--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Political conflicts distort and disturb a…" description: "\"Political conflicts distort and disturb a people's sense of distinction between matters of importance and matters of urgency. What is vital is disguise..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/john-grierson-25902_conflict_political-conflicts-distort-and-disturb_192789.png" --- # Political conflicts distort and disturb a people's sense… ![“Political conflicts distort and disturb a people's sense of distinction between matters of importance and matters of urgency. What is vital is disguised by what is merely a matter of well being.” quote by John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/john-grierson-25902_conflict_political-conflicts-distort-and-disturb_192789.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/john-grierson-25902_conflict_political-conflicts-distort-and-disturb_192789.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/386/john-grierson-25902_conflict_political-conflicts-distort-and-disturb_192789.png) > “Political conflicts distort and disturb a people's sense of distinction between matters of importance and matters of urgency. What is vital is disguised by what is merely a matter of well being.” [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political issues blur the line between essential and trivial matters, disguising true priorities. **In simple terms:** Politics confuses what truly matters. Key Takeaway Identify core issues beyond superficial urgency. Themes politics priorities media public perception urgency Mood concerned inquisitive Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - policy making - media consumption - activism - education Key Concepts agenda setting critical analysis information overload Questions to Reflect On - What issues are being labeled urgent? - How can you discern vital from trivial? A Different Perspective Urgent crises can mask deeper systemic problems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict/) [Distinction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinction/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Urgency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/urgency/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Well being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well-being/) ## Related quotes > [When self control is lacking in small things, the ability to apply it to matters of importance withers away. Every day in which one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/when-self-control-is-lacking-in-small-things-the-ability-to-apply-it/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Life is a constant repetition of setbacks and hard-fought battles. Whether you are gifted at solving problems or not is of little importance. What matters is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ry-jun-shionuma/life-is-a-constant-repetition-of-setbacks-and-hard-fought-battles/) [Ryōjun Shionuma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ry-jun-shionuma/) > [Political conflicts are merely surface manifestations. If conflicts arise you may be sure that certain powers intend to keep this conflict under operation since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/political-conflicts-are-merely-surface-manifestations-if-conflicts/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [To concern yourself with surface political conflicts is to make the mistake of the bull in the ring, you are charging the cloth. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/to-concern-yourself-with-surface-political-conflicts-is-to-make-the/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [“Urgency makes the difference between practitioners, proclaimers and procrastinators.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie-norton/urgency-makes-the-difference-between-practitioners-proclaimers-and/) [Richie Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie-norton/) > [When we fight upstream against a rocky undercurrent, every foothold takes on a kind of urgency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/when-we-fight-upstream-against-a-rocky-undercurrent-every-foothold/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Develop a sense of urgency in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-jackson-brown-jr/develop-a-sense-of-urgency-in-your-life/) [H. Jackson Brown, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-jackson-brown-jr/) > [Some say that I should settle down, go slower and not push so hard, so quickly for such transformational change. To them, I say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliot-spitzer/some-say-that-i-should-settle-down-go-slower-and-not-push-so-hard-so/) [Eliot Spitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliot-spitzer/) > [By the time I became chairman and there was more of a feeling of urgency, there was a willingness to accept more forceful measures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-a-volcker/by-the-time-i-became-chairman-and-there-was-more-of-a-feeling-of/) Paul A. Volcker > [The SEC got more than 100 rules to write under Dodd-Frank, the lion's share of all the agencies. And we've moved, I think, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-schapiro/the-sec-got-more-than-100-rules-to-write-under-dodd-frank-the-lion-s/) [Mary Schapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-schapiro/) > [Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/without-a-sense-of-urgency-desire-loses-its-value/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [So many people are on the front lines of this fossil fuel frenzy. It is infused with a sense of urgency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avi-lewis/so-many-people-are-on-the-front-lines-of-this-fossil-fuel-frenzy-it/) [Avi Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avi-lewis/) > [There's a need for music that has urgency and emotional honesty. That's why people are reintroducing themselves to guitar music - that instrument has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mura-masa/there-s-a-need-for-music-that-has-urgency-and-emotional-honesty-that/) [Mura Masa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mura-masa/) > [There is something to be said though when you have 4 or 5 guys playing with no net, there is a sense of urgency,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-mendoza/there-is-something-to-be-said-though-when-you-have-4-or-5-guys/) [Marco Mendoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-mendoza/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) ## More by John Grierson > [We believe that the materials and the stories taken from the raw can be finer (more real in the philosophic sense) than the acted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/we-believe-that-the-materials-and-the-stories-taken-from-the-raw-can/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [Art is not a mirror but a hammer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/art-is-not-a-mirror-but-a-hammer/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [It is often more important to act than to understand... there are times... when two conflicting opinions, though one happens to be right, are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/it-is-often-more-important-to-act-than-to-understand-there-are-times/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [Beware the ends of the earth and the exotic: the drama is on your doorstep wherever the slums; are, wherever there is malnutrition, wherever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/beware-the-ends-of-the-earth-and-the-exotic-the-drama-is-on-your/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [The very effect of the education they were given... was to make men think; and, thinking, they became less and