We need a Napoleon. An Alexander. Except that Napoleon lost in the end, and Alexander flamed out and died young. We need a Julius Caesar, except that he made himself a dictator, and died for it.

Among my most prized possessions are words that I have never spoken.

In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him.

I've lived too long with pain. I won't know who I am without it

Ender Wiggin must believe that no matter what happens, no adult will ever, ever step in to help him in any way.

I need you to be clever, Bean. I need you to think of solutions to problems we haven't seen yet. I want you to try things that no one has ever tried because they're absolutely stupid.

Unemployment is capitalism's way of getting you to plant a garden.

We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.

Metaphors have a way of holding the most truth in the least space.

There's only one thing that will make them stop hating you. And that's being so good at what you do that they can't ignore you

There is more good writing and good acting in any ten minutes of Twister than in, say, all of Citizen Kane.

The worldly life runs easily due to the egoism which is the by-production of the worldly life. By increasing the egoism there, one has incurred endless worries.

You are not your thoughts

I want revenge, but I don't want to screw up my karma.

My favorite band is probably The Cure. We can throw Talking Heads in there too, I listen to them a lot. But The Cure.

The budget should be balanced not by more taxes, but by reduction of follies.

Unless an entire row of people got up in the middle of a performance and left the theater in disgust, I felt as though I hadn't done my job.

Don't wish it were easier, wish you were better.

That's the definition of a mini-series. A mini-series is a show that has no continuing story or narrative elements between one group of episodes and another, so no, I wasn't surprised.

To marry was to say you believed in the future and in the past, too-that history and tradition and hope could stay knit together to hold you up.

I somehow instinctively knew it would be much better to win.