America is not just a democracy, it represents a certain culture of competitive mobility and personality aspirations, politics is not merely a clash of interests, but a clash of dreams.
David Brooks
When Democrats open their mouths, they try to say something interesting. If the true thing is obvious and boring, the liberal person will go off and say something original, even if it is completely idiotic. This is how deconstructionism got started.
David Brooks
Friends are a group of people who share a mutual inability to take each other seriously.
David Brooks
The message of the summoned life is that you dont need to panic if you dont yet know what you want to do with your life. But you probably want to throw yourselves into circumstances where the summons will come.
David Brooks
The nations economy is not just the sum of its individuals. It is an interwoven context that we all share. To stabilize that communal landscape, sometimes you have to shower money upon those who have been foolish or self-indulgent. The greedy idiots may be greedy idiots, but they are our countrymen. And at some level, were all in this together. If their lives dont stabilize, then our lives dont stabilize.
David Brooks
Our moral and economic system is based on individual responsibility. Its based on the idea that people have to live with the consequences of their decisions. This makes them more careful deciders. This means that society tends toward justice people get what they deserve as much as possible.
David Brooks
Britain is blessed with a functioning political culture. It is dominated by people who live in London and who have often known each other since prep school. This makes it gossipy and often incestuous.
David Brooks