You suffer from the oldest delusion in politics. You think you can change the world by talking to a leader. Leaders are the effects, not the causes of changes.

Work as if you live in the early days of a better nation.

...there were certain chapters when I stopped writing, saw the domestic situation I was in and thought, "I don't want to face this world, let's get back to the hellish one I'm imagining.

I don't think anybody should read anything except for fun because you won't learn anything unless you enjoy it.

Imaginatively Glasgow exists as a music hall song and a few bad novels.

Besides, a life without freedom to choose is not worth having.

I ought to have more love before I die. I've not had enough.

I distrust speech therapy. Words are the language of lies and evasions. Music cannot lie. Music talks to the heart.

But I do enjoy words—some words for their own sake! Words like river, and dawn, and daylight, and time. These words seem much richer than our experiences of the things they represent—

She also said the wicked people needed love as much as good people and were much better at it.

Glasgow is still full of churches built in the last century. Half of them have been turned into warehouses.

It's true that we don't handle things or we don't know about the future but to prepare our life in the most unexpected way won't hurt us.

Proper posture conveys that you are ready to take command and master new situations. When you project this level of confidence, you will instill confidence in others.

I had spent my time counterfeiting eternity.

Helping another person gives one the deepest pleasure in the world.

A great pleasure in life is to do what they say you can't.

Burning hearts are not nourished by empty heads

"We liked it" or "I didn't like it" people say. As if it were nothing higher than to please the people!

We know that this mad dog of the Middle East has a goal of a world revolution. (On Muammar Qaddafi of Libya)

I abhor Saddam's regime, but the basis has to be disarmament.

It's impossible to consistently behave in a manner inconsistent with how we see ourselves. We can do very few things in a positive way if we feel negative about ourselves.