The message that President Obama delivered in his speech at Notre Dame was: morality is immoral. Pro-life is the extremist position, not a moral position. Yet we should compromise and work to reduce abortions. Where's the compromise between life and death - and why work to reduce the number of them occurring if there's nothing wrong with them?
As far as songwriting, my inspirations came from love, life and death, and viewing other people's situations.
Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it's much more serious than that.
Life and death matters, yes. And the question of how to behave in this world, how to go in the face of everything. Time is short and the water is rising.
In an artwork you're always looking for artistic decisions, so an ashtray is perfect. An ashtray has got life and death.
If you think of life and death on a continuum, finding the point where it tips is complicated. It cuts across all political lines and gets to the root of our humanity. It requires faith informed by years of intimacy that you're doing what's right for your loved one.
I'm very comfortable with the nature of life and death, and that we come to an end. What's most difficult to imagine is that those dreams and early yearnings and desires of childhood and adolescence will also disappear. But who knows? Maybe you become part of the eternal whatever.
If your best friend has stolen your girlfriend, it does become life and death.
If a man can bridge the gap between life and death, if he can live on after he's dead, then maybe he was a great man.
Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through, and pour a torrent of light into our dark world.