Our days are so few, our existences so complicated. As long as we're breathing we shouldn't further complicate our lives.

"There is no greater gift to an insecure leader that quite matches a vague enemy who can be used to whip up fear and hatred among the population."

A sad truth of human nature is that it is hard to care for people when they are abstractions, hard to care when it is not you or somebody close to you. Unless the world community can stop finding ways to dither in the face of this monstrous threat to humanity those words Never Again will persist in being one of the most abused phrases in the English language and one of the greatest lies of our time.

If we want to change things, we must first change ourselves. If we want to play - if we want to change the world - we must first show up on the field to score.

This is why I say that the individual's most potent weapon is a stubborn belief in the triumph of common decency.

Our time here on the earth is short, and our chance to make a difference is tiny. For me the grinding blocks of history came together in such a way that I was able to take what fragile defense I had and hold in place for seventy-six days. If I was able to give much it was only because I had some useful things from my life to give. I am a hotel manager...my job never changed, even in a sea of fire.

Everybody was willing to give me a job. But I wanted to do something different. I saw myself as an independent person, self-employed.