--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I feel like I'm a compassionate guy, but…" description: "\"I feel like I'm a compassionate guy, but I also feel if somebody's grip on life or sanity is so tenuous that a joke in an advice column that usually is..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85d/dan-savage-2880_advice_i-feel-like-i-m-a-compassionate-guy-but_523742.jpg" --- # I feel like I'm a compassionate guy, but I also feel if… ![“I feel like I'm a compassionate guy, but I also feel if somebody's grip on life or sanity is so tenuous that a joke in an advice column that usually is nothing but jokes pushes them over the edge, then if not me, it would have been a leaf blowing past them that did it, or something else. You…” quote by Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85d/dan-savage-2880_advice_i-feel-like-i-m-a-compassionate-guy-but_523742.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85d/dan-savage-2880_advice_i-feel-like-i-m-a-compassionate-guy-but_523742.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85d/dan-savage-2880_advice_i-feel-like-i-m-a-compassionate-guy-but_523742.jpg) > “I feel like I'm a compassionate guy, but I also feel if somebody's grip on life or sanity is so tenuous that a joke in an advice column that usually is nothing but jokes pushes them over the edge, then if not me, it would have been a leaf blowing past them that did it, or something else. You almost have to feel that way, doing this.” [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker worries that their humor might unintentionally harm vulnerable people, feeling responsible for the impact of their words. **In simple terms:** Worried jokes could hurt fragile people. Key Takeaway Consider the effect of humor on others. Themes responsibility empathy communication Mood reflective concerned Type ethical cautionary When to use this quote - advice columns - stand‑up comedy - online comments - personal relationships - mental health advocacy Key Concepts psychology social impact ethical humor Questions to Reflect On - How do you gauge when humor is safe? - What boundaries can protect vulnerable audiences? A Different Perspective Humor can be misinterpreted, and not all harm is predictable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advice/) [Columns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/columns/) [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Compassion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassion/) [Compassionate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassionate/) [Compassionate Guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compassionate-guy-4414365/) [Edges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edges/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guy/) [Guy Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guy-feel-323798/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jokes/) [Jokes Pushes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jokes-pushes-4414366/) [Leafs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leafs/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Like Compassionate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-compassionate-1343071/) [Over the edge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over-the-edge/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Sanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanity/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [“And honestly, after all those images on the six o’clock news of the horrible things going on in Alabama and Mississippi, I wanted Paris…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-gabriel/and-honestly-after-all-those-images-on-the-six-o-clock-news-of-the/) [Susan Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-gabriel/) > [“may not sound like the most compassionate philosophy in the world, but let me tell you, there’s nothing compassionate about letting yourself get sucked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-olson/may-not-sound-like-the-most-compassionate-philosophy-in-the-world-but/) [Jeff Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-olson/) > [I don't write about my life in my column.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/i-don-t-write-about-my-life-in-my-column/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [Sometimes I talk to religious people about my column or what I do, and I ask them to, you know, read 20 or 30…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/sometimes-i-talk-to-religious-people-about-my-column-or-what-i-do-and/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [I started doing drag in Seattle because I started doing my column before I moved here, and then moved here and wanted to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/i-started-doing-drag-in-seattle-because-i-started-doing-my-column/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [I don't know I really love u or not. 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