When one of a culture's guiding credos is that "all men are created equal," any person who, say, becomes an expert on, say, nuclear weapons or, say, ecology, i.e., anyone who distinguishes himself through mental excellence, is a nuisance.

The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. I mean: might get people killed.

Buffy's high school was built on top of a vortex of evil, the Hellmouth. And whose wasn't?

I still believe in public radio's potential. Because it's the one mass medium that's still crafted almost entirely by true believers.

Along with voting, jury duty, and paying taxes, goofing off is one of the central obligations of American citizenship.

Relics are treasured as something close to the divine.

My lips are chapped from the winds of change.