Suppose the Iranian government arrested and beat Katie Couric, held her virtually incommunicado for six years and promised to release her only if she would spy for Iran. In such circumstances, Iranian investments in public diplomacy toward the United States wouldn?t get very far, either. Kristof - NYTimes

i think that people have become interested in voting in this election because they have seen how badly things can go wrong while they're not paying attention. in the first two elections where i was allowed to vote, we ended up with bush. it will be strange, after eight years of shaking my fist at the government, or sullenly ignoring it, or having to explain myself when i am traveling abroad, to be interested in what it might do next for the public benefit.

in the first few years of this decade i thought it fashionable for myself to criticize the government for its past and present acts of murder, fraud and cruelty. then this task became too easy, and everyone started doing it. now, when people criticize the government the usual response is something like "what you are saying is self-evident, so you needn't waste your breath convincing anyone."