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William S. Burroughs

William S. Burroughs Quotes

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Famous William S. Burroughs Quotes

“Belief is a meaningless word. What does it mean? I believe something. Okay, now you have someone who is hearing voices and believes in these voices. It doesn't mean they have any necessary reality. Your whole concept of your "I" is an illusion. You have to give something called an "I" before you speak of what the "I" believes.”

GivingBelieveMeanDoeWholeRealityBeliefSpeakI BelieveVoiceIllusionConceptsOkayHearingMeaninglessHearing Voices
Author:William S. Burroughs
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“For instance, they [The Federal Narcotics Bureau ] give out that marijuana is a harmful and habit-forming drug, and it simply isn't. They claim that you can get addicted to opiates with one shot, and you can't. They over-estimate the physical bad effects, and so forth.”

GivingEffectsHabitDrugShotsClaimsInstanceMarijuanaNarcoticsOpiates
Book:Burroughs Live: The Collected Interviews of William S. Burroughs, 1960-1997
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“I meant that people will take anything that gives them a lift, whether it's alcohol or cocaine or the consciousness-expanding drugs or opiates. In Iran, until recently, they sold opium in shops legally, and they had 3,000,000 addicts in a population of 15,000,000. I don't believe that all those people were escaping from "complexes" or anything of the sort. They were simply exposed to it.”

PeopleGivingBelieveConsciousnessDrugComplexesDon't BelievePopulationAlcoholLiftsShopsIranExposedAddictExpandingCocaineEscapingOpiumOpiatesConsciousness Expanding
Author:William S. Burroughs
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“I have no message to give the politicians of the world. They're all completely addicted to promiscuous verbalization and I'm quite sure they would not be at all interested in hearing about cut-ups and hieroglyphics and still less interested to hear about silence.”

WorldGivingStillsSilenceCuttingPoliticianMessagesHearingPromiscuousHieroglyphics
Book:Burroughs Live: The Collected Interviews of William S. Burroughs, 1960-1997
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“The people in power will not disappear voluntarily, giving flowers to the cops just isn't going to work. This thinking is fostered by the establishment; they like nothing better than love and nonviolence. The only way I like to see cops given flowers is in a flower pot from a high window.”

PeopleThinkingWayLoveGivingGivenFlowerWindowDisappearActivismPotEstablishmentNonviolenceCopGoing To WorkHippie
Book:The Job: Interviews with William S. Burroughs
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“The idea that addiction is somehow a psychological illness is, I think, totally ridiculous. It's as psychological as malaria. It's a matter of exposure. People, generally speaking, will take any intoxicant or any drug that gives them a pleasant effect if it is available to them.”

PeopleIfsThinkingGivingIdeasMatterEffectsDrugAddictionIllnessAvailableRidiculousPsychologicalPleasantExposureMalaria
Book:Burroughs Live: The Collected Interviews of William S. Burroughs, 1960-1997
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