less satisfied with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/the-very-effect-of-the-education-they-were-given-was-to-make-men/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [Some of us learned in a school of philosophy which taught that all was for the common good and nothing for oneself and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/some-of-us-learned-in-a-school-of-philosophy-which-taught-that-all/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [My personal view is that such total planning by the state is an absolute good and not simply a relative good... I do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/my-personal-view-is-that-such-total-planning-by-the-state-is-an/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [In fact, the individual outlook becomes less and less valuable and more and more harmful unless it is transmitted into the corporate outlook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/in-fact-the-individual-outlook-becomes-less-and-less-valuable-and/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [For three hundred years we have had our focus on the individual. We have distinguished him from the objective world as the Middle Ages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/for-three-hundred-years-we-have-had-our-focus-on-the-individual-we/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [The cultivation of sensibility on purely personal lines may, in fact, be the very worst training for a world where only the corporate and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/the-cultivation-of-sensibility-on-purely-personal-lines-may-in-fact/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [I look on cinema as a pulpit, and use it as a propagandist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/i-look-on-cinema-as-a-pulpit-and-use-it-as-a-propagandist/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [Such manifestations I account as representing the creative leadership of the new forces of thought and appreciation which attend changes in technological pattern and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/such-manifestations-i-account-as-representing-the-creative-leadership/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [“Art Is Not A Mirror - It Is A Hammer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/art-is-not-a-mirror-it-is-a-hammer/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [The life of the village became more and more affected by strikes and lock-outs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/the-life-of-the-village-became-more-and-more-affected-by-strikes-and/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) > [And, consequently, the art of propaganda or public information becomes one of the most powerful forms of directive statesmanship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grierson/and-consequently-the-art-of-propaganda-or-public-information-becomes/) [John Grierson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) [Explore all 22 John Grierson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grierson/) ## More Conflict quotes > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The U.S.-Mexican border es un herida abierta where the Third World grates against the first and bleeds. And before a scab forms it hemorrhages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-e-anzald-a/the-u-s-mexican-border-es-un-herida-abierta-where-the-third-world/) [Gloria E. Anzaldúa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-e-anzald-a/) > [There is a conflict in the Middle East between two entities, and they're both right, each in their own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reuven-rivlin/there-is-a-conflict-in-the-middle-east-between-two-entities-and-they/) [Reuven Rivlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reuven-rivlin/) > [Conflict isn't negative, it just is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-crum/conflict-isn-t-negative-it-just-is/) [Thomas Crum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-crum/) > [I have lived in countries that were coming out of conflict: Ireland, South Africa, the Czech republic. People there are overflowing with energy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-eno/i-have-lived-in-countries-that-were-coming-out-of-conflict-ireland/) [Brian Eno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-eno/) > [Africa, being the major target of colonial plunder, therefore becomes a major source of conflict.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-horne/africa-being-the-major-target-of-colonial-plunder-therefore-becomes-a/) [Gerald Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-horne/) > [All drama is conflict. Without conflict, there is no action. Without action, there is no character. Without character, there is no story. And without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd-field/all-drama-is-conflict-without-conflict-there-is-no-action-without/) [Syd Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd-field/) > [The irrepressible conflict propounded by abolitionism has produced now its legitimate fruits - disunion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-irrepressible-conflict-propounded-by-abolitionism-has-produced/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“These are all good things, I said. But no one knows where your country is or who you are. You don't have a familiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/these-are-all-good-things-i-said-but-no-one-knows-where-your-country/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [I understand the formula that producers hire directors and directors are hired to direct and actors are hired to act. I don't have any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-trejo/i-understand-the-formula-that-producers-hire-directors-and-directors/) [Danny Trejo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-trejo/) > [“While there is battle and hatred men have eyes for nothing save the fact that the enemy is the cause of all the troubles;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-butterfield/while-there-is-battle-and-hatred-men-have-eyes-for-nothing-save-the/) [Herbert Butterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-butterfield/) > [UN peacekeeping operations are now increasingly complex and multi-dimensional, going beyond monitoring a ceasefire to actually bringing failed States back to life, often after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/un-peacekeeping-operations-are-now-increasingly-complex-and-multi/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [All men have an instinct for conflict: at least, all healthy men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilaire-belloc/all-men-have-an-instinct-for-conflict-at-least-all-healthy-men/) [Hilaire Belloc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilaire-belloc/) > [I didnt like the Survivor shows because of the mean-spirited aspect, and women certainly were part of whatever conflict they would create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-lawrence/i-didnt-like-the-survivor-shows-because-of-the-mean-spirited-aspect/) [Sharon Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-lawrence/) > [“How we traverse the space between us when conflict arises has a profound effect on the health and longevity of our relationships.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-salzberg/how-we-traverse-the-space-between-us-when-conflict-arises-has-a/) [Sharon Salzberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-salzberg/) [Browse all 3,969 Conflict quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Political conflicts distort and disturb a people's sense of distinction between matters of importance and matters of urgency. 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