In almost every case (where the United States has fought wars) our overwhelming commitment to freedom, democracy and human rights has required us to support those regimes that would deny freedom, democracy and human rights to their own people.

It is notable how little empathy is cultivated or valued in our society. I put this down to our traditional racism and obsessive sectarianism. Even so, one would think that we would be encouraged to project ourselves into the character of someone of a different race or class, if only to be able to control him. But no effort is made.

The creation of a work of art, like an act of love, is our one small 'yes' at the center of a vast 'no.'

American writers want to be not good but great; and so are neither.

As Brooks Adams put it, the sole problem of our ruling class is whether to coerce or to bribe the powerless majority.

I wanted to be a politician and a movie star. But I was born a writer. If you're born that, you can't change it. You're going to do it whether you want to or not.~

At any given moment, public opinion is a chaos of superstition, misinformation, and prejudice.