108 Quotes by Paul Graham

Attacking an outsider makes them all insiders.

Before you develop a conscience, torture is amusing.

The spirit of resistance to government,” Jefferson wrote, “is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it always to be kept alive.

A lot of the statements that got people in trouble seem harmless now.

Programmers tend to be divided into tribes by the languages they use. More even than by the kinds of programs they write.

If a writer rewrites an essay, people who read the new version are unlikely to complain that their thoughts have been broken by some newly introduced incompatibility.

Public school teachers are in much the same position as prison wardens.

This is why so many of the best programmers are libertarians. In our world, you sink or swim, and there are no excuses. When those far removed from the creation of wealth – undergraduates, reporters, politicians – hear that the richest 5% of the people have half the total wealth, they tend to think injustice! An experienced programmer would be more likely to think is that all? The top 5% of programmers probably write 99% of the good software.

Startups often have to do dubious things.