In order for people to recover, we can't just say 'love is all we need.'

Incarceration is as useful for addiction as it is for diabetes - i.e., not useful and potentially harmful, particularly for kids.

A lot of the stuff that we say about drugs is just wrong.

The thing about our drug laws is that they're not based on science.

We have a system that was devised by racists to create racist ends.

I think our drug laws need to be made scientifically, as best as possible, recognizing that values will always be part of that.

We should not be putting kids in cages and hoping that is going to fix their psychological problems of any type.

In a criminal justice setting, it's very hard to create a therapeutic environment where people do feel safe, but the real important thing to do is to do your best to do that.

The notion of freedom proclaimed by the modern world is anti-discipline. But true freedom cannot be separated from discipline.

I don't put much stock in remembering things. Being able to forget is a superior skill.

Economics is half psychology and half Grade Three arithmetic, and the U.S. does not now have either half right.

I've always had great independence on everything I've done. Nobody's ever told me not to do anything.

There's something about New York. You can get a nice feeling of belonging as a writer here. It's probably the best city on Earth like that. I miss the wisecracking of New York.

I'm really drawn to European films.

I guess [coming out publicly] seems like a weight off my shoulders. I’ve been playing a lot better than I’ve ever played before. I think I’m just enjoying myself and I’m happy.

Cheryl Strayed is a courageous, gritty, and deceptively elegant writer.

I don't mind being the center of attention as a character but in real life it's not for me.

I always take blushing either for a sign of guilt, or of ill breeding.