War: First day in the U.S. Army, the government placed a Bible in my left hand, a bayonet in the other.
Edward AbbeyAnton Bruckner wrote the same symphony nine times, trying to get it just right. He failed.
Edward AbbeyFence straddlers have no balls. In compensation, however, they enjoy a comfortable seat and can retreat swiftly, when danger threatens, to either side of the fence. There is something to be said for every position.
Edward AbbeyIndolence and melancholy: Each generates the other. If one can speak of such feeble passions as generating anything.
Edward AbbeyThe true, unacknowledged purpose of capital punishment is to inspire fear and awe -- fear and awe of the State.
Edward AbbeyWhy can't we simply borrow what is useful to us from Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, especially Zen, as we borrow from Christianity, science, American Indian traditions and world literature in general, including philosophy, and let the rest go hang? Borrow what we need but rely principally upon our own senses, common sense and daily living experience.
Edward Abbey