“It is founded on the worst instincts of mankind. At its best, it is intolerant and bigoted. At its worst, it is sadistic and brutal. Between these two poles it has its existence.”

“Oh, child, there's no explainin' the meanness in this world." Armetta shakes her head, wipes wetness off her cheek, then cradles my hands in her palms. "But there's goodness here, too. You can't never lose sight of that, hold on to it. It's the goodness that gets us through.”

“God and I aren't exactly on speaking terms these days.”

“We can't change the world overnight, Reesa. But we begin by changing the way we choose to live in it.”

“Because you believed in me, I figured I was honor-bound to believe in myself.”

“Nothing like an endangered pocketbook to help a businessman find his conscience.”

“Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one.”