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If a conservative is a liberal who's been mugged, a liberal is a conservative who's been arrested.
Tom Wolfe
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote suggests that people's political beliefs can change based on personal experiences with crime and justice.

Tom Wolfe's quote highlights the idea that one's political ideology is often shaped by personal experiences. A conservative may develop a tough stance on crime after being a victim, while a liberal might become more conservative if they face legal troubles. This reflects how individual situations can inform and sometimes shift broader political perspectives.

Themes

PoliticsConservatismLiberalismExperienceCrime

In practice

Example use cases

In a political debate to illustrate how personal experiences influence beliefs.

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There has been a time on earth when poets had been young and dead and famous - and were men. But now the poet as the tragic child of grandeur and destiny had changed. The child of genius was a woman, now, and the man was gone.
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