--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is curious that people tend to regard…" description: "\"It is curious that people tend to regard government as a quasi-divine, selfless, Santa Claus organization. Government was constructed neither for abili..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e9/anonymous-1_ability_it-is-curious-that-people-tend-to-regard_2751438.jpg" --- # It is curious that people tend to regard government as a… ![“It is curious that people tend to regard government as a quasi-divine, selfless, Santa Claus organization. Government was constructed neither for ability nor for the exercise of loving care; government was built for the use of force and for necessarily demagogic appeals for votes. If individuals…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e9/anonymous-1_ability_it-is-curious-that-people-tend-to-regard_2751438.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e9/anonymous-1_ability_it-is-curious-that-people-tend-to-regard_2751438.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e9/anonymous-1_ability_it-is-curious-that-people-tend-to-regard_2751438.jpg) > “It is curious that people tend to regard government as a quasi-divine, selfless, Santa Claus organization. Government was constructed neither for ability nor for the exercise of loving care; government was built for the use of force and for necessarily demagogic appeals for votes. If individuals do not know their own interests in many cases, they are free to turn to private experts for guidance. It is absurd to say that they will be served better by a coercive, demagogic apparatus.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Government is fundamentally about coercion, not benevolence, and people should seek expert guidance rather than trust a paternalistic state. **In simple terms:** Government uses force, not kindness. Key Takeaway Question authority, seek expertise. Themes politics authority individualism Mood skeptical critical Type political philosophical When to use this quote - voting - public policy - personal decision making Key Concepts social contract power dynamics expertise Questions to Reflect On - What are the limits of state power? - When is expert advice preferable to personal judgment? A Different Perspective Governments can also provide essential services and stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Absurd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurd/) [Appeals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appeals/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Cases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cases/) [Curious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curious/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divine/) [Exercise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exercise/) [Experts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experts/) [Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/force/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Government Built](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-built-852473/) [Government Constructed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-constructed-3101860/) [Government Quasi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-quasi-3101861/) [Guidance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guidance/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Loving Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loving-care/) [Organization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organization/) [Organization Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organization-government-1341601/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Regard Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regard-government-1604959/) [Santa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/santa/) [Santa claus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/santa-claus/) [Selfless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selfless/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [Use of force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use-of-force/) [Vote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vote/) ## Related quotes > [What if the government built this thing? I doubt it. Why? Cause it works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-if-the-government-built-this-thing-i-doubt-it-why-cause-it-works/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ \[For business after WWII \] democracy means getting people to regard government as an alien force that's robbing them and oppressing them, not as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/for-business-after-wwii-democracy-means-getting-people-to-regard/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [For which reason I would exhort you to pay all due Regard to the government over us; to the KING and all in authority;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-mayhew/for-which-reason-i-would-exhort-you-to-pay-all-due-regard-to-the/) [Jonathan Mayhew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-mayhew/) > [The moment you abate anything from the full rights of men to each govern himself, and suffer any artificial positive limitation upon those rights,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/the-moment-you-abate-anything-from-the-full-rights-of-men-to-each/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Every organization of our government, the best government in the world, is crumbling to pieces. Those who have it in their hands are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigham-young/every-organization-of-our-government-the-best-government-in-the-world/) [Brigham Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigham-young/) > [No individual, no organization, no government is above the law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lidington/no-individual-no-organization-no-government-is-above-the-law/) [David Lidington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lidington/) > [We cannot abdicate our conscience to an organization, nor to a government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/we-cannot-abdicate-our-conscience-to-an-organization-nor-to-a/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [May God bless you and keep you always in His tender, loving care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/may-god-bless-you-and-keep-you-always-in-his-tender-loving-care/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The education and training of children is among the most meritorious acts of humankind and draweth down the grace and favour of the All-Merciful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-education-and-training-of-children-is-among-the-most-meritorious/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes, being a parent means being a loving caregiver. Other times: angry butler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-being-a-parent-means-being-a-loving-caregiver-other-times/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The foundation on which (our government is) built is the natural equality of man, the denial of every pre-eminence but that annexed to legal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-foundation-on-which-our-government-is-built-is-the-natural/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Trust in our government is built on transparency and faith in the rule of law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-phillips/trust-in-our-government-is-built-on-transparency-and-faith-in-the/) [Dean Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-phillips/) > [“Supposedly, the government is in the process of saving us from terrorists. No one has quite figured out who is going to save us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-rose/supposedly-the-government-is-in-the-process-of-saving-us-from/) [Doug Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-rose/) > [Our government is built upon the vote. But votes that are purchasable are quicksands, and a government built on them stands upon corruption and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/our-government-is-built-upon-the-vote-but-votes-that-are-purchasable/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [The government built the grid to favor one industry over others. But I don't hear any conservatives screaming about that. Folks don't understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/the-government-built-the-grid-to-favor-one-industry-over-others-but-i/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Ability quotes > [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/) [Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/) > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/) [Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/) > [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) > [You can only do the work to the very best of your ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-baranski/you-can-only-do-the-work-to-the-very-best-of-your-ability/) [Christine Baranski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-baranski/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Bobby had faith in my ability as a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-london/bobby-had-faith-in-my-ability-as-a-singer/) [Julie London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-london/) [Browse all 9,990 Ability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is curious that people tend to regard government as a quasi-divine, selfless, Santa Claus organization. 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