“ Larkin Schoendienst had told Betsy that in DC there were two ways to murder policy without appearing to have committed a crime. One was cobwebbing, in which a person with an idea--usually a young and… Neal Stephenson
“ Jad said, The leakage was forcing choices, the making of which in no way improved matters.Okay. So we were, in effect, locked in a room with a madman sorcerer. That clarified things a little. Neal Stephenson
“ It’s, like, one of them drug dealer boats, Vic says, looking through his magic sight. Five guys on it. Headed our way. He fires another round. Correction. Four guys on it. Boom. Correction, they’re no… Neal Stephenson
“ It’s just like the reviews promised—other people’s ordinariness is more rewarding than your own. Their banality is soothing to your own sense of failure. Because being you is so much more interesting… Neal Stephenson
“ Ita: (1) In late Praxic Orth, an acronym (therefore, in ancient texts sometimes written ITA) whose precise etymology is a casualty of the loss of shoddily preserved information that will forever enshr… Neal Stephenson
“ It was, of course, nothing more than sexism, the especially virulent type espoused by male techies who sincerely believe that they are too smart to be sexists. Neal Stephenson
“ It gave them something to do and it took their mind off the way Yuxia was driving, which, had they paid attention to it, might have been the most frightening thing they had seen all day. Neal Stephenson
“ Is this part of your church thing? he asks. Juanita has been using herexcess money to start her own branch of the Catholic church -- she considersherself a missionary to the intelligent atheists of th… Neal Stephenson
“ Indeed the Encyclopedia Qwghlmiana features a lengthy article about the local system of runes. The author of this article has such a chip on his shoulder that the thing is almost physically painful to… Neal Stephenson
“ In war, no matter how much you plan and prepare and practice, when the big day actually arrives, you still can’t find your ass with both hands. Neal Stephenson
“ In the bottoms, reeds grew thick and green in rain-swollen waterways; low, shrubby willows populated a patchwork of sandy islands; and other water-hardy stuff grew in such profusion that only the most… Neal Stephenson
“ In olden times, you'd wander down to Mom's Cafe for a bite to eat and a cup of joe, and you would feel right at home. It worked just fine if you never left your home-own. But if you went to the next t… Neal Stephenson
“ In many parts of the world, you will find people of thesame ethnic group, living a few miles apart in similar valleys under similarconditions, speaking languages that have absolutely nothing in common… Neal Stephenson
“ If these avatars were real people in a real street, Hiro wouldn't be able toreach the entrance. It's way too crowded. But the computer system thatoperates the Street has better things to do than to mo… Neal Stephenson
“ If she screws up this delivery, that means she's double-crossing God, who may or may not exist, and in any case who is capable of forgiveness. The Mafia definitely exists and hews to a higher standard… Neal Stephenson
“ If a zombie attack had actually materialized, then they might have had a clue as to how to respond. But a stupendous machine-gun free-for-all in the apartment above them was not an eventuality that th… Neal Stephenson
“ Identity had been forever changed by the Internet; formerly it had meant who you really are but now it meant any one of a number of persistent faces that you can present to the digital universe. Neal Stephenson
“ I was in Mexico a couple of weeks ago, Avi says. They have plastic forests there! What does that mean? Downwind of the city, the trees sort of comb the plastic shopping bags out of the air. They get t… Neal Stephenson
“ I heard an older, softer male voice say. I knew that voice had a name attached to it—Yoda? No, Yoda was from Star Wars. Star Wars was on my mind because of R2-D2. Neal Stephenson
“ I have let you live, but for one purpose only: so that you can make your way back to Paris and tell them the following: that the deed you are about to witness was done for a woman, whose name I will n… Neal Stephenson
