#pre

For all their current prestige, Osama bin Laden and the suicide bombers are still regarded in all but the most desperate districts of Gaza or Peshawar as romantics with little chance of more than symbolic victories, however bloody and brutal. That gives both the Middle East and the West a small and distant hope of security. ↗

— James Buchan

#bloody #bombers #both #brutal #chance

The rise to prominence of the Saudi novel in Arabic is the great man-bites-dog of recent world literature. Saudi Arabia is a country without a free press, where European styles and forms are distrusted and where the female half of the population became literate only in this generation. ↗

— James Buchan

#arabic #became #country #distrusted #european

The world dominion of western thought, forms of organisation, technology and military force is not God-given, nor eternal, nor greatly appreciated by the rest of the world. ↗

— James Buchan

#dominion #eternal #force #forms #god-given

What holds an Arab leader in power is a mixture of violence and prestige. Both President Assad and King Hussein were felt to have defended Arab interests against the world. That, in the end, is more important than what they wear on their head. ↗

— James Buchan

#arab #both #defended #end #felt

The Sunday School teacher talked too much in the way our grade school teacher used to when she told us about George Washington. Pleasant, pretty stories, but not true. ↗

— Frances Farmer

#george #george washington #grade #grade school #much

Chinese are wise in comprehending without many words what is inevitable and inescapable and therefore only to be borne. ↗

— Pearl S. Buck

#chinese #comprehending #inescapable #inevitable #many

Almost all the fans I meet are pretty cool people. They're intelligent and tend to think about things a bit more than your average rock'n'roll fans: sensible people I wouldn't mind having a drink with. ↗

— Peter Buck

#almost #average #bit #cool #cool people

Feeling sorry for yourself, and your present condition, is not only a waste of energy but the worst habit you could possibly have. ↗

— Dale Carnegie

#could #energy #feeling #habit #only

This time, there were no drugs involved. The hours were completely normal daytime hours. I think we were able to appreciate the interplay, where before we had taken it for granted. ↗

— Lindsey Buckingham

#appreciate #before #completely #completely normal #daytime

The Court made an exception, however, in the case of candidates contributing to their own campaigns because of the rather reasonable presumption that a candidate is incapable of corrupting himself. ↗

— James L. Buckley

#campaigns #candidate #candidates #case #contributing