25 quotes
The sooner we can separate salvageable skeptics from self-righteous absolutists, the sooner we can move along.
The Visitor (2002)
I am myself, though from moment to moment something else seems to be looking on. Whatever will be required of me, however, can best be done if I remember who I am.
The Visitor (2002)
To the Chasmites, truth is determined by how well it fits their expectations, and doesn't that sound familiar?
The Visitor (2002)
Once the Regime said that one living cell is a life, real living became irrelevant.
The Visitor (2002)
Since they were not in the Dicta, knowledge of them would be considered evidence of heresy, or of imagination, which was almost as bad.
The Visitor (2002)
Sacrifice for sacrifice’s sake does no one any good!
The Visitor (2002)
Many men of importance were gathered there to be seen talking with other men of importance, resulting in an abundance of conspicuous but immaterial discourse.
The Visitor (2002)
You asked for wisdom? Hear these words. Nothing limits intelligence more than ignorance; nothing fosters ignorance more than one's own opinions; nothing strengthens opinions more than refusing to look at reality.
The Visitor (2002)
The Regime says a lot of things, nine-tenths of it lies and the other tenth wishful thinking.
The Visitor (2002)
Personal beliefs are unarguable, even if the other side has all the facts.
The Visitor (2002)
Meanwhile they discussed What It All Meant, some considering the sign a threat and others a blessing, each according to his nature.
The Visitor (2002)
If a society thinks it needs weapons, it must accept killing. If it thinks it needs violent men, it must accept rapine and assault.
The Visitor (2002)
Picture this:
A mountain splintering the sky like a broken bone, its western precipice plummeting onto jumbled scree.
The Visitor (2002)
We are to be needed, but I'm not sure for what.
The Visitor (2002)
The sergeant was braver than most, and stupider—the two qualities often going hand in hand.
The Visitor (2002)
He calls it the university of the Real One, and it teaches only things that are known to be true, which means it is largely devoted to mathematics and sciences.
The Visitor (2002)
I suspect there’s little difference between whim and inspiration at the beginning of any chain of events. It’s what happens later that tells us which is which.
The Visitor (2002)
“Magic!” cried the demon. “Miracle! What difference between the two?”
“There is no difference at all,” said Galenor. “Except that people allow themselves to believe an event if it’s called a miracle while disdaining the same event if it’s called magic. Or vice versa.
The Visitor (2002)
Being an immortal doesn’t matter to me. If one looks out into the universe and perceives what true immortality would mean in terms of time and space, it takes monstrous hubris to even conceive of personal immortality, much less desire it.
The Visitor (2002)
“They were always telling me their way is the only way to go!”
“Oh, no, my dear. No, not at all. So long as it harms no one else, one’s own way is always preferable.”
The Visitor (2002)