He paused and lit a cigarette. "You all know, of course, that I’m a peeper. Probably this fact has alarmed some of you. You imagine that I’m standing here like some mind-peeping monster, probing your mental plumbing. Well ... Jo ¼maine wouldn’t let me if I could. And frankly, if I could, I wouldn’t be standing here. I’d be standing on the throne of the universe practically indistinguishable from God. I notice that none of you have commented on that resemblance so far ..."