QotD for 2 Jan., 2009

Sol Short once told me that mankind is divided into two basic sorts: those who find the unknown future threatening and those who find it thrilling. He says the rupture between those two sides has been responsible for most of the bloodshed in history. If change threatens you, you become conservative in self-defense. If change thrills you, you become liberal in self-liberation. He says the Threateneds are frequently more successful in the short run, because they always fight dirty. But in the long run, they always lose, because Thrilled people learn and thus accomplish more. ---Joel Johnston, lead character in Robert Heinlein & Spider Robinson's novel Variable Star