--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Those who seek power at any price detect…" description: "\"Those who seek power at any price detect a societal weakness, a fear that they can ride into office.\" — Carl Sagan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg" --- # Those who seek power at any price detect a societal… ![“Those who seek power at any price detect a societal weakness, a fear that they can ride into office.” quote by Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg) > “Those who seek power at any price detect a societal weakness, a fear that they can ride into office.” [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Power seekers exploit collective fears, using them to gain control. **In simple terms:** Power is built on exploiting fear. Key Takeaway Beware fear‑based manipulation. Themes politics psychology leadership Mood cautious critical Type political analytical When to use this quote - elections - campaigns - media narratives Key Concepts fear manipulation authority Questions to Reflect On - What fears are being exploited around you? - How can societies resist fear‑based politics? A Different Perspective Not all power is driven by fear; some seek genuine service. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [Weakness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weakness/) ## Related quotes > [“Those who seek power at any price detect a societal weakness, a fear that they can ride into office. It could be ethnic differences,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect-a-societal-weakness-a-fear/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Men dissimulate their dearest, most constant, and most virtuous inclination from weakness and a fear of being condemned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-de-clapiers/men-dissimulate-their-dearest-most-constant-and-most-virtuous/) [Luc de Clapiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-de-clapiers/) > [That awkward moment when your biggest strength becomes your biggest weakness & the fear of losing someone so precious becomes excruciating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-awkward-moment-when-your-biggest-strength-becomes-your-biggest/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I need a friend, and I have none to whom I can admit my weakness, my fear, my errors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-hobb/i-need-a-friend-and-i-have-none-to-whom-i-can-admit-my-weakness-my/) [Robin Hobb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-hobb/) > [We are born male. We must learn to be men. Remember, strength is a force. It is an attribute of the heart. Its opposite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-nerburn/we-are-born-male-we-must-learn-to-be-men-remember-strength-is-a-force/) [Kent Nerburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-nerburn/) > [Your greatest strength is love. Your greatest weakness is fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/your-greatest-strength-is-love-your-greatest-weakness-is-fear/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [The terrorists thought they would change my aims and stop my ambitions, but nothing changed in my life except this: weakness, fear and hopelessness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malala-yousafzai/the-terrorists-thought-they-would-change-my-aims-and-stop-my/) [Malala Yousafzai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malala-yousafzai/) > [Fear is a confession of weakness. What you fear is stronger than you, or you think it is, else you wouldn't be afraid of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-maud-montgomery/fear-is-a-confession-of-weakness-what-you-fear-is-stronger-than-you/) [Lucy Maud Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-maud-montgomery/) > [Often admitting our weakness and fear is the first step to finding rest in God. Our trust in Him isn't conveyed though superhuman confidence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracie-peterson/often-admitting-our-weakness-and-fear-is-the-first-step-to-finding/) [Tracie Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracie-peterson/) > [What a joy to remember that she is our Mother! 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What the ego sees as weakness is your Being in its purity, innocence, and power. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/resistance-is-weakness-and-fear-masquerading-as-strength-what-the-ego/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [I have found strength where one does not look for it: in simple, mild, and pleasant people, without the least desire to rule --…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/i-have-found-strength-where-one-does-not-look-for-it-in-simple-mild/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“You don't seek power or popularity. You simply ask, is the thing right in itself? If it is, then I must do it, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/you-don-t-seek-power-or-popularity-you-simply-ask-is-the-thing-right/) [J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) ## More by Carl Sagan > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [The prediction of nuclear winter is drawn not, of course, from any direct experience with the consequences of global nuclear war, but rather from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-prediction-of-nuclear-winter-is-drawn-not-of-course-from-any/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [The suppression of uncomfortable ideas may be common in religion or in politics, but it is not the path to knowledge; it has no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/the-suppression-of-uncomfortable-ideas-may-be-common-in-religion-or/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“Telepathy’ literally means to feel at a distance, just as ‘telephone’ is to hear at a distance and ‘television’ is to see at a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/telepathy-literally-means-to-feel-at-a-distance-just-as-telephone-is/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“On the scale of worlds—to say nothing of stars or galaxies—humans are inconsequential, a thin film of life on an obscure and solitary lump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/on-the-scale-of-worlds-to-say-nothing-of-stars-or-galaxies-humans-are/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Every one of us is, in the cosmic perspective, precious. If a human disagrees with you, let him live. In a hundred billion galaxies,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/every-one-of-us-is-in-the-cosmic-perspective-precious-if-a-human/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [In our time, we have sifted the sands of Mars, we have established a presence there, we have fulfilled a century of dreams!