Edward Abbey
Edward Abbey
Edward Paul Abbeywas an American author and essayist noted for his advocacy of environmental issues, criticism of public land policies, and anarchist political views. His best-known works include the novel The Monkey Wrench Gang, which has been cited as an inspiration by radical environmental groups, and the non-fiction work Desert Solitaire...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionActivist
Date of Birth29 January 1927
CountryUnited States of America
mean men ideal-society
The ideal society can be described, quite simply, as that in which no man has the power of means to coerce others.
cities clouds june
What ideal, immutable Platonic cloud could equal the beauty and perfection of any ordinary everyday cloud floating over, say, Tuba City, Arizona, on a hot day in June?
wise men sight
No man is wise enough to be another man's master. Each man's as good as the next -- if not a damn sight better.
government liberty roles
Government should be weak, amateurish and ridiculous. At present, it fulfills only a third of the role.
knowing culture modern
In the modern technoindustrial culture, it is possible to proceed from infancy into senility without ever knowing manhood.
fool mankind foolishness
Only a fool is astonished by the foolishness of mankind.
wish
Beware of your wishes: They will probably come true.
gun people natural
Guns don't kill people; people kill people. Of course, people with guns kill more people. But that's only natural. It's hard. But it's fair.
world tribes
In the world of words, one of my best-loved tribes is the diatribe.
sea fishing rivers
Why is it that the destruction of something created by humans is called vandalism, yet the destruction of something created by God is called development?
sheep taxation taxes
Taxation: how the sheep are shorn.
writing mean volcanoes
When I write "paradise" I mean not only apple trees and golden women but also scorpions and tarantulas and flies, rattlesnakes and Gila monsters, sandstorms, volcanoes and earthquakes, bacteria and bear, cactus, yucca, bladderweed, ocotillo and mesquite, flash floods and quicksand, and yes - disease and death and the rotting of flesh.
beautiful character way
Each thing in its way, when true to its own character, is equally beautiful. (p 41)
home rocks fog
How strange and wonderful is our home, our earth, with its swirling vaporous atmosphere, its flowing and frozen liquids, its trembling plants, its creeping, crawling, climbing creatures, the croaking things with wings that hang on rocks and soar through the fog, the furry grass, the scaly seas.