Another definition of modernity: conversations can be more and more completely reconstructed with clips from other conversations taking place at the same time on the planet.

Fragility is the quality of things that are vulnerable to volatility.

The imagination of the genius vastly surpasses his intellect; the intellect of the academic vastly surpasses his imagination

Never think that lack of variability is stability. Don't confuse lack of volatility with stability, ever.

The classical man's worst fear was inglorious death; the modern man's worst fear is just death

The irony of the process of thought control: the more energy you put into trying to control your ideas and what you think about, the more your ideas end up controlling you.

I'm a private intellectual, not a public one.