“How is the world ruled and led to war? Diplomats lie to journalists and believe these lies when they see them in print.”
“How is the world ruled and how do wars start? Diplomats tell lies to journalists and then believe what they read.”
“The rules are simple: they lie to us, we know they're lying, they know we know they're lying, but they keep lying to us, and we keep pretending to believe them.”
“Believe nothing others tell you. That is Rule No 1 of life in Astro City.But what if the ones who set the rules are the ones lying to you?What if the ones who reprimand the rule-breakers are lying to you?Who do you believe when there is nobody left to believe?”
“Be polite; write diplomatically; even in a declaration of war one observes the rules of politeness.”
“I tried to be diplomatic, but mostly I just lied a lot.”