Poetry allows me to write about what I don't know, whereas journalism demands a higher level of certainty to be worthy of being written.

We know what war means, and we know what poverty means. We need to develop a better model for reaching out to the world than we have.

The truth is, terrorism flourishes in places of injustice rather than in places of poverty.

You can't be wrong in journalism. Take a wrong turn in journalism, and you are writing fiction. You can take a wrong turn in poetry, and something wonderful can happen.

I think most good poetry is about suffering; I think that's what underlies the love in these landays pieces - suffering and longing.

I worked with two young women translators. One died and the other received a death threat from the Taliban.

The power of the voice in rap is about the expression of truth, rather than the expression of some kind of artifice.

In most of the world, poetry has such a different reputation than it does in Western culture.

Poetry is a popular genre in Afghanistan. If you turned on the radio, there would be a poetry program that would be as popular as The Real Housewives.

Poetry isn't as relevant in the Western world as it is in Afghanistan. And not many people make time for something that doesn't feel relevant.

I can't imagine how Afghanistan's fall isn't going to be ten times faster than Iraq's.

Can't Live with you and I Cannot Live without you

When you are doing something neat, and you're doing it with neat people, and there is that convergence, something amazing will happen.

Photography is my only language.

We only really, deeply consider what our life is when we're faced with mortality on some level.

Positive secularism is not tolerance of all religions, but it is the total denial of religious beliefs: it is the emergence of homogeneous human outlook which is based upon verifiable facts of life.

We won when we toppled Saddam. That was the only clear goal of this war, to topple the Iraqi government. It took about 10 minutes.

Stern men with empires in their brains.

There are two things to aim at in life: first, to get what you want; and after that, to enjoy it. Only the wisest of mankind achieve the second.

My wife and children are the greatest force that keeps me sober and strong.

Be aware of your infinite connection to your source. Know that you're more than an encapsulated collection of bones, blood and organs in a skin and hair covered body.