“With the more endowed nations constrained by their own higher technological capacity for self-destruction as well as by self interest, war may have become a luxury that only the poor peoples of this world can afford.”

“To trust people is a luxury in which only the wealthy can indulge; the poor cannot afford it.”

“Are you sure self-pity is a luxury you can afford, Jack?”

“The tragedy of the poor is that they can afford nothing but self denial.”

“Altruism is masked self-interest. Aggressive self-interest is a masked urge to self-destruction.”

“Man (and woman) has an infinite capacity for self-development. Equally, he has an infinite capacity for self-destruction. A human being may be clinically alive and yet, despite all appearances, spiritually dead.”

“Self-conceit may lead to self-destruction.”

“The ambiguity when the performance of self becomes self-destructive, or when performance of self becomes pathological. That gray area interests me as a poet because it’s so wrapped up in everyday life now that it’s almost mundane. So much of this performance is tied to feelings of worth and value; in essence, it becomes ongoing, an entire existence all on its own…”

“This century has seen world war for the first time. It has seen a world civilization threatened with self-destruction, not only through war but through the exploitation of all the kingdoms in nature...”

“Beware
At war
Or at peace,
More people die
Of unenlightened self-interest
Than of any other disease”