People ask me if I have some kind of death wish, to keep saying the things I do. The answer is no: I would like to keep living. However, some things must be said, and there are times when silence becomes an accomplice to injustice.

Islam was like a mental cage. At first, when you open the door, the caged bird stays inside: it is frightened. It has internalized its imprisonment. It takes time for the bird to escape, even after someone has opened the doors to its cage.

I would like to be judged on the validity of my arguments, not as a victim.

Grandmother, I have compared the infidels’ morals to those that you taught us, and I must report that they have, in practice, a better outcome for humans than the morals of your forefathers.

People often ask me what it’s like to live with bodyguards. The short answer is that it’s better than being dead.

In a way these threats motivate me. They have given my voice more legitimacy.

In the madrassa, questions were not welcome; they were considered impertinent.

Islam is not just a belief; it is a way of life, a violent way of life. Islam is imbued with violence, and it encourages violence.

This is exactly how minds are opened: through honest, frank dialogue. Tears may be shed, but not blood.

So this, in a nutshell, was my Enlightenment: free inquiry, universal education, individual freedom, the outlawing of private violence, and the protection of individual property rights.

Free speech is the bedrock of liberty and a free society. And yes, it includes the right to blaspheme and offend.

Outrage and clear, critical thinking seldom go hand in hand.