As always, the blessed relief of starting, a feeling that was like falling into a hole filled with bright light.As always, the glum knowledge that he would not write as well as he wanted to write. As always the terror of not being able to finish, of accelerating into a brick wall. As always, the marvelous joyful nervy feeling of journey begun.

It is not enough to understand, or to see clearly. The future will be shaped in the arena of human activity, by those willing to commit their minds and their bodies to the task.

Robert Kennedy

The public is wonderfully tolerant. It forgives everything except genius.

Oscar Wilde, The Critic as Artis

Repentance won't cure mischief.

Scottish Proverb

Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes adversity not without many comforts and hopes.

Francis Bacon

Many have dreamed up republics and principalities that have never in truth been known to exist; the gulf between how one should live and how one does live is so wide that a man who neglects what is actually done for what should be done learns the way to self-destruction rather than self-preservation.

Niccolo Machiavelli

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Stephen King

Philosophy is not politics, and we do our best, within our all-too-human limitations, to seek the truth, not to score points against opponents. There is little satisfaction in gaining an easy triumph over a weak opponent while ignoring better arguments against your views.

Peter Singer

An accent mark, perhaps, instead of a whole western accent -- a point of punctuation rather than a uniform twang. That is how it should be worn: as a quiet point of character reference, an apt phrase of sartorial allusion -- macho, sotto voce.

Phil Patton

I know all those words, but that sentence makes no sense to me.

Matt Groening

To rise from error to truth is rare and beautiful.

Victor Hugo

All good things which exist are the fruits of originality.

John Stuart Mill

Trust not to much to appearances.

Virgil