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Sunday, October 19, 2008

Robert A. Heinlein Quotes.

You know, Stranger in a Strange Land is the only full novel of his I've ever read [and it kicked ass, I thought] though a buddy swears by his "juveniles" [hi Spence!]...

Philosophy wise, he ran the gamut in his life. He was a complex dude. He attended the US Naval Academy and served in the Navy until he was discharged after the war for TB. He did some socialist and left wing organizing. But later in life he swung hard right and supported Republicans. But even at that time he wrote some fiction that argued for a lot of the left wing agenda. Some of his works were taken as pro-military, almost fascist, anti-communism stories. But Stranger in a Strange Land was embraced by 60s counterculture.

Regardless, he himself always seemed to be giving voice to ideas in the interest of self determination, liberation and philosophy.

Smart guy, quite a way with words.

Dedroidify: Robert A. Heinlein Quotes:
"No intelligent man has any respect for an unjust law.

Secrecy is the beginning of tyranny.

The whole principle is wrong. It's like demanding that grown men live on skim milk because the baby can't have steak. (On censorship)

Men rarely (if ever) manage to dream up a god superior to themselves. Most gods have the manners and morals of a spoiled child.

Democracy is based on the assumption that a million men are wiser than one man. How's that again? I missed something.
Autocracy is based on the assumption that one man is wiser than a million men. Let's play that over again, too. Who decides?

A competent and self-confident person is incapable of jealousy in anything. Jealousy is invariably a symptom of neurotic insecurity.

One man's theology is another man's belly laugh.

Taxes are not levied for the benefit of the taxed.

Progress is made by lazy men looking for easier ways to do things.

Sin lies only in hurting others unnecessarily. All other "sins" are invented nonsense.

There is no worse tyranny than to force a man to pay for what he does not want merely because you think it would be good for him.

Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.

Never appeal to a man's "better nature." He may not have one. Invoking his self-interest gives you more leverage.

I also think there are prices too high to pay to save the United States. Conscription (Mandatory Military Service) is one of them. Conscription is slavery, and I don't think that any people or nation has a right to save itself at the price of slavery for anyone, no matter what name it is called. We have had the draft for twenty years now; I think this is shameful. If a country can't save itself through the volunteer service of its own free people, then I say: Let the damned thing go down the drain!"

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