--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It used to be the custom in this country…" description: "\"It used to be the custom in this country that when you had made a career and were mature in judgment, you went to the Senate to give something back t t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/gore-vidal-466_age_it-used-to-be-the-custom-in-this-country_2952658.jpg" --- # It used to be the custom in this country that when you had… ![“It used to be the custom in this country that when you had made a career and were mature in judgment, you went to the Senate to give something back t the Republic. The idea that at age 25 you go out and buy a blow dryer and starting running for office is not what the founders had in mind” quote by Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/gore-vidal-466_age_it-used-to-be-the-custom-in-this-country_2952658.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/gore-vidal-466_age_it-used-to-be-the-custom-in-this-country_2952658.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a58/gore-vidal-466_age_it-used-to-be-the-custom-in-this-country_2952658.jpg) > “It used to be the custom in this country that when you had made a career and were mature in judgment, you went to the Senate to give something back t the Republic. The idea that at age 25 you go out and buy a blow dryer and starting running for office is not what the founders had in mind” [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Historical expectation was senior, experienced leaders serving the Republic, not youthful entrepreneurs. **In simple terms:** Founders expected mature leaders. Key Takeaway Respect experience in public service. Themes politics history leadership experience tradition Mood critical thoughtful Type political reflective When to use this quote - running for office - career shifts - entrepreneurship Key Concepts civic duty seniority public service Questions to Reflect On - What balance is needed? - How can young leaders earn trust? A Different Perspective Youthful ambition may clash with tradition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Customs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customs/) [Dryers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dryers/) [Founders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/founders/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Judgment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judgment/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [Republic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/republic/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Running for office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running-for-office/) [Senate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/senate/) ## Related quotes > [“But this republic idea sounds like an improvement over our current”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/but-this-republic-idea-sounds-like-an-improvement-over-our-current/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“best practices are useful reference points, but they must come with a warning label : The more you rely on external intelligence, the less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyan-nagpal/best-practices-are-useful-reference-points-but-they-must-come-with-a/) [Gyan Nagpal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gyan-nagpal/) > [I went to the Senate, accomplished nothing as usual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clara-barton/i-went-to-the-senate-accomplished-nothing-as-usual/) [Clara Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clara-barton/) > [“Julius Caesar’s overthrow of the Roman Senate and Republic as an illustration of how important it is to make sure no one person is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-dalio/julius-caesar-s-overthrow-of-the-roman-senate-and-republic-as-an/) [Ray Dalio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-dalio/) > [I'm convinced that what kids need today are parents - not buddies. 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Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the Vietcong are correct in wanting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/many-people-in-the-united-states-happen-to-believe-that-united-states/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“It is curious how little interested we are in the sexual desires of those who do not attract us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-little-interested-we-are-in-the-sexual-desires-of/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/style-is-knowing-who-you-are-what-you-want-to-say-and-not-giving-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The oligarchs think that the people are both dangerous and stupid. Their point is moot. 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Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/as-societies-grow-decadent-the-language-grows-decadent-too-words-are/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Rome ... at its most decadent, had never thought of hiring an actor to go through the motions of being an emperor while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/rome-at-its-most-decadent-had-never-thought-of-hiring-an-actor-to-go/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [History is nothing but gossip about the past, with the hope that it might be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/history-is-nothing-but-gossip-about-the-past-with-the-hope-that-it/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The malady of civilized man is his knowledge of death. 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Even their sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-do-not-admire-the-people-as-such-no-one-really-does-their-folk/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“One of the problems of a society as tightly controlled as ours is that we get so little information about what those of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/one-of-the-problems-of-a-society-as-tightly-controlled-as-ours-is/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Explore all 539 Gore Vidal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. 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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/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. 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