I don't have a disregard for my reader in humor pieces.

Every once in a while, people need to be in the presence of things that are really far away.

America can enjoy a vital, fully functioning government, with all the benefits provided by Texas, while reducing Texas at the same time.

People in Russia adapt to misery by a deep, deep humor.

There's an idea of the Plains as the middle of nowhere, something to be contemptuous of. But it's really a heroic place.

Words are charms. It's like a song you didn't even know you knew.

Human connection is the way things work. It's like a patronage system. You know somebody, and he knows somebody, and he knows somebody, and he knows the district governor, and it's okay.