Then, as his planet killed him, it occurred to Kynes that his father and all the other scientists were wrong, that the most persistent principles of the universe were accident and error.

Police are inevitably corrupted. ... Police always observe that criminals prosper. It takes a pretty dull policeman to miss the fact that the position of authority is the most prosperous criminal position available.

The Fremen were supreme in that quality the ancients called "spannungsbogen" -- which is the self-imposed delay between desire for a thing and the act of reaching out to grasp that thing.

When I need to identify rebels, I look for men with principles

The most important survival ability for any life form is the ability to change.

Absolute power does not corrupt absolutely, absolute power attracts the corruptible.

Politics: the art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible.