Aaron Swartz

The adults were completely wrong.

— Aaron Swartz

Big stories need human stakes.

— Aaron Swartz

Say yes to everything.

— Aaron Swartz

Life is short ... so why waste it doing something dumb?

— Aaron Swartz

Only those blinded by greed would refuse to let a friend make a copy.

— Aaron Swartz

Now everyone has a license to speak, it’s a question of who gets heard.

— Aaron Swartz

We need to download scientific journals and upload them to file-sharing networks.

— Aaron Swartz

There's all sorts of stuff people want to publish anonymously.

— Aaron Swartz

Computers will be able to do all the mundane tasks in our daily lives.

— Aaron Swartz

Nearly 75,000 Demand Progress members have urged Congress to fix the Patriot Act.

— Aaron Swartz

Senator Wyden continues to be the Senate's truest champion of an open Internet.

— Aaron Swartz

No, you can’t force other people to change. You can, however, change just about everything else. And usually, that’s enough.

— Aaron Swartz

Most people, it seems, stretch the truth to make themselves seem more impressive. I, it seems, stretch the truth to make myself…

— Aaron Swartz

Normally, I just sit in my quiet little room and do the small things that bring me pleasures. I read my books,…

— Aaron Swartz

What is the most important thing you could be working on in the world right now? ... And if you're not working…

— Aaron Swartz

Being around some of the bright lights of the technology world and having them expect great things helps you sit down and…

— Aaron Swartz

Creativity comes from applying things you learn in other fields to the field you work in.

— Aaron Swartz

As the Internet breaks down the last justifications for a professional class of politicians, it also builds up the tools for replacing…

— Aaron Swartz

Information is power. But like all power, there are those who want to keep it for themselves.

— Aaron Swartz

Real education is about genuine understanding and the ability to figure things out on your own; not about making sure every 7th…

— Aaron Swartz

When I go to a library and I see the librarian at her desk reading, I'm afraid to interrupt her, even though…

— Aaron Swartz

Reality is painful -- it's so much easier to keep doing stuff you know you're good at or else to pick something…

— Aaron Swartz

Books are totally useless unless you take their advice. If you just keep reading them, thinking "that's so insightful! that changes everything,"…

— Aaron Swartz

Social Security got passed because John D. Rockefeller was sick of having to take money out of his profits to pay for…

— Aaron Swartz

What if there was a library which held every book? Not every book on sale, or every important book, or even every…

— Aaron Swartz

Writing an encyclopedia is hard. To do anywhere near a decent job, you have to know a great deal of information about…

— Aaron Swartz

What is "this drive"? It's the tendency to not simply accept things as they are but to want to think about them,…

— Aaron Swartz

We need to take information, wherever it is stored, make our copies and share them with the world. We need to take…

— Aaron Swartz

“People shouldn’t be forced to categorize themselves as “gay,” “straight,” or “bi.” People are just people. Maybe you’re mostly attracted to men.…

— Aaron Swartz

But like all power, there are those who want to keep it for themselves. The world's entire scientific and cultural heritage, published…

— Aaron Swartz

“I think deeply about things and want others to do likewise. I work for ideas and learn from people. I don’t like…

— Aaron Swartz

I first met Jimbo Wales, the face of Wikipedia, when he came to speak at Stanford.

— Aaron Swartz

There is no justice in following unjust laws.

— Aaron Swartz

I don’t want to be happy. I just want to change the world.

— Aaron Swartz

Assume nobody else has any idea what they're doing, either.

— Aaron Swartz

The library world is set up on this model where the library is a physical building and has a number of books…

— Aaron Swartz

Now, the typical way you make good things happen in Washington is you find a bunch of wealthy companies who agree with…

— Aaron Swartz

Without the ability to talk about government power, there's no way for citizens to make sure this power isn't being misused.

— Aaron Swartz

Steadfastness is a noble quality, but unguided by knowledge or humility, it becomes rashness, or obstinacy.

— Aaron Swartz

“Be curious. Read widely. Try new things. What people call intelligence just boils down to curiosity.”

— Aaron Swartz