Amusing Quote by Donald Rumsfeld
“Certainty without power can be interesting, even amusing. Certainty with power can be dangerous.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Press Briefing, US Department of Defense, 2002
Having certainty without authority is harmless curiosity; with authority it becomes risky power.
In simple terms: Certainty is safe alone, dangerous with power.
Key Takeaway
Beware using knowledge to control others.
Themes
power
knowledge
responsibility
Mood
cautious
reflective
Type
political
ethical
When to use this quote
- leadership decisions
- policy making
- media commentary
Key Concepts
ethics
political theory
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you balance confidence with humility?
- When should certainty be questioned?
A Different Perspective
Power can corrupt even accurate beliefs.
![“[A]n Obama presidency would be an amusing approximation of the Carter administration, complete with vaporous moralizing and foreign policy bungling.” quote by Emmett Tyrrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/212/emmett-tyrrell-42438_administration_a-n-obama-presidency-would-be-an-amusing_38310.jpg)
![“It's always amusing to see how much less the political class knows than the rest of us do. ... it's never occurred to [the likes of Senators Brownback and Obama] that they bear a worse stigma than any AIDS patient, being almost universally regarded as blowhards, crooks, dopes, and fools.” quote by Stephen D. Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/fd1/stephen-d-cox-91414_aids_it-s-always-amusing-to-see-how-much-less_62268.jpg)