There is nothing queerer today than the importance of unimportant things. Except, of course, the unimportance of important things.

The weakness in civilization is best expressed by saying that it cares more for science than for truth. It prides itself on its 'methods' more than its results; it is satisfied with precision, discipline, good communications, rather than with the sense of reality.

To say a nation which disregards frontiers and annexes neighbors is suffering from an excess of Nationalism is intrinsically nonsensical. We might as well say a man who runs away with his neighbor’s wife is suffering from an excess of reverence for the institution of marriage.

As a matter of fact, the Conservative has exactly the same error as the Progressive. It consists in the fact that each of them allows truth to be determined by time. That is, he judges a thing by whether it is of yesterday or today or tomorrow, and not by what it is in eternity.

Abolish religion if you like. Throw everything on secular government if you like. But do not be surprised if a machinery that was never meant to do anything but secure external decency and order fails to secure internal honesty and peace.