---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always thought this time travel was a…"
description: "\"“I always thought this time travel was a bad business,” the constable observed dryly, taking a sip from his lemonade.”\" — Joel Van Valin"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg"
---

#  I always thought this time travel was a bad business,” the…

![“I always thought this time travel was a bad business,” the constable observed dryly, taking a sip from his lemonade.” quote by Joel Van Valin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg)

> ““I always thought this time travel was a bad business,” the constable observed dryly, taking a sip from his lemonade.””

[Joel Van Valin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-van-valin/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A character jokes that time travel is unprofitable, highlighting skepticism about futuristic ventures.

**In simple terms:** Time travel seems like a bad business.

Key Takeaway

Question skeptical claims about new tech.

Themes

skepticism humor technology

Mood

wry lighthearted

Type

literary dialogue

When to use this quote

- Science fiction writing
- business pitch
- casual conversation

Key Concepts

Economic risk future studies

Questions to Reflect On

- Is skepticism always justified?
- When does humor mask deeper doubts?

A Different Perspective

Humor may downplay genuine concerns about innovation.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bad business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-business/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Constable Observed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constable-observed-4938624/) [Lemonade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lemonade/) [Sip Lemonade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sip-lemonade-2840912/) [Taking Sip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taking-sip-2942986/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-travel/) [Travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/travel/)

## Related quotes

> [“God doesn't come to sit on the porch and sip lemonade. He comes to take over.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayana-mathis/god-doesn-t-come-to-sit-on-the-porch-and-sip-lemonade-he-comes-to/)

[Ayana Mathis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayana-mathis/)

> [“I couldn't find my cup of tea. So probably, I've been simply taking a sip from everyone else's cup. May be it shouldn't matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanhita-baruah/i-couldn-t-find-my-cup-of-tea-so-probably-i-ve-been-simply-taking-a/)

[Sanhita Baruah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanhita-baruah/)

> [“I set my controller in my lap and lean back, taking another sip of my beer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-proby/i-set-my-controller-in-my-lap-and-lean-back-taking-another-sip-of-my/)

[Kristen Proby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-proby/)

> [I know my grandfather drank occasionally socially, what we call "taking a sip." And my father never touched the bottle. He condemned my grandfather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-c-driskell/i-know-my-grandfather-drank-occasionally-socially-what-we-call-taking/)

[David C. Driskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-c-driskell/)

> [But why didn't you just ask me?" I set down my fork and glare at her. "Because you were sleeping," She says, taking a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyson-noel/but-why-didn-t-you-just-ask-me-i-set-down-my-fork-and-glare-at-her/)

[Alyson Noel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyson-noel/)

> [“Do you think she’ll shoot him?” Ian asked. “’Cause that would likely be bad for business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenn-mckinlay/do-you-think-she-ll-shoot-him-ian-asked-cause-that-would-likely-be/)

[Jenn McKinlay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenn-mckinlay/)

> [I got screwed over in some bad business deals, but as long as I focused on those past problems, I couldn't move forward. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-pavlina/i-got-screwed-over-in-some-bad-business-deals-but-as-long-as-i/)

[Steve Pavlina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-pavlina/)

> [Buying a share of a good business is better than buying a share of a bad business. One way to do this is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/buying-a-share-of-a-good-business-is-better-than-buying-a-share-of-a/)

[Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/)

> [“Eugene, Eugene, Eugene, this is a bad business!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/eugene-eugene-eugene-this-is-a-bad-business/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [Economically considered, war and revolution are always bad business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/economically-considered-war-and-revolution-are-always-bad-business/)

[Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/)

> [Discrimination , in all its forms, is bad for business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/discrimination-in-all-its-forms-is-bad-for-business/)

[Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/)

> [“If you’ve invented something new but you haven’t invented an effective way to sell it, you have a bad business—no matter how good the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/if-you-ve-invented-something-new-but-you-haven-t-invented-an/)

[Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/)

> [I don't want to say that most rock bands live these formulaic biography existences - but they kinda do. There's always a divorce. There's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-grohl/i-don-t-want-to-say-that-most-rock-bands-live-these-formulaic/)

[Dave Grohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-grohl/)

