Impartial observers from other planets would consider ours an utterly bizarre enclave if it were populated by birds, defined as flying animals, that nevertheless rarely or never actually flew. They would also be perplexed if they encountered in our seas, lakes, rivers, and ponds, creatures defined as swimmers that never did any swimming. But they would be even more surprised to encounter a species defined as a thinking animal if, in fact, the creature very rarely indulged in actual thinking.

If you pray for rain long enough, it eventually does fall. If you pray for floodwaters to abate, they eventually do. The same happens in the absence of prayers.

In a rational society we would want our presidents to be teachers. In our actual society we insist they be cheerleaders.

If. . . we assume that there is no God, it follows that morality is even more important than if there is a Deity. If God exists, his unlimited power can certai…

Though man a thinking being is defined, Few use the grand prerogative of mind. How few think justly of the thinking few! How many never think, who think they d…

C'est une plaisante chose que la pensee depende absolument de l'estomac, et malgre cela les meilleurs estomacs ne soient pas les meilleurs penseurs.

We cannot observe external things without some degree of Thought; nor can we reflect upon our Thoughts, without being influenced in the course of our reflectio…