"The right to hold slaves was a property right; since Congress could not interfere with a man's property rights, it could not prohibit slavery in the territories."

"he framers had derived the conviction that human rights could best be preserved by inaction and indirection—shielded behind... deliberately fragmented centers of countervailing power, in a vision almo…"

"There have been times throughout American history where what is right is not the same as what is legal. Sometimes to do the right thing you have to break the law."

"Evangelical Christianity conspires with technical and economic rationalism. In the end, they both require a commitment to “duty” that masks unspeakable violence and injustice."

"he magician emerges from bed and we recount our tale. Her response lacks gratitude: stammering furiously, she chides us for the damage to her lawns and flowerbed. The boy is smacked; I am Spasmed; we …"