The Honor Of God

I think it means a lot of ugly things. I think it means being absolutely certain the whole world wants to live the way you live, that the American bathroom is the answer to everybody’s dream and all that kind of thing, American values. The American dream is a nightmare sometimes. There are things that happen in this country that are just unbelievable. If the American dream is Columbine High School, you know, I don’t know what the American dream is. By dream, I guess they usually mean good things, and there are plenty of them. No matter how you might feel about the American bathroom, as I talk about it, it is a very comfortable place. And Americans, we have less poverty and starvation than most countries have. We have better medical attention, I suppose, than most countries have. But the American thing is — the big thing in American life appears to be money, and there are good reasons for wanting to be rich. One of them is you can get privacy. Another one is you can get good medical attention. The time to be really rich is when you’re dying, so you can afford a comfortable bed and a good doctor. It’s a spooky business.

—Academy of Achievement interview- June 18, 1999
Washington, D.C.