->--''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''

->I repent there was no other way open to me. I do not repent my life.

'''Ego the Living Planet''': And that I did. My river lily who knew all the words to every song that came over the radio. I returned to Earth to see her three times. And I knew if I returned a fourth, well, I'd... I'd never leave. The Expansion... the reason for my very existence would be over. So, I did what I had to do. But... it broke my heart to put that tumor in her head.
-->--''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2''

-->--'''Tony''', ''Film/InnocentBlood''

'''General Zod:''' ...[[BluntYes I did.]] [[AntagonistInMourning And not a day goes by that it does not haunt me.]] But if I had to do it again, I would. I have a duty to my people, and I will not allow anyone to prevent me from carrying it out!

->I didn't go berserk. I simply solved a problem.

'''The Operative:''' I'm not going to live there. There's NoPlaceForMeThere... any more than there is for you. Malcolm... I'm a monster. What I do is evil. I have no illusions about it, but it must be done.

->I can feel your incriminations and your judgments, and I am fine with that. You want to be loved? Go be a movie star. The world is as you find it. You've gotta deal with that reality that there are monsters in this world. We saw 3,000 innocent people burned to death by [[MiddleEasternTerrorists those monsters]], yet you object when I refuse to kiss those monsters on the cheek and say "pretty please." You answer me this, what terrorist attack would you have let go forward so you wouldn't seem like a mean and nasty fella? I will not apologize for keeping your family safe. And I will not apologize for doing what needed to be done so that your loved ones could sleep peacefully at night. It has been my honor to be your servant. [[YouBastard You chose me. And I did what you asked.]]

->If you want to investigate and prosecute me for striking Abu Haggani, a man who is responsible for murdering over one hundred U.S. service personnel... a man who specializes in attacking grade schools filled with children... a man whose contribution to terrorism is that he was the first to recruit mentally retarded people to become suicide bombers... If that is the case you would like to put before the American people, then I welcome it. I am more than willing to publicly stand behind my position.

->There are black zones of shadow close to our daily paths, and now and then some evil soul breaks a passage through. When that happens, the man who knows must strike before reckoning the consequences.

->I did the right thing, but no one else will ever understand!

->Everything we did, we did for the right reasons. I understand it's ugly, without the context.

->'''[[InvincibleVillain Contessa:]]''' I keep on asking myself the same questions over and over again. Maybe you can answer. Was it worth it? Would you do it all over again? Knowing what you know now? Knowing that you end up here, at gunpoint?\\
'''[[VillainProtagonist Khepri:]]''' I... know I'm supposed to say yes. But no. Some-somewhere along way, it became no.\\

'''Khepri:''' [[IRegretNothing Don't- don't regret it.]] [[SavingTheWorld Was- had to. Saved lives.]] But I would do different, given a chance.

->'''Bob Howard:''' That's ''treason''-

-->--''[[Literature/TheLaundryFiles The Delirium Brief]]''

->[[SadClown Me]] and [[TheLeader Jake]] and [[DarkActionGirl Rachel]] and [[AllLovingHero Cassie]] and [[TheWoobie Tobias]] and [[TokenNonHuman Ax]]. They'd be household names, like generals from World War II or the Civil War. Patton and Eisenhower, Ulysses Grant and Robert E. Lee. Kids would study us in school. Bored, probably.
->And then the teacher would tell the story of [[TheUnfettered Marco]]. I'd be a part of history. What I was about to do.
->Some kid would laugh. Some kid would say, "Cold, man. That was really cold."
->I had to do it, kid. It was a war. It's the whole point, you stupid, smug, smirking little jerk! Don't you get it?
->It was the whole point. We hurt the innocent in order to stop the evil.
->Innocent Hork-Bajir. Innocent Taxxons. Innocent human-Controllers.
->How else to stop [[PuppeteerParasite the Yeerks]]? How else to win?
->No choice, you punk. We did what we had to do.
-->--'''Marco,''' ''Literature/{{Animorphs}} #30: The Reunion''

->I did... what you weren't prepared to do.

->'''Jake:''' I can't believe we're [[FugitiveArc fugitives on the lam, falsely accused of a crime.]]\\
'''Holt:''' [[SubvertedTrope There's nothing false about it.]] We committed several felonies and escaped from jail.\\

'''Dalek:''' [[AC: You lie!]]\\
'''Doctor:''' I watched it happen! I ''MADE'' it happen!\\
'''Dalek:''' [[AC: You destroyed us?!]]\\

->'''Rassilon:''' We will ascend - to become creatures of consciousness alone. Free of these bodies, free of time, and cause and effect, while creation itself ceases to be.\\
'''Tenth Doctor:''' ''(to the Master)'' You see now? That's what they were planning...in the final days of the war. ''I had to stop them.''

->What I did, I did without choice... in the name of peace and sanity.

->Who we are, and who we need to be to survive, are very different things.

-> "I lied. I cheated. I bribed men to cover the crimes of other men. I am an accessory to murder. But the most damning thing of all... I think I can live with it. And if I had to do it all over again, I would. Garak was right about one thing: a guilty conscience is a small price to pay for the safety of the Alpha Quadrant."

