We never completely escape the teachers of our childhood nor any of the patterns that formed us.

Here lies a toppled god. His fall was not a small one. We did but build his pedestal, A narrow and a tall one.

The mistakes (of leaders) are amplified by the numbers who follow them without question. Charismatic leaders tend to build up followings, power structures and these power structures tend to be taken over by people who are corruptible. I don't think that the old saw about 'power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely' is accurate: I think power attracts the corruptible.

When you think to take determination of your fate into your own hands, that is the moment you can be crushed. Be cautious.

Memory never recaptures reality. Memory reconstructs. All reconstructions change the original, becoming external frames of reference that inevitably fall short.

Guilt starts as a feeling of failure.

Prisons are needed only to provide the illusion that courts and police are effective. They're a kind of job insurance.