I don't myself need that role for God. My view is that creation itself, the universe itself, is the most wonderful thing deserving awe and respect. And that satisfies me as my substitute for God.

The secret of happiness is: Find something more important than you are and dedicate your life to it.

The idea that God is a worthy recipient of our gratitude for the blessings of life but should not be held accountable for the disasters is a transparently disingenuous innovation of the theologians.

Life itself is just a thin coat of paint on the planet, and we hold the paintbrush.

There’s simply no polite way to tell people they’ve dedicated their lives to an illusion.

The chief trick to making good mistakes is not to hide them-especially not from yourself.

What you can imagine depends on what you know.

There are no forces on this planet more dangerous to all of us than the fanaticisms of fundamentalism.

There may be things that are completely unknowable to us, so we must be careful not to treat the limits of our knowledge as sure guides to the limit of what there is.

A child raised on a desert island, alone, without social interaction, without language, and thus lacking empathy, is still a sentient being.

There is no polite way to suggest to someone that they have devoted their life to a folly.

When you are up against a wall, put down roots like a tree, until clarity comes from deeper sources to see over that wall and grow.

Having money is rather like being a blond. It is more fun but not vital.

I was hanging out and drinking as long as I could afford it, or as long as somebody else could afford it.

There's a lot of political things happening out there that I'd really have to get away from.

I became good at defending myself, but as far as I was concerned, that was a transient skill.

Once you make up your mind never to stand waiting and hesitating when your conscience tells you what you ought to do, and you have got the key to every blessing that a sinner can reasonably hope for.

If you stand for great service, low prices, superb quality, stylish design and environmental friendliness, you actually stand for nothing.

I hate my smile. I always have, even in my school pictures when I was a little kid.

I report the truth of what is happening here in Baghdad and will not apologize for it.

It is the inner peace that can bring peace in our family, in society and ultimately, in the world.