--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we don't pay close attention to the…" description: "\"When we don't pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about the major issues of the day, when we ch..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ac/barack-obama-17_able_when-we-don-t-pay-close-attention-to-the_668455.jpg" --- # When we don't pay close attention to the decisions made by… ![“When we don't pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about the major issues of the day, when we choose not to make our voices and opinions heard, that's when democracy breaks down. That's when power is abused. That's when the most extreme voices…” quote by Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ac/barack-obama-17_able_when-we-don-t-pay-close-attention-to-the_668455.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ac/barack-obama-17_able_when-we-don-t-pay-close-attention-to-the_668455.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ac/barack-obama-17_able_when-we-don-t-pay-close-attention-to-the_668455.jpg) > “When we don't pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about the major issues of the day, when we choose not to make our voices and opinions heard, that's when democracy breaks down. That's when power is abused. That's when the most extreme voices in our society fill the void that we leave. That's when powerful interests and their lobbyists are most able to buy access and influence in the corridors of power - because none of us are there to speak up and stop them.” [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Neglecting civic engagement lets elites dominate and extremist voices fill the gap, eroding democratic health. **In simple terms:** Ignoring politics lets powerful abuse power. Key Takeaway Stay informed and speak up. Themes civic duty political participation democracy power dynamics Mood concerned urgent Type political call to action When to use this quote - elections - community meetings - online activism - public hearings Key Concepts public sphere citizen empowerment media literacy Questions to Reflect On - How can you encourage others to engage? - What barriers stop you from speaking up? A Different Perspective If people are apathetic, change is slow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Access](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/access/) [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Breaking down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breaking-down/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Decisions made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decisions-made/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Extremes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremes/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/issues/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Lobbyists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lobbyists/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Our society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-society/) [Personal leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-leadership/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/) [Void](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/void/) ## Related quotes > [“When we don’t pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about the major issues of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/obama/when-we-don-t-pay-close-attention-to-the-decisions-made-by-our/) [Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/obama/) > [Our public life withers when only the most extreme voices get attention. Most of all, democracy breaks down when the average person feels their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/our-public-life-withers-when-only-the-most-extreme-voices-get/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Take off your bedroom slippers, put on your marching shoes. Shake it off. Stop complaining, stop grumbling, stop crying. We are going to press…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/take-off-your-bedroom-slippers-put-on-your-marching-shoes-shake-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Democracy breaks the unity of the Romanian people, dividing it into parties, stirring it up, and so, disunited, exposing it to face the united…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corneliu-zelea-codreanu/democracy-breaks-the-unity-of-the-romanian-people-dividing-it-into/) [Corneliu Zelea Codreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corneliu-zelea-codreanu/) > [And yet even among the friends of liberty, many people are deceived into believing that government can make them safe from all harm, provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/and-yet-even-among-the-friends-of-liberty-many-people-are-deceived/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [Government power is always abused by seizing and perverting the law. 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Mankind will not bear it… There is a remedy in human nature against tyranny, that will keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-government-power-can-be-abused-long-mankind-will-not-bear-it-there/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“A leader without a clear vision and plans only abuses his power because visions, dreams and plans are the fulcrum along which the loads…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/a-leader-without-a-clear-vision-and-plans-only-abuses-his-power/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Nothing could be more irrational than to give the people power, and to withhold from them information without which power is abused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/nothing-could-be-more-irrational-than-to-give-the-people-power-and-to/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [Power which can be abused, will be abused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-warner/power-which-can-be-abused-will-be-abused/) Jim Warner > [Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/nothing-discloses-real-character-like-the-use-of-power-it-is-easy-for/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Power is something that is abused. I suppose use and abuse are in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/power-is-something-that-is-abused-i-suppose-use-and-abuse-are-in-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [When power is for sale, then government power should be severely limited. When power is abused, then the less power the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charley-reese/when-power-is-for-sale-then-government-power-should-be-severely/) [Charley Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charley-reese/) > [No government power can be abused long. Mankind will not bear it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-government-power-can-be-abused-long-mankind-will-not-bear-it/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Those who suppress freedom always do so in the name of law and order." - John V. 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How do we exercise more empathy in our public discourse? How do we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/that-is-another-theme-in-the-book-dreams-from-my-father-how-do-we/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I can say across Europe that many principles that have been taken for granted here around free speech, and around civil liberties and an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-can-say-across-europe-that-many-principles-that-have-been-taken-for/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I want to thank the Greek people publicly for their humanitarian response to the crisis of so many migrants and refugees seeking safety in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-want-to-thank-the-greek-people-publicly-for-their-humanitarian/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [We had a farewell dinner for some of my senior staff, and generally everybody likes to talk about how cool I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-had-a-farewell-dinner-for-some-of-my-senior-staff-and-generally/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [ It's good to get fresh legs in \[the White house\]. I think that it refreshes our democracy. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/it-s-good-to-get-fresh-legs-in-the-white-house-i-think-that-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Believe it or not, entertainment is part of our American diplomacy, it is part of what makes us exceptional, part of what makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/believe-it-or-not-entertainment-is-part-of-our-american-diplomacy-it/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) [Explore all 3,624 Barack Obama quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/) [Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) Greg Perry > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. 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This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) Browse all 17,257 Able quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When we don't pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about the major issues of the day, when we choose not to make our voices and opinions heard, that's when democracy breaks down. That's when power is abused. That's when the most extreme voices in our society fill the void that we leave. 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