America didn’t bypass or escape civilization. It did something far more profound, far cleverer: it simply changed what civilization could be.

If one is searching for the cause of brutality in mankind, it would do well to remember that civilization is a great and vast machine.

He who writes well runs the civilization. Everyone else does the grunt work.

I have something to fight for and live for; that makes me a better killer. I’ve got what amounts to a religion now. It’s learning how to breathe all over again. And how to lie...