I am a person of faith: I am a person who will believe practically anything on no evidence at all.

I'm not resigned, but I'm realistic too. The statistics in my case are very poor. Not many people come through esophageal cancer and live to talk about it, or not for long.

Where would you like to live? In a state of conflict or a conflicted state?

Everyone in Iran is perceived to be a child with a paternal authority vested in the Guardian Council and the Sufi elders. They're supposed to be grateful. They can never for a moment not be afforded this wonderful protection. The father who will never go away. The father who will never quit caring for them.

I say that homosexuality is not just a form of sex, it's a form of love, and it deserves our respect for that reason.

I must have been one of the least surprised people on earth on September 11. I felt very braced for that. I knew something like that was going to come.

Islamophobia: a word created by fascists, and used by cowards, to manipulate morons.