--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I’d like to ask those who favor this…" description: "\"“I’d like to ask those who favor this position if they would be willing to go to Littleton and explain to some mothers what constitutes an acceptable r..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png" --- # I’d like to ask those who favor this position if they… ![“I’d like to ask those who favor this position if they would be willing to go to Littleton and explain to some mothers what constitutes an acceptable risk. Really. Because in a society that embraces violence, this is what “our way of life” has come to mean. The question can’t be why but only “Why…” quote by Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png) > ““I’d like to ask those who favor this position if they would be willing to go to Littleton and explain to some mothers what constitutes an acceptable risk. Really. Because in a society that embraces violence, this is what “our way of life” has come to mean. The question can’t be why but only “Why yours and not mine?” We have taught our children in a thousand ways, sometimes with flag-waving and sometimes with a laugh track, that the bad guy deserves to die. But we easily forget a crucial component of this formula: “Bad” is defined by the aggressor. Any of our children may someday be, in someone’s mind, the bad guy.”” [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Violence is normalized in society, making risk judgments biased toward the aggressor’s perspective. **In simple terms:** Society teaches that the aggressor defines danger. Key Takeaway Question who defines risk and why. Themes violence societal norms risk perception Mood critical concerned Type social ethical When to use this quote - parenting workshops - media literacy programs - community dialogues - policy debates Key Concepts media influence education moral relativism child socialization Questions to Reflect On - Who benefits from labeling others as “bad”? - How can we teach alternative conflict resolutions? A Different Perspective Changing deep‑rooted cultural narratives is difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-guy/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence/) [Way of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-life/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not insane, sir. I have a finely calibrated sense of acceptable risk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-scalzi/i-m-not-insane-sir-i-have-a-finely-calibrated-sense-of-acceptable-risk/) [John Scalzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-scalzi/) > [“Doubt is an acceptable risk for happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/doubt-is-an-acceptable-risk-for-happiness/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [“Ultimately, we want the most highly beneficial alternative but within acceptable risk levels.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-wilkerson/ultimately-we-want-the-most-highly-beneficial-alternative-but-within/) Kim Wilkerson > [For thugs from the ghetto, violence is a way of life - it's what helps you survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suge-knight/for-thugs-from-the-ghetto-violence-is-a-way-of-life-it-s-what-helps/) [Suge Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suge-knight/) > [“Unfortunately, violence has a way of overpowering even the strongest of wills”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-eade/unfortunately-violence-has-a-way-of-overpowering-even-the-strongest/) [Kenneth Eade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-eade/) > [“Violence is one way to silence people, to deny their voice and their credibility, to assert your right to control over their right to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/violence-is-one-way-to-silence-people-to-deny-their-voice-and-their-2/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [One thing, however, is sure: unless Christians fulfill their prophetic role, unless they become the advocates and defenders of the truly poor, witness to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/one-thing-however-is-sure-unless-christians-fulfill-their-prophetic/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [Violence as a way of achieving racial justice is both impractical and immoral. It is impractical because it is a descending spiral ending in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/violence-as-a-way-of-achieving-racial-justice-is-both-impractical-and/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [“Violence is one way to silence people, to deny their voice and their credibility, to assert your right to control over their right to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/violence-is-one-way-to-silence-people-to-deny-their-voice-and-their/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [I'm so sick and tired of all this violence, this gun violence. And how could I speak on it - you know - being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-so-sick-and-tired-of-all-this-violence-this-gun-violence-and-how/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [“CONFESSIONS OF A GANGSTER A former gang member talks about racial violence from way back in the eighties. “It started out innocently,” Jones, 39,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-flaherty/confessions-of-a-gangster-a-former-gang-member-talks-about-racial/) [Colin Flaherty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-flaherty/) > [“poverty always breeds violence in one way or another.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-graham/poverty-always-breeds-violence-in-one-way-or-another/) [Heather Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-graham/) > [Violence is the way stupid people try to level the playing field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gregory-dunne/violence-is-the-way-stupid-people-try-to-level-the-playing-field/) [John Gregory Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gregory-dunne/) > [Contention, especially violence, is not the way to deal with our problems. Unfortunately, television, videos, movies, and electronic games teach otherwise. Even cartoons and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-anthony-oaks/contention-especially-violence-is-not-the-way-to-deal-with-our/) Harold Anthony Oaks > [Violence against the other, and the way we otherize people out of fear, has to be examined across the board.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yance-ford/violence-against-the-other-and-the-way-we-otherize-people-out-of-fear/) [Yance Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yance-ford/) ## More by Barbara Kingsolver > [“Jesus was a more reliable backer, evidently, less likely to drink himself unconscious or get liver cancer. No wonder people chose Him as their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/jesus-was-a-more-reliable-backer-evidently-less-likely-to-drink/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Now I'm starting to think he wasn't supposed to be my whole life, he was just this doorway to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/now-i-m-starting-to-think-he-wasn-t-supposed-to-be-my-whole-life-he/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Cooking is 80 percent confidence, a skill best acquired starting from when the apron strings wrap around you twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/cooking-is-80-percent-confidence-a-skill-best-acquired-starting-from/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“In Bobby Ogle's version of heaven everyone would wind up in one place, criminals and Muslims included.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/in-bobby-ogle-s-version-of-heaven-everyone-would-wind-up-in-one-place/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“Weeds are job security for the gardener.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/weeds-are-job-security-for-the-gardener/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“It's what you do that makes your soul, not the other way around.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/it-s-what-you-do-that-makes-your-soul-not-the-other-way-around/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“Lusa turned to Crys, her eyes shining. "That was a luna." Crys shrugged. "So?" "So? So what? You want it should sing, too?