The fact is that censorship always defeats its own purpose, for it creates, in the end, the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion.

Education is essential to change, for education creates both new wants and the ability to satisfy them.

A free society cherishes nonconformity. It knows from the non-conformist, from the eccentric, have come many of the great ideas.

Men in authority will always think that criticism of their policies is dangerous. They will always equate their policies with patriotism, and find criticism subversive.

The Bill of Rights was not written to protect governments from trouble. It was written precisely to give the people the constitutional means to cause trouble for governments they no longer trusted.

Censorship always defeats it own purpose, for it creates in the end the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion.

History is organized memory, and the organization is all important!

Change does not necessarily assure progress, but progress implacably requires change.

If our democracy is to flourish, it must have criticism; if our government is to function it must have dissent.

The Americans who framed our Constitution felt that without freedom of religion no other freedom counted.

History is a jangle of accidents, blunders, surprises and absurdities, and so is our knowledge of it, but if we are to report it at all we must impose some order upon it.

Think about it! God is all-knowing but you're not His only child. You're not His end all and be all. Ezra, you're good, but you ain't all that, sweetie.

Europeans don't like to talk about intelligence, and they often pretend their countries don't spy.

The devil wipes his breech with poor folks' pride.

Religions change; beer and wine remain.

The good thing about people really is their iffy-ness and dodginess, isnt it?

If we have a heart to learn and a willingness to follow the example of children, their divine attributes can hold a key to unlocking our own spiritual growth.

Your son went into your kitchen and took a kitchen knife.

Our government... teaches the whole people by its example. If the government becomes the lawbreaker, it breeds contempt for law; it invites every man to become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy.

There is a kind of pleasure which comes from sacrilege or the profanation of the objects offered us for worship.