Joan Didion:

The apparent ease of California life is an illusion, and those who believe the illusion real live here in only the most temporary way.

Neal Stephenson:

We've got big infrastructure problems. We've been kind of living off of our patrimony, you know? We've got the same set of railroads and interstates and power plants that was built by a previous generation, and if we're gonna maintain a healthy economy that works for people, we need to get back into the habit of building things like that.

Pope Francis:

As often occurs in periods of deep crisis which require bold decisions, we are tempted to think that what is happening is not entirely clear ... This is the way human beings contrive to feed their self-destructive vices: trying not to see them, trying not to acknowledge them, delaying the important decisions and pretending that nothing will happen.