--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The important prediction is not the…" description: "\"The important prediction is not the automobile, but the parking problem; not radio, but the soap opera; not the income tax, but the expense account; no..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c25/isaac-asimov-309_accounts_the-important-prediction-is-not-the-auto_2616418.jpg" --- # The important prediction is not the automobile, but the… ![“The important prediction is not the automobile, but the parking problem; not radio, but the soap opera; not the income tax, but the expense account; not the Bomb, but the nuclear stalemate” quote by Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c25/isaac-asimov-309_accounts_the-important-prediction-is-not-the-auto_2616418.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c25/isaac-asimov-309_accounts_the-important-prediction-is-not-the-auto_2616418.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c25/isaac-asimov-309_accounts_the-important-prediction-is-not-the-auto_2616418.jpg) > “The important prediction is not the automobile, but the parking problem; not radio, but the soap opera; not the income tax, but the expense account; not the Bomb, but the nuclear stalemate” [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Technological issues shift focus from devices to systemic problems. **In simple terms:** Problems matter more than gadgets. Key Takeaway Address underlying systemic challenges. Themes technology problem solving systems Mood critical inquisitive Type philosophical strategic When to use this quote - urban planning - energy policy - media regulation Key Concepts externalities infrastructure regulation Questions to Reflect On - What systemic issue is most overlooked today? - How can we prioritize systemic over device solutions? A Different Perspective Solutions may require complex coordination across sectors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accounts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accounts/) [Automobile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/automobile/) [Bombs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/) [Expenses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expenses/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Important Prediction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-prediction-2072632/) [Income](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/income/) [Income tax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/income-tax/) [Nuclear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear/) [Nuclear Stalemate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear-stalemate-2072634/) [Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera/) [Parking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parking/) [Prediction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prediction/) [Prediction Automobile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prediction-automobile-2072633/) [Predictions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/predictions/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Radio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radio/) [Soap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soap/) [Soap opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soap-opera/) [Soap operas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soap-operas/) [Stalemate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stalemate/) [Taxes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taxes/) ## Related quotes > [All My Children taught me a great work ethic; you work so hard on a soap opera! 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Think about that on the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanford-meisner/being-an-actor-is-a-religious-calling-because-you-ve-been-given-the/) [Sanford Meisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanford-meisner/) > [Most of my escapades were getting my Labrador dog into the back of my car to drive to Brooklyn where I worked at Avenue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-heche/most-of-my-escapades-were-getting-my-labrador-dog-into-the-back-of-my/) [Anne Heche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-heche/) > [Baseball is a soap opera that plays out day after day, one that a lot of elderly women watch until the characters and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hope/baseball-is-a-soap-opera-that-plays-out-day-after-day-one-that-a-lot/) [Bob Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hope/) > [If life is a soap opera you shouldn't be in too much of a hurry to get to the final credits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/if-life-is-a-soap-opera-you-shouldn-t-be-in-too-much-of-a-hurry-to/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The Holocaust is not a cheap soap opera. The Holocaust is not a romantic novel. It is something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/the-holocaust-is-not-a-cheap-soap-opera-the-holocaust-is-not-a/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Politics in a democratic society should not be treated like a baseball game, a game show or a soap opera. The times are too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/politics-in-a-democratic-society-should-not-be-treated-like-a/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [You could probably prove, by judicious use of logarithms and congruent triangles, that real life is a lot more like soap opera than most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/you-could-probably-prove-by-judicious-use-of-logarithms-and-congruent/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [I am a living soap opera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-graham/i-am-a-living-soap-opera/) [Virginia Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-graham/) > [Man's deliberate destruction of his own habitat -- planet Earth -- could serve as a mighty theme for a mighty book worthy of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/man-s-deliberate-destruction-of-his-own-habitat-planet-earth-could/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [During the 1970s and 1980s, the popular television soap opera As The World Turns portrayed sunrise during the opening credits and sunset during the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/during-the-1970s-and-1980s-the-popular-television-soap-opera-as-the/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Life beats down and crushes our souls and theatre reminds us that we have one. At least the type of theatre that I'm interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanford-meisner/life-beats-down-and-crushes-our-souls-and-theatre-reminds-us-that-we/) [Sanford Meisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanford-meisner/) > [The only way to stave off boredom, in a complex domesticated primate like humankind, is to increase one's intelligence. This is not appealing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/the-only-way-to-stave-off-boredom-in-a-complex-domesticated-primate/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [“A soap opera character on the bar TV says, "You killed him, you smothered him with doughnuts!" 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