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/lusa-turned-to-crys-her-eyes-shining-that-was-a-luna-crys-shrugged-so/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [The strength of motherhood is greater than natural laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/the-strength-of-motherhood-is-greater-than-natural-laws/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“An imperfectly remembered life is a useless treachery. Every day, more fragments of the past roll around heavily in the chambers of an empty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/an-imperfectly-remembered-life-is-a-useless-treachery-every-day-more/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Respecting the dignity of a spectacular food means enjoying it at its best. Europeans celebrate the short season of abundant asparagus as a form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/respecting-the-dignity-of-a-spectacular-food-means-enjoying-it-at-its/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“Somehow it had come to pass that this man was her whole world, and she had failed to take his measure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/somehow-it-had-come-to-pass-that-this-man-was-her-whole-world-and-she/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [After 'The Poisonwood Bible' was published, several people believed that my parents were missionaries, which could not be further from the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/after-the-poisonwood-bible-was-published-several-people-believed-that/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [I can count all the ways in which being a mother has enriched my understanding of the world, of character, my sense of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/i-can-count-all-the-ways-in-which-being-a-mother-has-enriched-my/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [But we've all ended up giving body and soul to Africa, one way or another. Even Adah, who's becoming an expert in tropical epidemiology…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/but-we-ve-all-ended-up-giving-body-and-soul-to-africa-one-way-or/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [If the Lord hasn't got a boyfriend lined up for me to marry, that's his business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/if-the-lord-hasn-t-got-a-boyfriend-lined-up-for-me-to-marry-that-s/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) [Explore all 939 Barbara Kingsolver quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) ## More Bad guy quotes > [“This is what is called "honor among thieves," for the really dangerous people are those who do not recognize that they are thieves— the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/this-is-what-is-called-honor-among-thieves-for-the-really-dangerous/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [Obviously I'm very grateful 'Bad Guy' is doing so well - it's shocking and surprising and gratifying - but I do think it's important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finneas/obviously-i-m-very-grateful-bad-guy-is-doing-so-well-it-s-shocking/) [Finneas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finneas/) > [“Here you can shoot the bad guys,' a mercenary says in Baghdad. 'In America we give them corporate bonuses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-robotham/here-you-can-shoot-the-bad-guys-a-mercenary-says-in-baghdad-in/) [Michael Robotham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-robotham/) > [To us, being the bad guys is cool, because we always root for the bad guys in the movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-hanneman/to-us-being-the-bad-guys-is-cool-because-we-always-root-for-the-bad/) [Jeff Hanneman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-hanneman/) > [In 'Gran Torino,' Eastwood moves towards the climax of the movie not by staging a shoot-out, but by putting his weapons to one side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-korda/in-gran-torino-eastwood-moves-towards-the-climax-of-the-movie-not-by/) [Michael Korda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-korda/) > [In order to have your best good guy, you have to be that bad guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/in-order-to-have-your-best-good-guy-you-have-to-be-that-bad-guy/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [After I did 'Brooklyn,' I did about five or six violent films in one way or another, and not always with me being the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emory-cohen/after-i-did-brooklyn-i-did-about-five-or-six-violent-films-in-one-way/) [Emory Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emory-cohen/) > [The first act is the easiest to plot. The second act is always the hardest to plot. Generally a good, you know, sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-j-cannell/the-first-act-is-the-easiest-to-plot-the-second-act-is-always-the/) [Stephen J. Cannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-j-cannell/) > [“We fall into the fallacy of believing we can litigate the complicated story before us into a black-and-white binary of good guys and bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-lowery/we-fall-into-the-fallacy-of-believing-we-can-litigate-the-complicated/) [Wesley Lowery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-lowery/) > [“If there was a bad guy we could appeal to the people because, like it or not, we, the huddled masses, want our public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-carter/if-there-was-a-bad-guy-we-could-appeal-to-the-people-because-like-it/) [Bill Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-carter/) > [But the thing about bad guys is that they have the biggest bosomed blond, they have great clothes and cars, and get great death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-roberts/but-the-thing-about-bad-guys-is-that-they-have-the-biggest-bosomed/) [Eric Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-roberts/) > [I don't know what it is that I do, but when I play a really bad guy, I'm able to bring some level of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ferrer/i-don-t-know-what-it-is-that-i-do-but-when-i-play-a-really-bad-guy-i/) [Miguel Ferrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ferrer/) > [In my career, I've been lucky to do the bad guys that are more interesting, where the audience wants to spend more time with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-stormare/in-my-career-i-ve-been-lucky-to-do-the-bad-guys-that-are-more/) [Peter Stormare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-stormare/) > [Playing a bad guy is always more fun than playing the good guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-robbie/playing-a-bad-guy-is-always-more-fun-than-playing-the-good-guy/) [Margot Robbie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-robbie/) [Browse all 1,228 Bad guy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-guy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I’d like to ask those who favor this position if they would be willing to go to Littleton and explain to some mothers what constitutes an acceptable risk. Really. Because in a society that embraces violence, this is what “our way of life” has come to mean. The question can’t be why but only “Why yours and not mine?” We have taught our children in a thousand ways, sometimes with flag-waving and sometimes with a laugh track, that the bad guy deserves to die. But we easily forget a crucial component of this formula: “Bad” is defined by the aggressor. Any of our children may someday be, in someone’s mind, the bad guy.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Barbara Kingsolver" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-position-if-they-would-be/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bad guy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-position-if-they-would-be/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f83/barbara-kingsolver-200_bad-guy_i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-pos_683017.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I’d like to ask those who favor this position if they would be willing to go to Littleton and explain to…” — Barbara Kingsolver", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Barbara Kingsolver", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I’d like to ask those who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-position-if-they-would-be/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/i-d-like-to-ask-those-who-favor-this-position-if-they-would-be/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```