--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Viennese wash everything. Where else…" description: "\"The Viennese wash everything. Where else in the world does the government hire public servants to wash public telephone booths and the glass over traff..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg" --- # The Viennese wash everything. Where else in the world does… ![“The Viennese wash everything. Where else in the world does the government hire public servants to wash public telephone booths and the glass over traffic lights? Every time I see someone doing these things, I smile like a child.” quote by Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg) > “The Viennese wash everything. Where else in the world does the government hire public servants to wash public telephone booths and the glass over traffic lights? Every time I see someone doing these things, I smile like a child.” [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Vienna’s government employs staff to clean public fixtures, evoking childlike joy. **In simple terms:** Vienna cleans public spaces, making people smile. Key Takeaway Value public service that brightens daily life. Themes public service urban design joy Mood delighted observant Type personal essay social commentary When to use this quote - city tours - municipal budgeting - community volunteering - urban planning Key Concepts civic responsibility urban aesthetics Questions to Reflect On - Why do we find cleanliness comforting? - Should governments prioritize aesthetic upkeep? A Different Perspective Such services may be costly and debated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Public servants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-servants/) [Servants Wash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/servants-wash-5999244/) [Smile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smile/) [Telephone Booths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telephone-booths-997991/) [Traffic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traffic/) [Viennese Wash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/viennese-wash-5999243/) [Wash Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wash-public-5999242/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [I don't want to be cliched, but Buckingham Palace is beautiful, and the old red telephone booths are really interesting to me. I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alessia-cara/i-don-t-want-to-be-cliched-but-buckingham-palace-is-beautiful-and-the/) [Alessia Cara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alessia-cara/) > [there were people who occupied telephone booths as though they had rented them for the day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-curtiss/there-were-people-who-occupied-telephone-booths-as-though-they-had/) [Ursula Curtiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-curtiss/) > [Arizonians are deeply proud of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's service to this country. She will always be remembered by Arizonans and all Americans as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-kyl/arizonians-are-deeply-proud-of-justice-sandra-day-o-connor-s-service/) [Jon Kyl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-kyl/) > [I have criticisms of Ronald Reagan, but he lives in another universe from the kind of political theater that is represented by people, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-jarecki/i-have-criticisms-of-ronald-reagan-but-he-lives-in-another-universe/) [Eugene Jarecki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-jarecki/) > [“Men may make progress, but man never changes. Man loves power and money. No matter the skin color, religion or income level. These symbols…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/men-may-make-progress-but-man-never-changes-man-loves-power-and-money/) [Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/) > [Americans have learned to trust free markets. Republican or Democrat, we believe the unimpeded exchange of goods and services will yield better solutions than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-katzman/americans-have-learned-to-trust-free-markets-republican-or-democrat/) [John Katzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-katzman/) > [“A motto of many politicians, public servants and money bags: Ask not 'What can I do for you?' but 'What can I do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-m-forester/a-motto-of-many-politicians-public-servants-and-money-bags-ask-not/) [H.M. Forester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-m-forester/) > [The area I hope we can learn most from Singapore is in the productivity and efficiency of its public servants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ko-wen-je/the-area-i-hope-we-can-learn-most-from-singapore-is-in-the/) [Ko Wen-je](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ko-wen-je/) > [I'm suggesting that the prohibition on people who survive on money coming from government, that includes pensioners and public servants, standing for Parliament -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-brown/i-m-suggesting-that-the-prohibition-on-people-who-survive-on-money/) [Bob Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-brown/) > [“REAL Entrepreneurs will be the one's who change the world for the better. Governments must become PUBLIC servants to create the best context and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-dovale/real-entrepreneurs-will-be-the-one-s-who-change-the-world-for-the/) [Tony Dovale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-dovale/) > [The librarian of today, and it will be true still more of the librarians of tomorrow, are not fiery dragons interposed between the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-osler/the-librarian-of-today-and-it-will-be-true-still-more-of-the/) [William Osler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-osler/) > [Our destruction, should it come at all, will be from...the inattention of the people to the concerns of their government, from their carelessness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-webster/our-destruction-should-it-come-at-all-will-be-from-the-inattention-of/) [Daniel Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-webster/) > [Actors should remember they are public servants, really, and depend on the response of the people. And the public can be so fickle. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-moorehead/actors-should-remember-they-are-public-servants-really-and-depend-on/) [Agnes Moorehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-moorehead/) > [“It's painful to believe that the would-be 'public servants' you're forced to choose between are all phonies whose only real concern is their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/it-s-painful-to-believe-that-the-would-be-public-servants-you-re/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [“He wanted me to understand two big things: First, that nobody, no group, is above others. Public servants are obliged to level with everybody,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/he-wanted-me-to-understand-two-big-things-first-that-nobody-no-group/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) ## More by Jonathan Carroll > [Eating is sex for old people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/eating-is-sex-for-old-people/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Ive never seen myself as a fantasy writer-ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/ive-never-seen-myself-as-a-fantasy-writer-ever/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [I have never heard anyone say This is it. I know right now is the