--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The pornography of tough-mindedness…" description: "\"The pornography of tough-mindedness, covert action, and preparedness for \"peace through strength\" has had a predictably hypnotic effect on the legislat..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/christopher-hitchens-117_action_the-pornography-of-tough-mindedness-cove_1172037.jpg" --- # The pornography of tough-mindedness, covert action, and… ![“The pornography of tough-mindedness, covert action, and preparedness for "peace through strength" has had a predictably hypnotic effect on the legislative branch, turning it from legal watchdog to lapdog.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/christopher-hitchens-117_action_the-pornography-of-tough-mindedness-cove_1172037.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/christopher-hitchens-117_action_the-pornography-of-tough-mindedness-cove_1172037.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63b/christopher-hitchens-117_action_the-pornography-of-tough-mindedness-cove_1172037.jpg) > “The pornography of tough-mindedness, covert action, and preparedness for "peace through strength" has had a predictably hypnotic effect on the legislative branch, turning it from legal watchdog to lapdog.” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A critique of aggressive, militaristic policies that numb legislative oversight, turning it into a compliant entity. **In simple terms:** Strong policies can make lawmakers passive. Key Takeaway Guard legislative independence. Themes politics power militarism Mood critical concerned Type political analytical When to use this quote - legislative oversight - policy debate - government accountability - public discourse Key Concepts authorism political complacency Questions to Reflect On - How can legislators retain critical oversight? - What checks prevent policy from becoming dogmatic? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on strength can ignore nuanced solutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Legislative branch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/legislative-branch/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Peace through strength](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace-through-strength/) [Pornography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pornography/) [Preparedness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preparedness/) ## Related quotes > [Offness yields a hypnotic effect. The brain can see simplistic patterns that lock and it's boring after a while. I don't cater to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-hecker/offness-yields-a-hypnotic-effect-the-brain-can-see-simplistic/) [Tim Hecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-hecker/) > [Cars can have a hypnotic effect. You can get in a car and get out and not really remember the trip.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-gosling/cars-can-have-a-hypnotic-effect-you-can-get-in-a-car-and-get-out-and/) [Ryan Gosling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-gosling/) > [There is something going on in time and space, and beyond time and space, which, whether we like it or not, spells duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/there-is-something-going-on-in-time-and-space-and-beyond-time-and/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [I think I've always believed in Ronald Reagan's adage, "Peace through Strength." Let's grow stronger on a transatlantic basis in our economies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/i-think-i-ve-always-believed-in-ronald-reagan-s-adage-peace-through/) [Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/) > [ I see a comparison between the two \[Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump\]. Peace through strength. What Chris Matthews don't grasp is that day Donald… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudy-giuliani/i-see-a-comparison-between-the-two-ronald-reagan-and-donald-trump/) [Rudy Giuliani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudy-giuliani/) > [Peace through strength works; but the flip side is war invited by weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hegseth/peace-through-strength-works-but-the-flip-side-is-war-invited-by/) [Pete Hegseth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hegseth/) > [Some of the core principles of President Trump are very similar to those of Ronald Reagan. When you look at peace through strength and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reince-priebus/some-of-the-core-principles-of-president-trump-are-very-similar-to/) [Reince Priebus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reince-priebus/) > [We achieve peace through strength, not wokeness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-britt/we-achieve-peace-through-strength-not-wokeness/) [Katie Britt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-britt/) > [Ronald Reagan won the Cold War without firing a shot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-thatcher/ronald-reagan-won-the-cold-war-without-firing-a-shot/) [Margaret Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-thatcher/) > [We will stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power. We will stop that nuclear arms race that could happen in the Middle East. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-jindal/we-will-stop-iran-from-becoming-a-nuclear-power-we-will-stop-that/) [Bobby Jindal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-jindal/) > [I challenge anybody to say that I wouldn't know how to approach foreign policy because, unlike some of the other people, I at least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-cain/i-challenge-anybody-to-say-that-i-wouldn-t-know-how-to-approach/) [Herman Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-cain/) > [Peace through strength works. We've got the greatest military in the world. I want them to dominate any potential conflict.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-jindal/peace-through-strength-works-we-ve-got-the-greatest-military-in-the/) [Bobby Jindal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-jindal/) > [We maintain the peace through our strength; weakness only invites aggression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/we-maintain-the-peace-through-our-strength-weakness-only-invites/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [“President Obama's calls for "a world without nuclear weapons" and for a nuclear "no first use" policy and for a nuclear Comprehensive Test Ban…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-pry/president-obama-s-calls-for-a-world-without-nuclear-weapons-and-for-a/) Peter Pry > [We have to have a strong law enforcement in America. So we do not go abroad in the search of war, we really are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-have-to-have-a-strong-law-enforcement-in-america-so-we-do-not-go/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. 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Why are we praised by godly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/gullibility-and-credulity-are-considered-undesireable-qualities-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More Action quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. 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