Know something about something. Don’t just present your wonderful self to the world. Constantly amass knowledge and offer it around.

The United Nations is an indispensable but deeply flawed organization. It is valuable to the United States, and the United States is invaluable to it. We need to reform it.

As countries grapple with modernization, people who are left behind tend to hold firmer and firmer to their view of the evil of modernity.

There is a split between Muslims who want to practice their faith in peace and tolerance with other religions and other people, and these extreme, radical fundamentalists who have shown a total lack of tolerance for people with different views, starting with people who they don't think are good Muslims, and going on to include Christians and Jews.

Diplomacy is like jazz: endless variations on a theme.

World War I was not inevitable, as many historians say. It could have been avoided, and it was a diplomatically botched negotiation.

The World War II generation believed the United States could do anything - anything... And Vietnam was a shattering experience for everyone.