People have a deep need to be legislators, and the idea of autonomy has become very precious.

Knowledge is no guarantee of good behavior, but ignorance is a virtual guarantee of bad behavior.

Choice matters. You might have the opportunity to eat a nutritious diet, though you might choose to eat a lousy diet. What matters is the opportunity.

People don't just want to feel satisfied. They actually want to act.

We are lucky in the United States to have our liberal arts system. In most countries, if you go to university, you have to decide for all English literature or no literature, all philosophy or no philosophy. But we have a system that is one part general education and one part specialization. If your parents say you've got to major in computer science, you can do that. But you can also take general education courses in the humanities, and usually you have to.

I am a very big fan of the nation, actually. In Cicero's time, there was this idea that although we were members of the whole world of human beings, we also needed to connect our imaginations to a smaller unit. The smaller unit was something we knew we could live or die for, as Cicero died for the Roman republic.

When a profession is protected by academic freedom and tenure, it tends to turn inward. To a large extent that's good.