A most important, but also most elusive, aspect of any tool is its influence on the habits of those who train themselves in its use. If the tool is a programming language this influence is, whether we like it or not, an influence on our thinking habits.... A programming language is a tool that has profound influence on our thinking habits.

Aim for brevity while avoiding jargon.

There is very little point in trying to urge the world to mend its ways as long as that world is still convinced that its ways are perfectly adequate.

Beauty is our business.

The use of COBOL cripples the mind; its teaching should, therefore, be regarded as a criminal offense.

Don't compete with me: firstly, I have more experience, and secondly, I have chosen the weapons.

The use of anthropomorphic terminology forces you linguistically to adopt an operational view. And it makes it practically impossible to argue about programs independently of their being executed.