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/in-our-time-we-have-sifted-the-sands-of-mars-we-have-established-a/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [ “\[ When a religious couple wrote to Sagan about fulfilled prophecies, he wrote back in May 1996 :\] If ‘fulfilled prophecy’ is your criterion,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/when-a-religious-couple-wrote-to-sagan-about-fulfilled-prophecies-he/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Don't judge everyone else by your own limited experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/don-t-judge-everyone-else-by-your-own-limited-experience/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“Books permit us to voyage through time, to tap the wisdom of our ancestors. The library connects us with the insight and knowledge, painfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/books-permit-us-to-voyage-through-time-to-tap-the-wisdom-of-our/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [We live on a hunk of rock and metal that circles a humdrum star that is one of 400 billion other stars that make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/we-live-on-a-hunk-of-rock-and-metal-that-circles-a-humdrum-star-that/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [A tiny blue dot set in a sunbeam. Here it is. That's where we live. That's home. We humans are one species and this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/a-tiny-blue-dot-set-in-a-sunbeam-here-it-is-that-s-where-we-live-that/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Any sufficiently crisp question can be answered by a single binary digit-0 or 1, yes or no.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/any-sufficiently-crisp-question-can-be-answered-by-a-single-binary/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Humans — who enslave, castrate, experiment on, and fillet other animals — have had an understandable penchant for pretending animals do not feel pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/humans-who-enslave-castrate-experiment-on-and-fillet-other-animals/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [Every star may be a sun to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/every-star-may-be-a-sun-to-someone/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) [Explore all 1,043 Carl Sagan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) ## More Fear quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/) [Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/) > [“...Often that which most we fear births the resolve that spurs us on to altitudes we could not have achieved, had we continued walking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-t-anderson/often-that-which-most-we-fear-births-the-resolve-that-spurs-us-on-to/) [M.T. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-t-anderson/) > [What an incredible drug fear is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/what-an-incredible-drug-fear-is/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“Anything that you find yourself worrying about regularly may find you suddenly wanting unrealistic changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nagisa-tatsumi/anything-that-you-find-yourself-worrying-about-regularly-may-find-you/) Nagisa Tatsumi > [“We all know how the thing we secretly fear is not a secret at all but the open and eternal thing that predicts its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-all-know-how-the-thing-we-secretly-fear-is-not-a-secret-at-all-but/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [“I had nowhere to go and did not wish to be seen by anyone for fear they would recognize my sadness and so for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-had-nowhere-to-go-and-did-not-wish-to-be-seen-by-anyone-for-fear/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [“Snip off the little worries and expressions of worry” like little branches atop a tall tree.28 If you are truly worried, sharing your concerns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-sanders/snip-off-the-little-worries-and-expressions-of-worry-like-little/) [Tim Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-sanders/) > [“Fear and desire for pleasure. Aggressiveness comes out of fear, predominantly, and sexuality predominantly out of the other. But they mix in the middle.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-french/fear-and-desire-for-pleasure-aggressiveness-comes-out-of-fear/) [Marilyn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-french/) > [“Carrie Fisher. “Stay afraid, but do it anyway.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-union/carrie-fisher-stay-afraid-but-do-it-anyway/) [Gabrielle Union](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-union/) > [“Yes, the issue was courage. It always had been, even as a kid. Things scared him. He couldn't help it. Noise scared him, dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/yes-the-issue-was-courage-it-always-had-been-even-as-a-kid-things/) [Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/) > [Don't be afraid of hard work. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Don't let others discourage you or tell you that you can't do it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-b-elion/don-t-be-afraid-of-hard-work-nothing-worthwhile-comes-easily-don-t/) [Gertrude B. Elion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-b-elion/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) [Browse all 35,569 Fear quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Those who seek power at any price detect a societal weakness, a fear that they can ride into office.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carl Sagan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect-a-societal-weakness-a-fear-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fear" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect-a-societal-weakness-a-fear-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56c/carl-sagan-160_fear_those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect_488978.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Those who seek power at any price detect a societal weakness, a fear that they can ride into office.” — Carl Sagan", "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": "Carl Sagan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Those who seek power at any...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect-a-societal-weakness-a-fear-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/those-who-seek-power-at-any-price-detect-a-societal-weakness-a-fear-2/#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 } } ] } ```