Machines are worshipped because they are beautiful and valued because they confer power; they are hated because they are hideous and loathed because they impose slavery.

There is something feeble, and a little contemptible, about a man who cannot face the perils of life without the help of comfortable myths. Almost inevitably some part of him is aware that they are myths and that he believes them only because they are comforting. But he dare not face this thought, and he therefore cannot carry his own reflection to any logical conclusion.

Americans need rest, but do not know it. I believe this to be a large part of the explanation of the crime wave in the United States.

Men fear thought as they fear nothing else on earth - more than ruin, more even than death.

A sense of duty is useful in work but offensive in personal relations. People wish to be liked, not to be endured with patient resignation.

War...seems a mere madness, a collective insanity.

The secrets to happiness include enterprise, exploration of one's interests and the overcoming of obstacles.