Some words of wisdom from my personal hero. This is more or less an insight into the way I attempt to view the world, so those of you that are perhaps confused with where exactly my thought process comes from, here you go.
"The choice is with us still, but the civilization now in jeopardy is all humanity. As the ancient myth makers knew, we are children equally of the earth and the sky. In our tenure of this planet we've accumulated dangerous evolutionary baggage — propensities for aggression and ritual, submission to leaders, hostility to outsiders — all of which puts our survival in some doubt. But we've also acquired compassion for others, love for our children and desire to learn from history and experience, and a great soaring passionate intelligence — the clear tools for our continued survival and prosperity. Which aspects of our nature will prevail is uncertain, particularly when our visions and prospects are bound to one small part of the small planet Earth. But up there in the immensity of the Cosmos, an inescapable perspective awaits us. National boundaries are not evident when we view the Earth from space. Fanatical ethnic or religious or national chauvinisms are a little difficult to maintain when we see our planet as a fragile blue crescent fading to become an inconspicuous point of light against the bastion and citadel of the stars. Travel is broadening."
"I believe our future depends powerfully on how well we understand this Cosmos in which we float like a mote of dust in the morning sky."
"If we are to survive, our loyalties must be broadened further, to include the whole human community, the entire planet Earth. Many of those who run the nations will find this idea unpleasant. They will fear the loss of power. We will hear much about treason and disloyalty. Rich nation-states will have to share their wealth with poor ones. But the choice, as H. G. Wells once said in a different context, is clearly the universe or nothing."
"Matter flows from place to place, and momentarily comes together to be you. Some people find that thought disturbing. I find the reality thrilling."
"The beauty of a living thing is not the atoms that go into it, but the way those atoms are put together. The cosmos is also within us. We're made of star stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself."
Just some thoughts to keep in mind next time you head to the ballot box, or even to a McConnell seminar. The issues that our politicians deal with today are largely petty, short-sighted and ignorant of the big picture. Try to keep a sense of scale in mind when considering issues. It can be a very humbling thing, and humility is what the leaders and citizens of this world need most.
"The sky calls to us. If we do not destroy ourselves, we will, one day, venture to the stars."