One of the little-celebrated powers of Presidents (and other high government officials) is to listen to their critics with just enough sympathy to ensure their silence.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
Politics is not the art of the possible. It consists in choosing between the disastrous and the unpalatable.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Politics involves making difficult choices between undesirable options rather than simply achieving what is possible.
This quote by John Kenneth Galbraith highlights the essence of political decision-making, where leaders are often faced with choices that are less than ideal. Instead of being able to select from a range of feasible and attractive alternatives, politicians typically must navigate a landscape where every option has significant drawbacks, thus emphasizing the often-unpleasant reality of governance.
Themes
PoliticsDecision-MakingChoicesGovernanceLeadership
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the upcoming election, one might quote Galbraith to illustrate the tough choices politicians face.
More from John Kenneth Galbraith
All quotes βIf all else fails, immortality can always be assured by spectacular error.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
All successful revolutions are the kicking in of a rotten door.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
Money differs from an automobile or mistress in being equally important to those who have it and those who do not.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
People of privilege will always risk their complete destruction rather than surrender any material part of their advantage.
John Kenneth GalbraithRead
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Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. Experience has taught us that it is much easier to prevent an enemy from posting themselves than it is to dislodge them after they have got possession, and when the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.
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Voting is the foundation stone for political action.
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