Cynical realism is the intelligent man's best excuse for doing nothing in an intolerable situation.

Our vanity makes us exaggerate the importance of human life; the individual is nothing; Nature cares only for the species.

Given a fair chance, human beings can govern themselves, and govern themselves better

Indifference to all the refinements of life--it's really shocking. Just Calvinism, that's all. Calvinism without the excuse of Calvin's theology.

Man is so intelligent that he feels impelled to invent theories to account for what happens in the world. Unfortunately, he is not quite intelligent enough, in most cases, to find correct explanations. So that when he acts on his theories, he behaves very often like a lunatic.

I know quite well that one needs ridiculous, mad situations like that; one can't write really well about anything else. Why was that old fellow such a marvelous propaganda technician? Because he had so many insane, excruciating things to get excited about. You've got to be hurt and upset; otherwise you can't think of the really good, penetrating, X-rayish phrases.

If you have behaved badly, repent, make what amends you can and address yourself to the task of behaving better next time.