David L. Gibson

“I didn’t expect to get into a deep discussion about cultural differences right now, but I am glad that Joshua sees my point. I still feel that the issue isn’t fully resolved, that Joshua is being a little too defensive. I don’t think Josephine is purposefully trying to impose a big English wedding in Dorset on us, like some reverse Sharia law. Nor do I think she is racist for not considering my culture. White people, in my experience, tend to be a little hostile and uncomfortable when confronted about their blind spots when it comes to race or culture. It’s almost like the accusation of racial or cultural bias is more offensive than the behaviour itself.”
― Tufayel Ahmed, This Way Out

“Narcissistic love has nothing to do with accountability.” In other words, when we cultivate tenderness and compassion for the whole of our experiences—the difficult and hurtful parts, in addition to the triumphs—we naturally behave more kindly and responsibly toward others.”
― Sharon Salzberg, Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection

“Senator William J. Fulbright’s book, The Arrogance of Power. He writes: The question that I find intriguing . . . is whether a nation so extraordinarily endowed as the United States can overcome that arrogance of power, which has afflicted, weakened, and in some cases destroyed great nations in the past . . . Power tends to confuse itself with virtue, and a great nation is peculiarly susceptible to the idea that its power is a sign of God’s favor, conferring upon it a special responsibility for other nations—to make them richer and happier and wiser, to remake them, that is, in its own shining image.”
― Laurence Luckinbill, Affective Memories: How Chance and the Theater Saved My Life