We've got a form of brainwashing going on in our country…. Do you know how they brainwash people? They repeat something over and over. And that's what we do in this country. Owning things is good. More money is good. More property is good. More commercialism is good. MORE IS GOOD. MORE IS GOOD. We repeat it--and have it repeated to us--over and over until nobody bothers to even think otherwise. The average person is so fogged up by all this, he has no perspective on what's really important anymore.

What tipped the scales was that psychology involved working with rats.

We have a sense that we should be like the mythical cowboy... able to take on and conquer anything and live in the world without the need for other people.

So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they're busy doing things they think are important. This is because they're chasing the wrong things.

It's not too late to develop new friendships or reconnect with people.

Be compassionate, and take responsibility for each other. If we only learned those lessons, this world would be so much a better place.

When you look at it that way, you can see how absurd it is that we individualize ourselves with our fences and hoarded possessions.