I think it's impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves.

In a way she actually preferred Peter to other people because of this. He always acted out of intelligent self-interest.

Because these fools always look up for power. People above you, they never want to share power with you. Why you look to them? They give you nothing. People below you, you give them hope, you give them respect, they give you power, cause they don't think they have any, so they don't mind giving it up.

He thinks I'm like him, Mazer realized. That's what we do as humans; it's how we read minds. We assume that other people think like we do. So if we're nasty and suspicious and conniving we assume that everyone is as nasty and suspicious and conniving as we are.

Sometimes good people have to do terrible things.

Once you have the gallows, you'll find new reasons to hang people from it.

Good people aren't good because they never cause harm to others. They're good because they treat others the best way they know how, with the understanding that they have.

Human beings may be miserable specimens, in the main, but we can learn, and, through learning, become decent people.

All the common people want is to be left alone. All the ordinary soldier wants is to collect his pay and not get killed. That's why the great forces of history can be manipulated by astonishingly small groups of determined people.