“There has to be an inner peace process that treats gang members like traumatized war victims who lack counseling, jobs, and respect. A lot of that has got to be self-administered in affinity groups, counseling groups, in jail and out of jail, with resources and professional help.”
“Rather than distance ourselves from the past, as the centrist amnesiacs would counsel, perhaps we should finally peel back the scabs and take a closer look at why all the wounds haven't healed.”
“If I were George W. Bush, I would be terrorized by the eyes of those scruffy-looking veterans, the so-called band of brothers, volunteering for duty with the Kerry campaign. They look like men with scores to settle.”
“I'm not ready to give you a clear answer on whether electoral politics holds any particular hope for progressives. It would mean that nothing I did ever mattered.”
“The politicians of New York have everything that is necessary to make proper decisions and they will have to live with what happens afterwards. The worst scenario is the politicians covering their eyes and turning it over to the FBI.”
“In Miami, there were only a couple thousand protesters in a city that is heavily Republican and includes a lot of right-wing terrorists. It was favorable territory for the police. They had the protesters outnumbered 10-1.”
“I put in work for my neighborhood. Hundreds of bills, measures, budget items, and hearings. I always tried to make it a point to stay late, to always run the longest hearings, to carry nearly the most bills. The tragedy was that of the 18 years I was in Sacramento, 16 years were under Republican governors.”
“I wish that I'd been in Congress at some point. Especially now with Bush there. But I would have a really hard time getting elected because of my views. L.A. is very ethnic. Many of the Jewish voters would not support me because of my views on the Middle East.”
