The war against Vietnam is only the ghastliest manifestation of what I'd call imperial provincialism, which afflicts America's whole culture-aware only of its own history, insensible to everything which isn't part of the local atmosphere.

To be great is to assume great concerns.

As a rule, the most dangerous ideas are not the ones that divide people but those on which they agree.

The war against Vietnam is only the ghastliest manifestation of what I'd call imperial provincialism, which afflicts America's whole culture-aware only of its own history, insensible to everything which isn't part of the local atmosphere.

Consistency is a virtue for trains: what we want from a philosopher is insights, whether he comes by them consistently or not.

Most bad books get that way because their authors are engaged in trying to justify themselves. If a vain author is an alcoholic, then the most sympathetically portrayed character in his book will be an alcoholic. This sort of thing is very boring for outsiders.

Perhaps in a book review it is not out of place to note that the safety of the state depends on cultivating the imagination.