Epicurus thought of justice as an agreement to prevent people harming and being harmed.

The Epicureans denied that the gods had created the world and also denied that they played any role in it.

The higher the coefficient of inequality (Gini coefficient) in a society, the worse things tend to be for those at the bottom.

I have to say that some philosophers such as the late Bernard Williams, and I would include myself in this group, would say that tranquillity is overrated as the goal of life.

We have to gamble, and sometimes lose as George Ainslie argues; this keeps the appetite for life sharp.

'Contract' succeeded 'status' as the basic organising principle in modern political vs. ancient society.

Atomism had no absolute 'above' and 'below' and no such rulers, so favoured the undersranding of justice as an agreement amongst equals.

Epicurus was not at all interested in what we would call the problems of mass society, and he thought civic politics was just trouble and to be avoided by the wise.

Claims like 'Slavery is wrong' are not fully common-sensical, so they must be at least partly theoretical.

The (atomic) soul is mortal, and the best life is the one with the least pain and the most pleasure.

I think we do have a better understanding now of how moral thought and discourse function.

Taking consistent action is guaranteed to increase the probability of your success.

The witch knew who had killed her and she snatched pieces of time, here and there, from the business of dying, to make her revenge.

If you want the world to be loving and peaceful, I'll give you my heart and soul. For the heart is a symbol of truth and caring

I don't like super-descriptive modern fiction. I like, "Here's what was happening in 1582 all over the planet." Then that gets my imagination going.

It's far too late for anything but magick, as the future is clearly up for grabs.

There are things that must evoke our anger to show we care. It is what we do with that anger. If we direct that energy we can use it positively or destructively.

The curse of the sun and the moon is fake. It doesn't exist.

I gave you sympathy. *I* want sympathy!" "Are you kidding me? You have the sexiest man on the planet wanting you. You're getting laid regularly. No sympathy for you!

As a lawyer, money was my driving force. As the years passed, I accumulated more but was less happy.