Alan Dershowitz Quotes & Sayings (Page 4)

“If torture is going to be administered as a last resort in the ticking-bomb case, to save enormous numbers of lives, it ought to be done openly, with accountability, with approval by the president of the United States or by a Supreme Court justice.”

“Every lawsuit results from somebody doing something wrong. If everybody did right, we wouldn't need laws.”

“I think that lawyers are terrible at admitting that they're wrong. And not just admitting it; also realizing it. Most lawyers are very successful, and they think that because they're making money and people think well of them, they must be doing everything right.”

“We don't have an Official Secrets Act in the United States, as other countries do. Under the First Amendment, freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and freedom of association are more important than protecting secrets.”

“I love to play. I love, opera, hiking and museums. The one thing I don't do is sit. I have a tremendous amount of energy.”

“Real heroes are those who face death for a principle - say, to save the lives of others - without any promise of reward.”

“I think mistakes are the essence of science and law. It's impossible to conceive of either scientific progress or legal progress without understanding the important role of being wrong and of mistakes.”

“I was critical of race-based affirmative action early on in my career and I've changed my mind. And I've publicly acknowledged that I was wrong.”

“There is a paranoid streak in American life. Radio talk show hosts tend to foment that paranoid streak in American life.”

“Ed Koch will never 'rest in peace.' That was not his way. He was always nervously squirming, while making others squirm as well. Comfort was not his goal. He understood that to be a proud and assertive Jew meant never being able to leave a sigh of relief and say, 'It's over, we are at peace, we can now put down our guard and relax.'”