Zero Effect * Quotes

"When you spend enough time around the chemistry of desperation, you come to recognize the smell. One desperate element is combustible. More than one desperate element is lethal."

"Even dangerous things can be safe if you are careful."

"Now, a few words on looking for things. When you go looking for something specific, your chances of finding it are very bad. Because of all the things in the world, you're only looking for one of them. When you go looking for anything at all, your chances of finding it are very good. Because of all the things in the world, you're sure to find some of them."

Gregory Stark: "Is this your kid?"
Steve Arlo: "Nope. Just a rental."

"Are you telling me you can speak six languages and fly a jetliner but you don't know how to file a tax return?... It's never come up?... Does this have to happen right now?... No, that's a 'W-2.' 'WW2' was the Second World War."
[on the phone with Daryl Zero]

"What doesn't kill you defines you."

"I can't possibly overstate the importance of good research. Everyone goes through life dropping crumbs. If you can recognize the crumbs, you can trace a path all the way back from your death certificate to the dinner and a movie that resulted in you in the first place. But research is an art, not a science, because anyone who knows what they're doing can find the crumbs, the wheres, whats, and whos. The art is in the whys: the ability to read between the crumbs, not to mix metaphors. For every event, there is a cause and effect. For every crime, a motive. And for every motive, a passion. The art of research is the ability to look at the details, and see the passion."