Authority, when first detecting chaos at its heels, will entertain the vilest schemes to save its orderly facade but always order without justice, without love or liberty, which cannot long postpone their world's descent to pandemonium.

Authority's collapse sends cracks through bedroom, boardroom, church and school alike. All misrule. Equality and Freedom are not luxuries to lightly cast aside. Without them, order cannot long endure before approaching depths beyond imagining.

Restlessness is a fickle catalyst; it can drive you to achieve or it can coax your demise, and sometimes the choice isn't yours

Inevitably you start to loose ideas and authority. You don’t want to provoke crises, but you need problems so you can create solutions.

And a young man with every reason to work — a wife-to-be to support and a baby on the way — carelessly tossing aside a good job with excellent health insurance. More troublingly, when it was all over, he thought something had been done to him. There is a lack of agency here — a feeling that you have little control over your life and a willingness to blame everyone but yourself. This is distinct from the larger economic landscape of modern America. It’s

Deep restlessness is far more important and powerful than simple ambition or raw intelligence. It is the foundation of resilience and self motivation.

What happened when people who’d once possessed absolute power suddenly lost it?

Lack of will power has caused more failure than lack of intelligence or ability.

We must not underestimate the devastating effect of getting lost in the chaos, even if we know that it is the 'sine qua non' of any regeneration of the spirit and the personality.

There is a lack of agency here — a feeling that you have little control over your life and a willingness to blame everyone but yourself.

Perplexity and inactivity have frequently led to catastrophies. The councils of the mass undermined the authority of the leaders.

A tolerance that no longer distinguishes between good and evil would become chaotic and self-destructive, just as a freedom that did not respect the freedom of others or find the common measure of our respective liberties would become anarchy and destroy authority.

Every day, without realizing it, we engage in all manner of activities that diminish our willpower. Willpower is depleted when we make decisions to focus our attention, suppress our feelings and impulses, or modify our behavior in pursuit of goals. It’s like taking an ice pick and gouging a hole in our gas line. Before long we have willpower leaking everywhere and none left to do our most important work. So like any other limited but vital resource, willpower must be managed.

One who loses wealth loses much. One who loses a friend loses more. But one who loses courage loses all.

The loss of trust is paralyzing.