Any planet is 'Earth' to those that live on it.

It seems to me that God is a convenient invention of the human mind

Having no unusual coincidence is far more unusual than any coincidence could possibly be.

I would argue that a truly developed country would be beyond Presidents and Kings. In a world with some semblance of equality, each liberal-minded woman, each gay person, and indeed almost every person could be their own President. In a world of equals, what real service does a ruler provide?

When I feel difficulty coming on, I switch to another book I'm writing. When I get back to the problem, my unconscious has solved it.

We're forever teetering on the brink of the unknowable, and trying to understand what can't be understood.

Naturally, since [the Sumerians] didn't know what caused the flood anymore than we do, they blamed the gods. (That's the advantage of religion. You're never short an explanation for anything.)