--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you're...stepping over a guy on the…" description: "\"When you're...stepping over a guy on the sidewalk...does it ever occur to you to think, 'Wow. Maybe our system doesn't work?'\" — Bill Hicks" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/106/bill-hicks-970_doe_when-you-re-stepping-over-a-guy-on-the-s_2214316.jpg" --- # When you're...stepping over a guy on the sidewalk...does… ![“When you're...stepping over a guy on the sidewalk...does it ever occur to you to think, 'Wow. Maybe our system doesn't work?'” quote by Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/106/bill-hicks-970_doe_when-you-re-stepping-over-a-guy-on-the-s_2214316.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/106/bill-hicks-970_doe_when-you-re-stepping-over-a-guy-on-the-s_2214316.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/106/bill-hicks-970_doe_when-you-re-stepping-over-a-guy-on-the-s_2214316.jpg) > “When you're...stepping over a guy on the sidewalk...does it ever occur to you to think, 'Wow. Maybe our system doesn't work?'” [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Questioning societal systems when witnessing everyday injustice highlights systemic flaws. **In simple terms:** Seeing injustice prompts doubt about the system. Key Takeaway Reflect on how daily encounters reveal systemic issues. Themes social critique justice awareness Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - public spaces - daily interactions - media commentary Key Concepts systems theory ethical reflection Questions to Reflect On - How do you respond when you notice unfairness? - What systemic changes could address such moments? A Different Perspective May overlook broader context beyond individual incidents. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guy/) [Guy Sidewalk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guy-sidewalk-4915976/) [Maybe Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maybe-doesn-848862/) [Sidewalk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sidewalk/) [Sidewalk Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sidewalk-does-4915975/) [Stepping Guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stepping-guy-4915977/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Wow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wow/) [Wow Maybe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wow-maybe-4915978/) ## Related quotes > [“Maybe he doesn't have anywhere to run off to...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/maybe-he-doesn-t-have-anywhere-to-run-off-to/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“Maybe it doesn't matter that life never blossomed into something larger than itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/maybe-it-doesn-t-matter-that-life-never-blossomed-into-something/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [I'd like another child, and maybe if it doesn't work out, I'll adopt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courteney-cox/i-d-like-another-child-and-maybe-if-it-doesn-t-work-out-i-ll-adopt/) [Courteney Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courteney-cox/) > [But at least he can still see the lights below us. 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Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [Bop began with Jazz but one afternoon somewhere on a sidewalk maybe 1939, 1940, Dizzy Gillespie or Charlie Parker or Thelonious Monk was walking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/bop-began-with-jazz-but-one-afternoon-somewhere-on-a-sidewalk-maybe/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“I was on the sidewalk, buffering, wondering if it was okay to follow people in real life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-sudjic/i-was-on-the-sidewalk-buffering-wondering-if-it-was-okay-to-follow/) [Olivia Sudjic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-sudjic/) > [“Where the Sidewalk Ends Shel Silverstein There is a place where the sidewalk ends And before the street begins, And there the grass grows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shel-silverstein/where-the-sidewalk-ends-shel-silverstein-there-is-a-place-where-the/) [Shel Silverstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shel-silverstein/) > [We are bored in the city, there is no longer any Temple of the Sun. 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I don't know if it was the power of the prayer or God himself, but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evel-knievel/i-don-t-know-what-in-the-world-happened-i-don-t-know-if-it-was-the/) [Evel Knievel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evel-knievel/) > [“Navigating the crowd on the sidewalk is a challenge I like. I’m running without touching anyone else on the street. I’m a character in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-graham/navigating-the-crowd-on-the-sidewalk-is-a-challenge-i-like-i-m/) [Lauren Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-graham/) > [Look, it's terrible, I know, but weakness really, really bugs me, to the point that if there is a wounded bird on the sidewalk,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/look-it-s-terrible-i-know-but-weakness-really-really-bugs-me-to-the/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [A boy walks on the the side of the sidewalk closest to the street because he wants to keep you safe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-boy-walks-on-the-the-side-of-the-sidewalk-closest-to-the-street/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“He wished he could somehow go back and find the iPhone people whom he'd jostled on the sidewalk earlier, apologize to them - I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-st-john-mandel/he-wished-he-could-somehow-go-back-and-find-the-iphone-people-whom-he/) [Emily St. John Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-st-john-mandel/) ## More by Bill Hicks > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? 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Great comedy provides an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/good-comedy-helps-people-know-they-re-not-alone-great-comedy-provides/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [People ask me what I think about that woman priest thing. What, a woman priest? Women priests. Great, great. Now there's priests of both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/people-ask-me-what-i-think-about-that-woman-priest-thing-what-a-woman/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [Oh sorry, I was taking life seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/oh-sorry-i-was-taking-life-seriously/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [I can't watch TV longer than five minutes without praying for nuclear holocaust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-can-t-watch-tv-longer-than-five-minutes-without-praying-for-nuclear/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [I'm not really a heavy smoker any more. I only get through two lighters a day now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-m-not-really-a-heavy-smoker-any-more-i-only-get-through-two/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [You watch the news these days? It's unbelievable. 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