As soon as questions of will or decision or reason or choice of action arise, human science is at a loss.

Students who acquire large debts putting themselves through school are unlikely to think about changing society. When you trap people in a system of debt, they can't afford the time to think.

The general population doesn't know what's happening, and it doesn't even know that it doesn't know.

That's the standard technique of privatization: defund, make sure things don't work, people get angry, you hand it over to private capital.

Jingoism, racism, fear, religious fundamentalism: these are the ways of appealing to people if you're trying to organize a mass base of support for policies that are really intended to crush them.

There's a good reason why nobody studies history, it just teaches you too much.

The world is a very puzzling place. If you're not willing to be puzzled, you just become a replica of someone else's mind.

Democratic societies can't force people. Therefore they have to control what they think.

Nobody should have any illusions. The United States has essentially a one-party system and the ruling party is the business party.

If you want to control a population... give them a God to worship.

A language is not just words. It's a culture, a tradition, a unification of a community, a whole history that creates what a community is. It's all embodied in a language.

Campaign may invite a certain skepticism about democracy, but it will surely restore your faith in cinema verite.

My interpretation of a strong director is someone who knows their story. That's what directors are, they're storytellers because they're directing where your focus is going to be as an audience.

It's nice to share something you're really proud of and worked hard on.

I can only give my life in a way that makes me comfortable.

Teachers affect eternity. There is no telling where their influence stops.

Keep us, Lord, so awake in the duties of our calling that we may sleep in thy peace and wake in thy glory.

I don't think it would be fun to write after inhaling art fumes. (What are art fumes?) No, I just make stuff up. It's easier that way.

Al Qaeda has been placed on the run, but not destroyed.

It turns out inconvenience was a really important part of our lives, and we didn't realize it.

I took the two most expensive aspirins in history.