"As Paul Tillich put it, suffering introduces you to yourself and reminds you that you are not the person you thought you were."
- David Brooks
"He read vividly."
"Humanities are the instructors of enchantment."
"The shock of public hostility served as a stimulant. It made them acutely conscious of how society functioned."
"Those born in the poorest quarter of American society have an 8% chance of earning a college degree. Those born in the wealthiest quarter of American society have a 75% chance of earning a college deg..."
"In 1950, the [Gallup organization] asked high school kids, are you a very important person? Then 12 percent said yes. Asked again in 2005, 80 percent said, yes, I'm a very important person."
"When most people think about the future, they dream up ways that they might live happier lives. But notice this phenomenon. When people remember the crucial events that formed them, they don't usually..."
"Much of life is about failure, whether we acknowledge it or not, and your destiny is profoundly shaped by how effectively you learn from and adapt to failure."
"Human beings are primarily defined by what we desire, not what we know."
"There are heroes and schmucks in all worlds. The most important thing is whether you are willing to engage in moral struggle against yourself."