Quotes by Daniel Quinn

Because revolution in our culture has always represented an attack on hierarchy, it has always meant upheaval--literally a heaving up from below. But upheaval has no role to play in moving beyond civilization. If the plane is in trouble, you don't shoot the pilot*, you grab a parachute and jump. To overthrow the hierarchy is pointless; we just want to leave it behind.

*or yell and wave signs and write songs about what a bad job the pilot is doing (i said that)

We need schools to force kids to learn things they have no use for.

Karl Marx recognized that workers without a choice are workers in chains. But his idea of breaking chains was for us to depose the pharaohs and then build the pyramids for ourselves, as if building pyramids is something we just can't stop doing, we love it so much.

No story is devoid of meaning ... If you know how to look for it.

If the world is saved, it will not be by old minds with new programs but by new minds with no programs at all.

"Once you learn to discern the voice of Mother Culture humming in the background, telling her story over and over again to the people of your culture, you'll never stop being conscious of it. Wherever you go for the rest of your life, you'll be tempted to say to the people around you, 'How can you listen to this stuff and not recognize it for what it is?'"

"You know how to split atoms, how to send explorers to the moon, how to splice genes, but you don't know how people ought to live."

we can still walk away from the pyramid.

With Gorilla gone, will there be hope for Man? With Man gone, will there be hope for Gorilla?

This system would work perfectly if people were a little better than people are. (paraphrase)