There is no institution, save the state itself, that guards free expression, and all such self-appointed guardians inevitably become enforcers of orthodoxy.
Feb 052021
Ruling
In ’37 Stalin made a hash
Of party loyalists and army brass.
Decimation: One in ten are shot.
What’s the word when one in ten are not?
Jan 282021
Fascism has often been popular. Communism has never been popular.
Jan 262021
The more plausible the heresy, the more rigorously it must be suppressed.
Jan 212021
To fend for oneself in a high civilization demands a certain cognitive minimum; when too many lack it the civilization lowers itself to meet them, and the process is hastened by letting them vote.
Jan 112021
I can tolerate punishment for thought crime, but I draw the line at rehabilitation.
Jan 072021
It doesn’t matter much which books you burn.
Jan 062021
Sympathizers and apologists are first to be sent to the camps. Intransigent opponents are left at large for a while, as a sign of the liberality of the regime and a reminder that stricter measures will be required.
Jan 042021
When the numbers don’t come out as you would like, the first resort is to change the way you count; the second is to stop counting.
Dec 302020
The distinguished Soviet geneticist Vavilov was unpersoned for refusing to reject heredity in favor of the neo-Lamarckism championed by Lysenko and Stalin, and I feel fortunate to live in a country where nothing like that could ever happen.
Dec 212020
Petty laws embolden volunteer policemen.