->'''Lore:''' ''[[CallingTheOldManOut You did what you had to do?]]'' What kind of answer is that?\\
'''Dr Soong:''' The best one I can give you. [[AIIsACrapshoot You were not functioning properly.]]

->Some may question your right to destroy ten billion people. Those who understand realize that you have no right to let them live...
-->-- ''In Exterminatus Extermis'', ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''

->Victory is commemorated, failure merely remembered.
-->-- Imperial Proverb, ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''

->They were so close their stench filled the air... [[EvilSmellsBad you can SMELL them]], I tell you! Somewhere between the spice of vanilla and the bitter sweetness of pustulent rot. These creatures [[PuppeteerParasite inhabit the bodies of men and women]], exorcising the human soul and replacing it with their own putrid spirits. But they couldn't fool ''me!'' No, not at all, I could SMELL them, you see! They were all around me... ''[[ParanoiaFuel dear god, all around]]''... I knew what I had to do, they had to ''go'', by blade and bullet I had to get rid of them! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?! Dear god, I ''had'' to do it... ''had to''... [[YouHaveToBelieveMe You believe me, don't you?]] [-[[YouHaveToBelieveMe Don't you?]]-]

->Lots of ways to help people. Sometimes heal patients; sometimes execute dangerous people. Either way helps.

->Understand what a world had to do to survive.
-->-- Repeated Line, ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar''

->''I was away for a few years and came back to a world in ruins. Death, destruction, chaos - the endless fighting - it was as if the Heterodyne Boys had '''''never existed'''''. Things were worse than ever.''

-> ''And it '''''worked'''''.''

->I don't give a ''damn'' about your ''committee'' and its ''opinions'' on my work! Have you forgotten, sir, that we were at ''war?'' A fight with an alien race for the very survival of our ''species?'' I feel I must remind you, that it is an ''undeniable'' and may I say a ''fundamental'' quality of man that when faced with extinction, ''every'' alternative is preferable!

->One final note: The Foundation does many distasteful things in the completion of our mission, but our mission is important enough that the price is one we must pay. Containment of SCP-231 is one of our most dangerous duties, not because of any direct danger to ourselves (like [[OmnicidalManiac SCP-682]]) but because of the danger that our resolve will fail, that we will allow ourselves to either let down our guard [[NeverHurtAnInnocent due to sympathy for the suffering of an innocent]], or that [[HeWhoFightsMonsters we will allow ourselves to become monsters through the performance of monstrous acts]]. Just do your jobs, and save the philosophizing for the shrink.

->I'm not sorry about what I did, Maxwell.... but I am sorry I had to do it.
-->--'''Alexander Anderson''', ''WebVideo/HellsingUltimateAbridged''

->Now, I know what you're gonna say: "Technoblade, you monster! You really killed ''millions'' of your own kind just to make a sword?". And it- look, look, look, come on, you gotta understand. There was nothing else I could do, I was mildly inconvenienced!
-->--'''Technoblade''' in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2mwbXInQCI this video]]

->You don't know what you're talking about. I just ran numbers for them and stuff. We were orphans out on the street; I did what I had to do to survive and protect my little brother.

->'''Adora:''' Keep telling yourself that.

->"[[UsefulNotes/TheLawsAndCustomsOfWar Adam did things to the Pykkts.]] [[ObligatoryWarCrimeScene I won't deny it.]] Things that don't conform to what the [[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica League of Justice]] likes to judge. These aliens tortured him. They killed his only child. And in return, he treated them poorly. It's all ''true.'' Every word. But let me ask you this: [[Main/AlienInvasion at this time, when your life is at stake,]] do you want someone who treated the Pykkts with kid gloves? Someone who coddled these monsters, defending your children? Is that really what you want? After Phoenix, after the next horror they do, do you want to fight fairly? Or, even if it's damning...do you want someone who fought like Adam fought on Rann? In other words, in the ''only'' words...do you want to ''win?"''

->"The only way to make certain future generations will know this was our only hope... is to ensure there will BE future generations."

->"I hated to use a hostage to force your surrender, but it means the saving of thousands of lives!"

-->-- '''Elsa''', ''Disney/{{Frozen}}'' ([[GoMadFromTheRevelation at least]] until she gets informed of the EndlessWinter)

--> '''Petty Officer Muldoon:''' I told you, that guy was gonna kill that woman, and then me. What the hell was I supposed to do?\\

->No, Anna, I belong here. Alone. Where I can be who I am ... without hurting anybody.
-->-- '''Elsa''' from ''Disney/{{Frozen}}'', [[GoMadFromTheRevelation at least]] until she gets informed of the EndlessWinter

->That was a reminder that you know nothing about the decisions I have to make! [[ShutUpKirk How dare you, what fucking gives you the right to]] [[WhatTheHellHero question me]] you stupid dog? What gives you the fucking right to think that you know better? I have kept this Fleet safe for millennia, always trying to choose the best option when the choices are either blood or ash!

->How else to stop [[PuppeteerParasites the Yeerks]]? How else to win?

->''I was a way for a few years and came back to a world in ruins. Death, destruction, chaos - the endless fighting - it was as if the Heterodyne Boys had '''''never existed'''''. Things were worse than ever.''