--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Big government is indeed big, and like…" description: "\"Big government is indeed big, and like another big creature, the sauropod dinosaur, government has a primitive nervous system: The fact of an injury to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png" --- # Big government is indeed big, and like another big… ![“Big government is indeed big, and like another big creature, the sauropod dinosaur, government has a primitive nervous system: The fact of an injury to the tail could take nearly a minute to be communicated to the sauropod brain.” quote by George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png) > “Big government is indeed big, and like another big creature, the sauropod dinosaur, government has a primitive nervous system: The fact of an injury to the tail could take nearly a minute to be communicated to the sauropod brain.” [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Large governments react slowly to problems, much like a sauropod’s nervous system, leading to delayed responses. **In simple terms:** Big governments are slow to respond. Key Takeaway Expect and plan for bureaucratic delay. Themes government bureaucracy efficiency delay Mood concerned thoughtful Type political analytical When to use this quote - policy implementation - crisis management - public services Key Concepts systems theory organizational behavior Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens influence faster action? - What reforms could speed up communication? A Different Perspective Slow response can worsen crises if not mitigated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Big government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-government/) [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Dinosaur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinosaur/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Injury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injury/) [Nervous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nervous/) [Nervous system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nervous-system/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Primitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/primitive/) [System](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/system/) ## Related quotes > [A caveman took a shell, and maybe it had a hole in it, or maybe he put a hole in it, and he put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-jay-lane/a-caveman-took-a-shell-and-maybe-it-had-a-hole-in-it-or-maybe-he-put/) [Kenneth Jay Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-jay-lane/) > [You can have very big local government. By big, I mean very engaged government. Do you measure it in terms of the number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zephyr-teachout/you-can-have-very-big-local-government-by-big-i-mean-very-engaged/) [Zephyr Teachout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zephyr-teachout/) > [“The opposite of Big Government is not small government, but Big Liberty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/the-opposite-of-big-government-is-not-small-government-but-big-liberty/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [I say that when you elect a president you want a man to manage the legitimate business of your government. The government that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/i-say-that-when-you-elect-a-president-you-want-a-man-to-manage-the/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [Through an unwieldy combination of big government, big military, big business, big labor and big cities, we have created an unworkable mega-nation which defies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-naylor/through-an-unwieldy-combination-of-big-government-big-military-big/) [Thomas Naylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-naylor/) > [Once we roared like lions for liberty; now we bleat like sheep for security! The solution for America's problem is not in terms of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/once-we-roared-like-lions-for-liberty-now-we-bleat-like-sheep-for/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [Obama promised a return to competence and confidence and asked the nation to believe again that the government could do big things well. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-gibbs/obama-promised-a-return-to-competence-and-confidence-and-asked-the/) [Nancy Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-gibbs/) > [“...small government gives you big freedoms--and Big Government leaves you with very little freedom. The opposite of Big Government is not small government, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/small-government-gives-you-big-freedoms-and-big-government-leaves-you/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [Talk about threats to national security -- how about government so big, so complicated and so unmanageable, it cant get out of its own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-schieffer/talk-about-threats-to-national-security-how-about-government-so-big/) [Bob Schieffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-schieffer/) > [A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/a-government-big-enough-to-give-you-everything-you-want-is-big-enough/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) > [The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether government works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-question-we-ask-today-is-not-whether-our-government-is-too-big-or/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [During the socialist period, the government became too big. That created a crowding-out effect in the private economy, and it gave everybody the need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonis-samaras/during-the-socialist-period-the-government-became-too-big-that/) [Antonis Samaras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonis-samaras/) > [“You can't be for big government, big taxes, and big bureaucracy and still be for wealth creation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/you-can-t-be-for-big-government-big-taxes-and-big-bureaucracy-and/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [Government is so big today that more than half the population gets a major part of its income from the state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stossel/government-is-so-big-today-that-more-than-half-the-population-gets-a/) [John Stossel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stossel/) > [Remember that a government big enough to give you everything you want is also big enough to take away everything you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-goldwater/remember-that-a-government-big-enough-to-give-you-everything-you-want/) [Barry Goldwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-goldwater/) ## More by George Will > [The average American expends more time becoming informed about choosing a car than choosing a candidate. But, then, the consequences of the former choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-average-american-expends-more-time-becoming-informed-about/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Pettiness is the tendency of people without large purposes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/pettiness-is-the-tendency-of-people-without-large-purposes/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [A politician's words reveal less about what he thinks about his subject than what he thinks about his audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/a-politician-s-words-reveal-less-about-what-he-thinks-about-his/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [As has been said, standards are always out of date - that is why we call them standards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/as-has-been-said-standards-are-always-out-of-date-that-is-why-we-call/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Hart is still like that little tub of vaguely milklike gunk that comes with airline coffee. It is labeled a "nondairy" product. Fine: we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/hart-is-still-like-that-little-tub-of-vaguely-milklike-gunk-that/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [The realistic way to reduce the amount of money in politics is to reduce the amount of politics in money -- the importance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-realistic-way-to-reduce-the-amount-of-money-in-politics-is-to/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [It is important that Miers not be confirmed unless, in her 61st year, she suddenly and unexpectedly is found to have hitherto undisclosed interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/it-is-important-that-miers-not-be-confirmed-unless-in-her-61st-year/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Greek philosophers considered sport a religious and civic-in a word, moral-undertaking. Sport, they said, is morally serious because mankind's noblest aim is the loving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/greek-philosophers-considered-sport-a-religious-and-civic-in-a-word/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [The cultivation - even celebration - of victimhood by intellectuals, tort lawyers, politicians and the media is both cause and effect of today's culture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-cultivation-even-celebration-of-victimhood-by-intellectuals-tort/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [When I'm in my car, I'm listening to books, audio books, always.