160 Quotes by David Halberstam

It was the responsibility of a senior fireman to teach as well as to do.

He was not what gentlemen usually thought a gentleman was.

It was like that afore you got here, it's like that now, and it's going to be like that when you and me are gone, departed and left, and so there is only one rule, swing with it and smile.

After Game Six of the Finals, as Paxson's shot went through the net, Michael Jordan raced to the basket to get the ball. He held it up high above his head, and his teammates thought he was going to say something about a prospective trip to Disneyland. Instead, he yelled out, "Thunder Dan Majerle-my fucking ass!

It was one of the great myths of that time that foreign policy was this pure and uncontaminated area which was never touched by domestic politics, and that domestic politics ended at the water’s edge. The truth, in sharp contrast, was that all those critical decisions were primarily driven by considerations of domestic politics, and by political fears of the consequences of looking weak in a forthcoming domestic election.

He knew that in film there was power, and he was the man working the film, and he knew he was good at it.

I think you always go out and do books based on what you're curious about.

I think what we tried to do is get a reflection of all the forces that are at play, of the best writing. In the end, we ended up with something that was a pretty good reflection of the changes in society as well.

I think they were watching the movie 'Patton' when they should have been watching 'The Battle of Algiers' about urban insurgency. I'm a Vietnam-era journalist. I think most journalists were appalled as we moved toward war in Iraq. The worst mistake this administration made was not about weapons of mass destruction. It was the administration's view that we'd be welcomed as the great liberator.