--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do not think it is \"selling America…" description: "\"I do not think it is \"selling America short\" when we ask a great deal of her; on the contrary, it is those who ask nothing, those who see no fault, who..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/j-william-fulbright-7682_america_i-do-not-think-it-is-selling-america-sho_1387990.png" --- # I do not think it is "selling America short" when we ask a… ![“I do not think it is "selling America short" when we ask a great deal of her; on the contrary, it is those who ask nothing, those who see no fault, who are really selling America short!” quote by J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/j-william-fulbright-7682_america_i-do-not-think-it-is-selling-america-sho_1387990.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/j-william-fulbright-7682_america_i-do-not-think-it-is-selling-america-sho_1387990.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/j-william-fulbright-7682_america_i-do-not-think-it-is-selling-america-sho_1387990.png) > “I do not think it is "selling America short" when we ask a great deal of her; on the contrary, it is those who ask nothing, those who see no fault, who are really selling America short!” [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Asking too much of America is not the problem; the real issue is complacency and failure to critique, which undermines the nation's potential. **In simple terms:** Complacency harms America more than high expectations. Key Takeaway Challenge complacency. Themes civic duty patriotism critique responsibility national identity Mood motivational serious Type civic inspirational When to use this quote - public policy debates - education reform - media criticism - community engagement Key Concepts political science ethics social activism Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities do citizens have to critique? - How can constructive criticism strengthen a nation? A Different Perspective Some may view criticism as unpatriotic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Selling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selling/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [The collective memory of America is short.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-fountain/the-collective-memory-of-america-is-short/) [Ben Fountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-fountain/) > [I know people said I wasn't selling out in America, but that was entirely untrue. We sold out all over the world, and every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/i-know-people-said-i-wasn-t-selling-out-in-america-but-that-was/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [Is it really selling out if it feeds your family?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-madsen/is-it-really-selling-out-if-it-feeds-your-family/) [Michael Madsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-madsen/) > [Once you become a producer, you're really selling something. It is a control issue, because you don't really know how it's going to pan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-cohen/once-you-become-a-producer-you-re-really-selling-something-it-is-a/) [Scott Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-cohen/) > [What you don't necessarily realize when you start selling your time by the hour is that what you're really selling is your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-ehrenreich/what-you-don-t-necessarily-realize-when-you-start-selling-your-time/) [Barbara Ehrenreich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-ehrenreich/) > [Many a man thinks he is buying pleasure, when he is really selling himself to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/many-a-man-thinks-he-is-buying-pleasure-when-he-is-really-selling/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“As long as you’re trying to be someone else, or putting on some act or behavior someone else taught you, you have no possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-burg-and-john-david-mann/as-long-as-you-re-trying-to-be-someone-else-or-putting-on-some-act-or/) Bob Burg and John David Mann > [Sometimes I think about selling 90% of everything I own. I think it would be liberating. -D.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-michael-hardy/sometimes-i-think-about-selling-90-of-everything-i-own-i-think-it/) [D Michael Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-michael-hardy/) > [I regard it as a waste of time to think only of selling: one forgets one's art and exaggerates one's value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-pissarro/i-regard-it-as-a-waste-of-time-to-think-only-of-selling-one-forgets/) [Camille Pissarro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-pissarro/) > [I don't think you're selling out by allowing the masses to love your art. The only curse is that, when you get so big,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scooter-braun/i-don-t-think-you-re-selling-out-by-allowing-the-masses-to-love-your/) [Scooter Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scooter-braun/) > [I find it hard to think of myself as selling books. I don't even have a Web site. I want to sit and write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-find-it-hard-to-think-of-myself-as-selling-books-i-don-t-even-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Always be yourself despite what others think. If you're not selling the real you to people, you're selling yourself short.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/always-be-yourself-despite-what-others-think-if-you-re-not-selling/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [I think that selling rights is a bad move commercially, not just morally. It cheapens the songs. When people come to my concerts, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mccartney/i-think-that-selling-rights-is-a-bad-move-commercially-not-just/) [Paul McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mccartney/) > [I love Michael Bay movies. I don't think I'd be selling out if I did one. I happen to like his movies. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-minghella/i-love-michael-bay-movies-i-don-t-think-i-d-be-selling-out-if-i-did/) [Max Minghella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-minghella/) > [When I paint, I never think of selling. People simply fail to understand that we paint in order to experiment and to develop ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-munch/when-i-paint-i-never-think-of-selling-people-simply-fail-to/) [Edvard Munch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edvard-munch/) ## More by J. William Fulbright > [There has been a tendency through the years for reason and moderation to prevail as long as things are going tolerably well or as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/there-has-been-a-tendency-through-the-years-for-reason-and-moderation/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [One simply cannot engage in barbarous action without becoming a barbarian, because one cannot defend human values by calculated and unprovoked violence without doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/one-simply-cannot-engage-in-barbarous-action-without-becoming-a/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [It is amazing how soon one becomes accustomed to the sound of ones voice, when forced to repeat a speech five or six times…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/it-is-amazing-how-soon-one-becomes-accustomed-to-the-sound-of-ones/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [What a curious picture it is to find man, homo sapiens, of divine origin, we are told, seriously considering going underground to escape the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/what-a-curious-picture-it-is-to-find-man-homo-sapiens-of-divine/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [Educational exchange can turn nations into people, contributing as no other form of communication can to the humanizing of international relations. Man's capacity for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/educational-exchange-can-turn-nations-into-people-contributing-as-no/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [In the name of noble purposes men have committed unspeakable acts of cruelty against one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/in-the-name-of-noble-purposes-men-have-committed-unspeakable-acts-of/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [Insofar as it represents a genuine reconciliation of differences, a consensus is a fine thing; insofar as it represents a concealment of differences, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/insofar-as-it-represents-a-genuine-reconciliation-of-differences-a/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [Insofar as international law is observed, it provides us with stability and order and with a means of predicting the behavior of those with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/insofar-as-international-law-is-observed-it-provides-us-with/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [The age of warrior kings and of warrior presidents has passed. The nuclear age calls for a different kind of leadership… a leadership of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/the-age-of-warrior-kings-and-of-warrior-presidents-has-passed-the/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [We must dare to think 'unthinkable' thoughts. We must learn to explore all the options and possibilities that confront us in a complex and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/we-must-dare-to-think-unthinkable-thoughts-we-must-learn-to-explore/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [International educational exchange is the most significant current project designed to continue the process of humanizing mankind to the point, we would hope, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/international-educational-exchange-is-the-most-significant-current/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [ To give \[the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba\] even covert support is on a par with the hypocrisy and cynicism for which the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/to-give-the-bay-of-pigs-invasion-of-cuba-even-covert-support-is-on-a/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > […Man's struggle to be rational about himself, about his relationship to his own society and to other peoples and nations involves a constant search…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/man-s-struggle-to-be-rational-about-himself-about-his-relationship-to/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [I do not question the power of our weapons and the efficiency of our logistics; I cannot say these things delight me as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/i-do-not-question-the-power-of-our-weapons-and-the-efficiency-of-our/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [The Soviet Union has indeed been our greatest menace - not so much because of what it has done, but because of the excuses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/the-soviet-union-has-indeed-been-our-greatest-menace-not-so-much/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) [Explore all 88 J. William Fulbright quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. 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