Desire is irrelevant. I am a machine.

"No fate." It's from a movie. To be exact, it's from "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," the huge 1991 vehicle for future California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. If you know your Terminator lore, you know that this sequel took the evil Terminator from the original flick and made him good. Same Arnold-as-cyborg-from-the-future, same sunglasses and black leather jacket, same catch phrases ("I'll be back"). But suddenly he was a protector rather than an evil killer. This was a guy who might be running for office some day.

By Robert Greene

January 28, 2008