Orthodoxy, sacred as it may be to subscribing theologians, is the fast friend of mediocrity, since it removes incentive to think. An army is a model of orthodoxy; it is made up mostly of bodies which act on command; whatever thinking is necessary to its functions is done for it. The same applies to communicants of all fanatical religious and social orders.

“Mediocrity ” from the book “Trivializing America” (1983)