Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.

Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.

Passion holds up the botton of the world, while genius paints its roof.

Passion holds up the botton of the world, while genius paints its roof.

Brain-washing starts in the cradle.

Brain-washing starts in the cradle.

When watching men of power in action it must be always kept in mind that, whether they know it or read more

When watching men of power in action it must be always kept in mind that, whether they know it or not, their main purpose is the elimination or neutralization of the independent individual- the independent voter, consumer, worker, owner, thinker- and that every device they employ aims at turning men into a manipulable "animated instrument" which is Aristotle's definition of a slave.

We should listen first and foremost to our own experience...We should stop looking for saviors... Society has not existed for read more

We should listen first and foremost to our own experience...We should stop looking for saviors... Society has not existed for thousands of years because it had a succession of saviors. It's existed because it has institutions and processes through which people can realize their own goals.

Fanaticism obliterates the feelings of humanity.

Fanaticism obliterates the feelings of humanity.

The burning conviction that we have a holy duty towards others is often a way of attaching our drowning selves read more

The burning conviction that we have a holy duty towards others is often a way of attaching our drowning selves to a passing raft. What looks like a giving hand is often a holding on for dear life. Take away our holy duties and you leave our lives puny and meaningless. There is no doubt that in exchanging a self-centered for a selfless life we gain enormously in self-esteem. The vanity of the selfless, even those who practice utmost humility, is boundless.

There is apparently some connection between dissatisfaction with oneself and proneness to credulity. The urge to escape our real self read more

There is apparently some connection between dissatisfaction with oneself and proneness to credulity. The urge to escape our real self is also an urge to escape the rational and the obvious. The refusal to see ourselves as we are develops a distaste for facts and cold logic. There is no hope for the frustrated in the actual and the possible. Salvation can come to them only from the miraculous, which seeps through a crack in the iron wall of inexorable reality. They asked to be deceived.

In every passionate pursuit, the pursuit counts more than the object pursued.

In every passionate pursuit, the pursuit counts more than the object pursued.