The Nazis believed in a master race. The militant Islamists believe in a master faith.
The one thing that can be more disconcerting than intelligent hatred is demanding love.
When fascism comes to the United States it will be wrapped in the American flag and will claim the name of 100-percent Americanism
I am convinced that everything that is worth while in the world has been accomplished by the free, inquiring, critical spirit, and that the preservation of this spirit is more important than any social system whatsoever. But the men of ritual and the men of barbarism are capable of shutting up the men of science and silencing them forever.
It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write.
Intellectually I know that America is no better than any other country; emotionally I know she is better than every other country.
Under a tyranny, most friends are a liability. One quarter of them turn "reasonable" and become your enemies, one quarter are afraid to speak, and one quarter are killed and you die with them. But the blessed final quarter keep you alive.
A foreign country can best be understood through its literature.
We could have been happy. I know that, and it is perhaps the hardest thing to know.
We can get more energy out of the north slope of Alaska; we have available the ability to make ourselves less dependent on those uncertain sources of supply from the Middle East. And it's important we do that.
There are no taboos. Every topic is open, however shocking. It is the way that the topics are handled that's important, and that applies whether it is a 15-year-old who is reading your book or someone who is 55.