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/when-i-m-in-my-car-i-m-listening-to-books-audio-books-always/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Just as the common law derives from ancient precedents - judges' decisions - rather than statutes, baseball's codes are the game's distilled mores. Their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/just-as-the-common-law-derives-from-ancient-precedents-judges/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [“Football combines two of the worst things in American life. It is violence punctuated by committee meetings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/football-combines-two-of-the-worst-things-in-american-life-it-is/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [I've lived in Washington now for 44 years, and that's a lot of folly to witness up close. Whatever confidence and optimism I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/i-ve-lived-in-washington-now-for-44-years-and-that-s-a-lot-of-folly/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [The business of America is not business. Neither is it war. The business of america is justice and securing the blessings of liberty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/the-business-of-america-is-not-business-neither-is-it-war-the/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Freedom is not only the absence of external restraints. It is also the absence of irresistible internal compulsions, unmanageable passion, and uncensorable highlights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/freedom-is-not-only-the-absence-of-external-restraints-it-is-also-the/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) [Explore all 279 George Will quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) ## More Another quotes > [I guess I've never really wanted to be anything else. I've never even thought about having another job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/owen-farrell/i-guess-i-ve-never-really-wanted-to-be-anything-else-i-ve-never-even/) [Owen Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/owen-farrell/) > [I take the responsibility of playing another ethnicity very, very seriously, and I promise myself and those people that I will represent them with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/i-take-the-responsibility-of-playing-another-ethnicity-very-very/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [I write the way you might arrange flowers. Not every try works, but each one launches another. Every constraint, even dullness, frees up a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/i-write-the-way-you-might-arrange-flowers-not-every-try-works-but/) [Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/) > [I have to mention that Taapsee and Ayushmann are my favorite actors - or stars, whatever you call them. I love them. Our thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anubhav-sinha/i-have-to-mention-that-taapsee-and-ayushmann-are-my-favorite-actors/) [Anubhav Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anubhav-sinha/) > [When a person partners with God in delivering a miracle to another person, they have done what they were supposed to do; God can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-wilkinson/when-a-person-partners-with-god-in-delivering-a-miracle-to-another/) [Bruce Wilkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-wilkinson/) > [I went through a string of A&R men who all thought I should be doing something different. One thought I should be a dance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/i-went-through-a-string-of-a-r-men-who-all-thought-i-should-be-doing/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [New York is so serious about the creation of work. Everything is happening so fast, it feels like there's another studio, another session on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diplo/new-york-is-so-serious-about-the-creation-of-work-everything-is/) [Diplo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diplo/) > [The fact of the matter is that the Internet has brought together millions of people who trust one another for reasons that are unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-huh/the-fact-of-the-matter-is-that-the-internet-has-brought-together/) [Ben Huh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-huh/) > [Everything about Washington is inconsistent, because they say one thing and do another, which is what my opponent, Claire McCaskill, is very, very good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-steelman/everything-about-washington-is-inconsistent-because-they-say-one/) [Sarah Steelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-steelman/) > [In Tunisia, the so-called Yasmin revolution has led to the installation of a relatively moderate Islamic government. Whether or not that means democracy will,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-van-creveld/in-tunisia-the-so-called-yasmin-revolution-has-led-to-the/) [Martin Van Creveld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-van-creveld/) > [I refuse to be one of those artists who, 10 years from now, they're bitter about the rise and the fall of their career.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-bryan/i-refuse-to-be-one-of-those-artists-who-10-years-from-now-they-re/) [Luke Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-bryan/) > [One death to a man is a serious thing: a dozen neutralize one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-francis-burton/one-death-to-a-man-is-a-serious-thing-a-dozen-neutralize-one-another/) [Richard Francis Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-francis-burton/) > [I don't know one note from another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-williams/i-don-t-know-one-note-from-another/) [Hank Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-williams/) > [I like to watch the Fox News Network. I like 'Nightline.' I like to watch 'The Sopranos,' of course. That is one of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-estrada/i-like-to-watch-the-fox-news-network-i-like-nightline-i-like-to-watch/) [Erik Estrada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-estrada/) > [When you write a book, people legitimise it by actually reading the book and so it's almost okay to write another one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-macken/when-you-write-a-book-people-legitimise-it-by-actually-reading-the/) [Eoin Macken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-macken/) Browse all 2,784 Another quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Big government is indeed big, and like another big creature, the sauropod dinosaur, government has a primitive nervous system: The fact of an injury to the tail could take nearly a minute to be communicated to the sauropod brain.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George Will" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-another-big-creature-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Another" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-another-big-creature-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b6/george-will-1177_another_big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-an_1353761.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Big government is indeed big, and like another big creature, the sauropod dinosaur, government has a…” — George Will", "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": "George Will", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Big government is indeed big, and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-another-big-creature-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/big-government-is-indeed-big-and-like-another-big-creature-the/#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 } } ] } ```