There is no question that the Islamic State will be defeated in Mosul the real question is what comes afterward. Can the post-Islamic State effort resolve the squabbling likely to arise over numerous issues and bring lasting stability to one of Iraq's most diverse and challenging provinces? Failure to do so could lead to ISIS 3.0.

I'm sure there was some part of his soul was intrinsically happy, but he probably had to go through some permutations to really get that to blossom. I'm sure Dad had his challenges, but I think that joy was there from the beginning and he had to find a way to make his life support that and express that.

Alas, those six unfortunate souls who have made their way through my books know that every one of them is about Emerson and Thoreau and their dark counters, Melville and Emily Dickinson. Try as I might, I can't get their inspirations, their challenges and sentences and wisdom and questions out of my head.

My mistake in my relationships has been to feel that I can do it all on my own: 'I don't need a man.' That is definitely a mistake. Women generally want to feel loved and appreciated. It's something that I am working on every day, trust me! It's a challenge for me to do that.

The real world just doesn’t offer up as easily the carefully designed pleasures, the thrilling challenges, and the powerful social bonding afforded by virtual environments. Reality doesn’t motivate us as effectively. Reality isn’t engineered to maximize our potential. Reality wasn’t designed from the bottom up to make us happy.

We have two alternatives: either we question our beliefs - or we don't. Either we accept our fixed versions of reality- or we begin to challenge them. In Buddha's opinion, to train in staying open and curious - to train in dissolving our assumptions and beliefs - is the best use of our human lives.

Most intellectual training focuses on analytical skills. Whether in literary criticism or scientific investigation, the academic mind is best at taking things apart. The complementary arts of integration are far less well developed. This problem is at the core of human ecology. As with any interdisciplinary pursuit, it is the bridging across disparate ways of knowing that is the constant challenge.

How is destruction beautiful?" He asked in a challenging tone."You may think that a broken egg is ugly and messy," she answered, "but the cake it goes into is beautiful and won't hold together without it.""Eggs don't get blown up. They get broken.""You've never seen me bake," she replied with a smirk.

We have become used to obstructionist ideas. In the name of modernisation we are unconsciously hindering the natural flow of life. The fact that we are irritated, depressed, and distressed speaks volumes of our illogical ambitions to acquire control of this planet. Mostly, philosophically challenged and scant respect for natural way of life is making us irrelevant.

I feel like every time I write a song, it feels like the first time I wrote a song. It's just as hard; it doesn't get easier, but that's why I love it: because it's a challenge every time. I also feel like I'm learning new ways.