Steve Yegge says

In particular I believe, quite staunchly I might add, that the worst thing that can happen to a code base is size.

Most programmers with half a brain know that already--the lest code you have, the more lazy you can be while maintaining, refactoring and evolving that code. "Less code" might also be one of the reasons web developers are abandoning Java in favour of more concise languages. Steve explains this clearly and concisely:

if you begin with the assumption that you need to shrink your code base, you will eventually be forced to conclude that you cannot continue to use Java. Conversely, if you begin with the assumption that you must use Java, then you will eventually be forced to conclude that you will have millions of lines of code.

If you don't believe that, here's the briefest snippet comparison I can come up with:

Java:

        try {
            Thread.sleep(1000);
        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
        }

Ruby:

        sleep(1)

Whether you're programming or writing letters, this Mark Twain quote applies:

I didn't have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.

It takes time and skill to be brief, but the rewards of brevity make it worth taking the time and honing your craftsmanship in pursuit of being brief.