Affection reproaches, but does not denounce.

Pain narrows consciousness; pleasure blurs it.

When Medusa looks in the mirror, she sees the Lady of Sorrows.

My passions have never jumped out of the fireplace and set fire to the carpet.

Retirement requires the invention of a new hedonism, not a return to the hedonism of youth

The sewing machine joins what the scissors have cut asunder, plus whatever else comes in its path.

Clothes make a statement. Costumes tell a story.

The laughter of the aphorism is sometimes triumphant, but seldom carefree.

'Be faithful to your roots' is the liberal version of 'Stay in your ghetto.'

Every day begins with an act of courage and hope: getting out of bed.

Totem poles and wooden masks no longer suggest tribal villages but fashionable drawing rooms in New York and Paris.

I'd like to thank readers. Every time you open a book, it is a strike against ignorance. Unless you're reading Sarah Palin.

How much faith you put in a prayer is more important than how much you pray without faith.

A man's wounded pride is a violate force.

In absolute terms, we may have to look at restricting the number of flights people take.

[Liberty] is freedom of choice, a divine gift, an essential virtue in a peaceful society.

There are limits to power, as those who put their hopes in a constitution always discover.

Sexuality is the primary focus of our culture, and almost no one has come to resolve it.

The FBI background check would show that Rudolph Giuliani had an out-of-control affair with his Press Secretary while he was mayor of New York.

There's no such thing as 'I can't do it'.

The patient in the bed next to me told me that the newspapers were reporting on the test, and it was on television all day long.