--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wouldn't attach too much importance to…" description: "\"I wouldn't attach too much importance to these student riots. I remember when I was a student at the Sorbonne in Paris, I used to go out and riot occas..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/john-foster-dulles-17760_history_i-wouldn-t-attach-too-much-importance-to_917276.jpg" --- # I wouldn't attach too much importance to these student… ![“I wouldn't attach too much importance to these student riots. I remember when I was a student at the Sorbonne in Paris, I used to go out and riot occasionally.” quote by John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/john-foster-dulles-17760_history_i-wouldn-t-attach-too-much-importance-to_917276.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/john-foster-dulles-17760_history_i-wouldn-t-attach-too-much-importance-to_917276.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de0/john-foster-dulles-17760_history_i-wouldn-t-attach-too-much-importance-to_917276.jpg) > “I wouldn't attach too much importance to these student riots. I remember when I was a student at the Sorbonne in Paris, I used to go out and riot occasionally.” [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker downplays the significance of contemporary student protests, comparing them to his own past experiences. **In simple terms:** Student protests are not as serious as they seem. Key Takeaway Don’t overreact to current riots. Themes politics history activism Mood skeptical reflective Type political historical When to use this quote - university campuses - political movements - media coverage Key Concepts public perception historical context Questions to Reflect On - How do past experiences shape our view of current events? - Are all student protests comparable? A Different Perspective Historical comparisons may ignore unique modern grievances. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Paris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paris/) [Remember when](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember-when/) [Riot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/riot/) [Riots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/riots/) ## Related quotes > [As a matter of fact student riots of one sort or another, protests against the order that is, kicks against college and university management…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-allen-white/as-a-matter-of-fact-student-riots-of-one-sort-or-another-protests/) [William Allen White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-allen-white/) > [The most dangerous thing about student riots is that adults take them seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-pompidou/the-most-dangerous-thing-about-student-riots-is-that-adults-take-them/) [Georges Pompidou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-pompidou/) > [“If you create an environment of conflicts, I don’t think you will enjoy peace yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/if-you-create-an-environment-of-conflicts-i-don-t-think-you-will/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [The only riots were the people trying to get tickets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/the-only-riots-were-the-people-trying-to-get-tickets/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [I grew up in the American South and came of age in the 1960s, an incredibly turbulent time. It was as if the seams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/i-grew-up-in-the-american-south-and-came-of-age-in-the-1960s-an/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [For example, it was this pack of wolves that sparked off the Rodney King affair a few years ago in Los Angeles. Let us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/for-example-it-was-this-pack-of-wolves-that-sparked-off-the-rodney/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [When the riots happened in L.A., they didn't go to Beverly Hills to trash Rodeo Drive. They trashed their own neighborhoods. It's one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-l-jackson/when-the-riots-happened-in-l-a-they-didn-t-go-to-beverly-hills-to/) [Samuel L. Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-l-jackson/) > [I turned atheist in the '90s when India went through troubled times - communal riots, bomb blasts... Mumbai, where I live, was badly affected.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amish-tripathi/i-turned-atheist-in-the-90s-when-india-went-through-troubled-times/) [Amish Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amish-tripathi/) > [We have the riots we deserve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-badiou/we-have-the-riots-we-deserve/) [Alain Badiou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-badiou/) > [The 2011 riots in England, which left five dead and caused more than $300 million in property damage, were fueled by a generation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-barr/the-2011-riots-in-england-which-left-five-dead-and-caused-more-than/) [Bob Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-barr/) > [I was doing stand up comedy when I was 11, that's how I got started; not because I wanted to do comedy, but because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shia-labeouf/i-was-doing-stand-up-comedy-when-i-was-11-that-s-how-i-got-started/) [Shia LaBeouf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shia-labeouf/) > [I don't think the riots derailed the civil rights movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-louis-gates/i-don-t-think-the-riots-derailed-the-civil-rights-movement/) [Henry Louis Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-louis-gates/) > [You also had in Detroit that summer, an early variation of Ferguson. A black prostitute was shot in the back by police. And all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-maraniss/you-also-had-in-detroit-that-summer-an-early-variation-of-ferguson-a/) [David Maraniss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-maraniss/) > [The issue of civil rights was too much for the establishment to handle. One of the chapters of history that's least studied by historians…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hayden/the-issue-of-civil-rights-was-too-much-for-the-establishment-to/) [Tom Hayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hayden/) > [“To