I used to work very long hours. Then I started to realize that the stuff that I was writing in the late afternoons, I was generally throwing out. So I quit earlier than I used to.
Robert CaroRead
Long Island is shaped the way it is largely because of Robert Moses. Long Island is a perfect example of how political power shapes people's lives every day.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the significant impact of political figures on the development of places and the lives of individuals.
Robert Caro highlights the influential role that Robert Moses had in shaping Long Island, underlining how political power can create profound changes in urban landscapes and, consequently, in the daily experiences of the people living there. The quote serves as a reminder of the interactions between power and community and how the decisions made by individuals in authority can define the structure of society.
In practice
During a town hall meeting, this quote could be used to discuss local leadership and development projects.
I used to work very long hours. Then I started to realize that the stuff that I was writing in the late afternoons, I was generally throwing out. So I quit earlier than I used to.
What would be the good of rushing? You want these books to last.
I sometimes feel that if your book sells more than 20 years, then there's something in it that you can say, gee, I did something that endures, that's timeless
If you really want to show power in its larger aspects, you need to show the effects on the powerless, for good or ill - the human cost of public works. That's what I try to do, show not only how power works but its effect on people.
It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So for me, I would always have an excuse, you know, to go - quit early, go to a museum, you know. So I do everything I can to make myself remember this is a job. I keep a schedule.
I am trying to make clear through my writing something which I believe: that biography- history in general- can be literature in the deepest and highest sense of that term.
Congressional Republicans are dismantling the limited environmental protections initiated by Richard Nixon, who would be something of a dangerous radical in today's political scene.
Vote for the man who promises least; he'll be the least disappointing.
If you do politics the right way, I believe, you can actually make people's lives better. And integrity is the minimum ante to get into the game.
The corporate lobby in Washington is basically designed to stifle all legislative activity on behalf of consumers.
One vote. That's a big weapon you have there, Mister. In 1948, just one additional vote in each precinct would have elected Dewey. In 1960, one vote in each precinct in Illinois would have elected Nixon. One vote.
Fascism is a worldwide disease. Its greatest threat to the United States will come after the war, either via Latin America or within the United States itself.
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