> [Books were always important. I have to thank my father, he filled my life with books. He didn't write but he always read. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/books-were-always-important-i-have-to-thank-my-father-he-filled-my/)

[Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

## More by Joel Van Valin

> [“It was rather like being in Europe, he thought.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-van-valin/it-was-rather-like-being-in-europe-he-thought/)

[Joel Van Valin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-van-valin/)

> [“We’re not in Rochester either, Jimmy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-van-valin/we-re-not-in-rochester-either-jimmy/)

[Joel Van Valin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-van-valin/)

[Explore all 3 Joel Van Valin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-van-valin/)

## More Bad business quotes

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [Books were always important. I have to thank my father, he filled my life with books. He didn't write but he always read. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/books-were-always-important-i-have-to-thank-my-father-he-filled-my/)

[Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/)

> [I don't want to say that most rock bands live these formulaic biography existences - but they kinda do. There's always a divorce. There's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-grohl/i-don-t-want-to-say-that-most-rock-bands-live-these-formulaic/)

[Dave Grohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-grohl/)

> [“If you’ve invented something new but you haven’t invented an effective way to sell it, you have a bad business—no matter how good the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/if-you-ve-invented-something-new-but-you-haven-t-invented-an/)

[Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/)

> [Discrimination , in all its forms, is bad for business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/discrimination-in-all-its-forms-is-bad-for-business/)

[Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/)

> [Economically considered, war and revolution are always bad business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/economically-considered-war-and-revolution-are-always-bad-business/)

[Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/)

> [“Eugene, Eugene, Eugene, this is a bad business!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/eugene-eugene-eugene-this-is-a-bad-business/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [Buying a share of a good business is better than buying a share of a bad business. One way to do this is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/buying-a-share-of-a-good-business-is-better-than-buying-a-share-of-a/)

[Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/)

> [I got screwed over in some bad business deals, but as long as I focused on those past problems, I couldn't move forward. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-pavlina/i-got-screwed-over-in-some-bad-business-deals-but-as-long-as-i/)

[Steve Pavlina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-pavlina/)

> [“Do you think she’ll shoot him?” Ian asked. “’Cause that would likely be bad for business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenn-mckinlay/do-you-think-she-ll-shoot-him-ian-asked-cause-that-would-likely-be/)

[Jenn McKinlay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenn-mckinlay/)

> [I've had some bad business lessons and learned some things. It's not always about going platinum. So long as I know who is buying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mannie-fresh/i-ve-had-some-bad-business-lessons-and-learned-some-things-it-s-not/)

[Mannie Fresh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mannie-fresh/)

> [Taking something less than market value to be somewhere you don't want to be? Bad for business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-dinwiddie/taking-something-less-than-market-value-to-be-somewhere-you-don-t/)

[Spencer Dinwiddie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-dinwiddie/)

> [Success is not necessarily about connections, or cutting corners, or chamba - the three Cs of bad business. Call it trite, but believe me:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gokongwei/success-is-not-necessarily-about-connections-or-cutting-corners-or/)

[John Gokongwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gokongwei/)

> [“Never mix business with religion, or you might end up losing your testimony when the business agreement is no longer something you or Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/never-mix-business-with-religion-or-you-might-end-up-losing-your/)

[Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/)

> [When a man's partner is killed he's supposed to do something about it. It doesn't make any difference what you thought of him. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dashiell-hammett/when-a-man-s-partner-is-killed-he-s-supposed-to-do-something-about-it/)

[Dashiell Hammett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dashiell-hammett/)

[Browse all 70 Bad business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-business/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“I always thought this time travel was a bad business,” the constable observed dryly, taking a sip from his lemonade.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Joel Van Valin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-van-valin/i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a-bad-business-the-constable/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bad business"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-van-valin/i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a-bad-business-the-constable/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d1/joel-van-valin-84611_bad-business_i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a_607164.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I always thought this time travel was a bad business,” the constable observed dryly, taking a sip from his…” — Joel Van Valin",
                "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": "Joel Van Valin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-van-valin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“I always thought this time travel...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-van-valin/i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a-bad-business-the-constable/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-van-valin/i-always-thought-this-time-travel-was-a-bad-business-the-constable/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
