Three passions, simple but overwhelming, have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind. – Bertrand Russell, Autobiography, 1967
It has been said that figures rule the world; maybe. I am quite sure that it is figures which show us whether it is being ruled well or badly. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1830, translated
Rather perish than hate and fear, and twice rather perish than make oneself hated and feared — this must some day become the highest maxim for every single commonwealth. – Friedrich Nietzsche
Ive seen people with a tremendous amount of educational background in the field not turn out to be terribly good actors, and Ive seen people with no education in the field turn out to be people that I admire quite a bit. – Ron Silver
