human reason

According to Joe Weizenbaum, the single most important paragraph of his book Computer Power and Human Reason is the following on page 276:

It is a widely held but a grievously mistaken belief that civil courage finds exercise only in the context of world-shaking events. To the contrary, its most arduous exercise is often in those small contexts in which the challenge is to overcome the fears induced by petty concerns over career, over our relationships to those who appear to have power over us, over whatever may disturb the tranquility of our mundane existence.

I met Joe at MEDICHI in Klagenfurt last year. A great moment where he touched me.