“No problem can be solved. When the situation becomes a problem, it becomes insoluble. Problems are by definition insoluble. No problems can be solved, and all solutions lead to more problems."

- William Burroughs in Barry Miles. [1990]. Ginsberg: A Biography. New York: HarperPerrenial.

“It is recorded that Venizelos, in reading in Fisher’s History of Europe that the Greek invasion of Asia Minor in 1919 was a mistake, smiled ironically and said: ‘Every enterprise that does not succeed is a mistake.’ If Wat Tyler’s rebellion succeeded, he would be an English hero. If the American War of Independence had ended in disaster, the founding fathers of the United States would be briefly regarded in history as a gang of turbulent and unscrupulous fanatics.”

- E.H. Carr, The 20 Years’ Crisis 1919-1939

“If they think you're crude, go technical; if they think you're technical, go crude. I'm a very technical boy. So I decided to get as crude as possible. These days, thought, you have to be pretty technical before you can even aspire to crudeness.”

- William Gibson, from ‘Johnny Mnemonic’ in Burning Chrome [1986]