Politesse Quotes

I hate publicity, celebrity, fame, and notoriety, all of which are associated with controversy in its public form. But, in fairness, all my life I've been rather upfront with my opinions and never hidden them on grounds of conformity or (I fear) politesse. However, until the wretched Polish consulate affair, I don't think I was ever controversial-I was certainly not known outside of the hermetic little world of the academy, and my contrarian scholarly writings aroused no great fuss. (Tony Judt)