We can have wilderness without freedom; we can have wilderness without human life at all, but we cannot have freedom without wilderness, we cannot have freedom without leagues of open space beyond the cities, where boys and girls, men and women, can live at least part of their lives under no control but their own desires and abilities, free from any and all direct administration by their fellow men.

Government: If you refuse to pay unjust taxes, your property will be confiscated. If you attempt to defend your property, you will be arrested. If you resist arrest, you will be clubbed. If you defend yourself against clubbing, you will be shot dead. These procedures are known as the Rule of Law.

All we have, it seems to me, is the beauty of art and nature and life, and the love which that beauty inspires.

The "terror" of the French Revolution lasted for ten years. The terror that preceded and led to it lasted for a thousand years.

One must be reasonable in one's demands on life. For myself, all that I ask is: (1) accurate information; (2) coherent knowledge; (3) deep understanding; (4) infinite loving wisdom; (5) no more kidney stones, please.

There is a fine art to making enemies and it requires diligent cultivation. It's not as easy as it looks.

If you feel that you're not ready to die, never fear; nature will give you complete and adequate assistance when the time comes.