War is idiocy. We live on a small, small planet, and what we do to others is what we do to ourselves

It's a little dangerous for me to get outside myself and think about how I want people to see me.

With time the unbearable becomes shocking, becomes sad, and finally becomes poignant.

As John Adams said, all democracies will eventually self-destruct. We seem to be doing it very quickly.

My dad had more compassion than me. He was nonjudgmental. He didn't care where you stood politically. He just took you as a person on face value. He could love all stripes, and that's why all stripes claim him. He didn't judge.

The religion I have is music. Even the times I have headaches, when I'm singing, I can't feel them. My dad used to say that, too, especially near the end of his life. He would be in pain - a lot of pain - and he said the only time when he didn't feel pain was when he performed and sang.

My dad and I had a real meeting of the minds. We loved to talk about music, politics, and art. He loved children. The thing I missed most about my dad when he died was that this person who really gets who I am at the core was gone.