riot or not to riot, that is the question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/to-riot-or-not-to-riot-that-is-the-question/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) ## More by John Foster Dulles > [The United States of America does not have friends; it has interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/the-united-states-of-america-does-not-have-friends-it-has-interests/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [The principle of neutrality ... has increasingly become an obsolete conception, and, except under very special circumstances, it is an immoral and shortsighted conception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/the-principle-of-neutrality-has-increasingly-become-an-obsolete/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [The United Nations was not set up to be a reformatory. It was assumed that you would be good before you got in and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/the-united-nations-was-not-set-up-to-be-a-reformatory-it-was-assumed/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [Economic and military power can be developed under the spur of laws and appropriations. But moral power does not derive from any act of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/economic-and-military-power-can-be-developed-under-the-spur-of-laws/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [The United Nations represents not a final stage in the development of world order, but only a primitive stage. Therefore its primary task is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/the-united-nations-represents-not-a-final-stage-in-the-development-of/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [Somehow we find it hard to sell our values, namely that the rich should plunder the poor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/somehow-we-find-it-hard-to-sell-our-values-namely-that-the-rich/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [Of all tasks of government the most basic is to protect its citizens against violence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/of-all-tasks-of-government-the-most-basic-is-to-protect-its-citizens/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [The world will never have lasting peace so long as men reserve for war the finest human qualities. Peace, no less than war, requires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/the-world-will-never-have-lasting-peace-so-long-as-men-reserve-for/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [Peace can be a cover whereby evil men can perpetrate diabolical wrongs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/peace-can-be-a-cover-whereby-evil-men-can-perpetrate-diabolical-wrongs/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [Our institutions of freedom will not survive unless they are constantly replenished by the faith that gave them birth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/our-institutions-of-freedom-will-not-survive-unless-they-are/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [In order to bring a nation to support the burdens of maintaining great military establishments, it is necessary to create an emotional state akin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/in-order-to-bring-a-nation-to-support-the-burdens-of-maintaining/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [You have to take chances for peace, just as you must take chances in war. Some say that we were brought to the verge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/you-have-to-take-chances-for-peace-just-as-you-must-take-chances-in/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [Once - many, many years ago - I thought I made a wrong decision. Of course, it turned out that I had been right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/once-many-many-years-ago-i-thought-i-made-a-wrong-decision-of-course/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [We walked to the brink and we looked it in the face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/we-walked-to-the-brink-and-we-looked-it-in-the-face/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) > [A capacity to change is indispensable. Equally indispensable is the capacity to hold fast to that which is good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-foster-dulles/a-capacity-to-change-is-indispensable-equally-indispensable-is-the/) [John Foster Dulles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) [Explore all 36 John Foster Dulles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-foster-dulles/) ## More History quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. 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It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [Things live and die, and then someone processes them into edible portions. This is a complete telling of the story, 'Food.' The basic plot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fahrenthold/things-live-and-die-and-then-someone-processes-them-into-edible/) [David Fahrenthold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fahrenthold/) > [History is a certain way, but you just change the point of view a little bit, and you discover a whole new side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-schroeder/history-is-a-certain-way-but-you-just-change-the-point-of-view-a/) [Allison Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-schroeder/) > [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [Today is a reality, tomorrow's a promise, and yesterday's history!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-blanks/today-is-a-reality-tomorrow-s-a-promise-and-yesterday-s-history/) [Billy Blanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-blanks/) > [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/) C-DASH > [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [“To those great geniuses now in petticoats, who shall write novels for the beloved reader's children, these men and things will be as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-those-great-geniuses-now-in-petticoats-who-shall-write-novels-for/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) [Browse all 27,263 History quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I wouldn't attach too much importance to these student riots. 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