We thought we were the only thinking beings in the universe, until we met you, but never did we dream that thought could arise from the lonely animals who cannot dream each other's dreams

Madness, and then illumination.

Your dream is a good one. [. . .] The desire that is the very root of life itself: To grow until all the space you can see is part of you, under your control. It's the desire for greatness.

Soldiers can sometimes make decisions that are smarter than the orders they've been given.

Every person is defined by the communities she belongs to.

America is an empire that does not wish to be one ; we are easily discouraged from doing what must be done to maintain the global order that allows democracy and prosperity to flourish.

Ulysses, obviously. It was an elaborate prank, and our supposed intellectual elite continue to fall for it.