I almost never listen to radio or watch political talk shows, especially if I happen to be on them. Bret Stephens More Quotes by Bret Stephens More Quotes From Bret Stephens Before the word 'resignation' became a euphemism for being fired, it connoted a sense of public integrity and personal honor. Bret Stephens personalbeinghonorintegrity Social movements rarely succeed if they violate our gut sense of decency and moral proportion. Bret Stephens sensedecencymoralsucceed 'Character Doesn't Count' has become a de facto G.O.P. motto. 'Virtue Doesn't Matter' might be another. But character does count, and virtue does matter, and Trump's shortcomings prove it daily. Bret Stephens dailymottomattercharacter I routinely interview college students, mostly from top schools, and I notice that their brains are like old maps, with lots of blank spaces for the uncharted terrain. It's not that they lack for motivation or IQ. It's that they can't connect the dots when they don't know where the dots are in the first place. Bret Stephens placeknowmotivationcollege Listen carefully to the global warming alarmists, and the main theme that emerges is that what the developed world needs is a large dose of penance. What's remarkable is the extent to which penance sells among a mostly secular audience. What is there to be penitent about? Bret Stephens listenglobal-warmingaudienceworld An abusive cop does not equal a bigoted police department. Bret Stephens doescopequalpolice If a public figure tells a whopping lie once in his life, it'll haunt him into his grave. If he lies morning, noon and night, it will become almost impossible to remember any one particular lie. Bret Stephens liemorningnightlife It may be a truism that the country cannot be strong abroad unless it is strong at home, but it's also a fact that the country's economic prosperity depends on its security abroad - not only in the core of the liberal democratic world but often well beyond it, too. Bret Stephens be-strongstronghomeworld The Arab world's problems are a problem of the Arab mind, and the name for that problem is anti-Semitism. Bret Stephens nameproblemsmindworld The hater always suffers more than the object of his hatred. Bret Stephens thanmorealwayshatred Donald Trump is a demagogue. Period. The fervor of his crowds recalls Nasser's Egypt. His convictions are illiberal. His manners are disgusting. His temper is frightening. Bret Stephens donald-trumptemperegyptmanners Nearly everyone I know seems to have a well-developed theory as to why this country is past redemption, or almost, and every theory seems almost right. Bret Stephens everyoneknowcountrypast The people we need to hear from most are the ones who make themselves heard least - except, of course, on Election Day. Bret Stephens needdayelectionpeople People want leaders. Not ideologues. Not people whose life experiences have been so narrow that they've been able to maintain the purity of their youthful ideals. Not people whose principal contact with political life comes in the form of speeches and sound bites rather than decisions and responsibilities. Bret Stephens principalpoliticallifepeople I wear two hats at the 'Wall Street Journal': one as a columnist, the other as the editor responsible for our editorial pages in Asia and Europe. Bret Stephens wearstreeteuropetwo My office-hour reading is fairly ad hoc: I generally read whatever seems relevant to what I'm editing, writing, or thinking about writing. Bret Stephens readingeditingwritingthinking I don't read 'Vanity Fair,' whose millionaire-fashionista-liberal shtick I find repellent. Bret Stephens whosefairfindvanity I am not sorry the CIA went to the edge of the law in the aftermath of 9/11 to prevent further mass-casualty attacks on the U.S. Bret Stephens edgei-amlawsorry I am sorry that Mr. Cheney, and every other supporter of enhanced interrogation techniques, has to defend the practices as if they were torture. They are not. Bret Stephens defendi-amtorturesorry We live in a world in which data convey authority. But authority has a way of descending to certitude, and certitude begets hubris. Bret Stephens livedatawayworld
