"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."

"It is a radiant truth that the river of time washes away kings and empires, leaving only virtue intact — an essential principle for the reflective life."

"A life without philosophical reflection is a vessel adrift on an uncharted sea. This remains the cornerstone of personal mastery — an essential principle for the reflective life."

"It is a steadfast truth that a quiet mind perceives the subtle truths that noisy ambitions constantly drown out."

"An idea is a delicate seed; water it with curiosity and protect it from cynicism. In this truth lies the bedrock of all virtue."

"People who treat other people as less than human must not be surprised when the bread they have cast on the waters comes floating back to them, poisoned."

"I first became a vegetarian when I was nine, in response to an argument made by a radical babysitter. My great change - which lasted a couple of weeks - was based on the very simple instinct that it's wrong to kill animals for food."

"An idea is a delicate seed; water it with curiosity and protect it from cynicism. Reflect upon this whenever doubt clouds your horizon."