high point of my life. It will never get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/i-have-never-heard-anyone-say-this-is-it-i-know-right-now-is-the-high/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [“One of the most terrible losses man endures in his lifetime is not even noticed by most people, much less mourned. Which is astonishing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/one-of-the-most-terrible-losses-man-endures-in-his-lifetime-is-not/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Everything you want in life has teeth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/everything-you-want-in-life-has-teeth/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Sometimes it is the smallest thing that saves us: the weather growing cold, a child's smile, and a cup of excellent coffee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/sometimes-it-is-the-smallest-thing-that-saves-us-the-weather-growing/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [“One of the reasons why I liked living in Manhattan was that the city would share your mood the moment you walked out the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/one-of-the-reasons-why-i-liked-living-in-manhattan-was-that-the-city/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Old people are often impatient, but for what?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/old-people-are-often-impatient-but-for-what/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Kids own nothing. Everything is either promised, borrowed, longed for or exaggerated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/kids-own-nothing-everything-is-either-promised-borrowed-longed-for-or/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Real love is always chaotic. You lose control; you lose perspective. You lose the ability to protect yourself. The greater the love, the greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/real-love-is-always-chaotic-you-lose-control-you-lose-perspective-you/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Everyone coming out of a perfume store is smelling the back of their hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/everyone-coming-out-of-a-perfume-store-is-smelling-the-back-of-their/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Buying a pair of shoes is one of the most optimistic acts I know, next to falling in love. I like nothing better than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/buying-a-pair-of-shoes-is-one-of-the-most-optimistic-acts-i-know-next/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Dogs are here to remind us life really is a simple thing. You eat, sleep, take walks, and pee when you must. That's about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/dogs-are-here-to-remind-us-life-really-is-a-simple-thing-you-eat/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [“ Cza­sem li­nia męskiego kar­ku może zmienić całe two­je życie. Sposób, w ja­ki sięga on do kie­sze­ni po drob­ne, po­wodu­je skur­cz ser­ca i chłód…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/cza-sem-li-nia-m-skiego-kar-ku-mo-e-zmieni-ca-e-two-je-ycie-spos-b-w/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) > [Salzburg... is a mountain town with a rushing river running right through the center, everything in the rain various shades of green and brown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/salzburg-is-a-mountain-town-with-a-rushing-river-running-right/) [Jonathan Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) [Explore all 104 Jonathan Carroll quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/) ## More Government quotes > [We could form a government of national unity fighting corruption. The ordinary Afghan is sick and tired of it, because it's she or he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashraf-ghani/we-could-form-a-government-of-national-unity-fighting-corruption-the/) [Ashraf Ghani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashraf-ghani/) > [For the Scottish government, the practice of having meetings in different parts of the country is well established, but for the U.K. government, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/for-the-scottish-government-the-practice-of-having-meetings-in/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [Right now we're concerned about budget. Right now we're concerned about the prospect of interest rate rise. We're concerned about government corruption, government handing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amity-shlaes/right-now-we-re-concerned-about-budget-right-now-we-re-concerned/) [Amity Shlaes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amity-shlaes/) > [One of the worst things to come out of the Consumer Protection Board's misleading claims is the impression that government resources are to hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lesko/one-of-the-worst-things-to-come-out-of-the-consumer-protection-board/) [Matthew Lesko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lesko/) > [It is afraid of an informed, angry public demanding the constitutional government it was promised - and it should be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/it-is-afraid-of-an-informed-angry-public-demanding-the-constitutional/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Louisiana's spicy, colorful politics have saddled our state with a reputation for tolerating lax ethical standards in government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kennedy/louisiana-s-spicy-colorful-politics-have-saddled-our-state-with-a/) [John Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kennedy/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) [Greg Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-perry/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [He is almost a statesman. He lies well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/he-is-almost-a-statesman-he-lies-well/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I mean those people who are interested in good government will certainly contribute in order to make certain there's some counter-balance to those whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/i-mean-those-people-who-are-interested-in-good-government-will/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [We can't have a government that will collapse in three months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-varadkar/we-can-t-have-a-government-that-will-collapse-in-three-months/) [Leo Varadkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-varadkar/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) [Browse all 21,248 Government quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The Viennese wash everything. Where else in the world does the government hire public servants to wash public telephone booths and the glass over traffic lights? Every time I see someone doing these things, I smile like a child.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jonathan Carroll" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else-in-the-world-does-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Government" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else-in-the-world-does-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b1/jonathan-carroll-4590_government_the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else_2398428.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Viennese wash everything. Where else in the world does the government hire public servants to wash…” — Jonathan Carroll", "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": "Jonathan Carroll", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-carroll/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The Viennese wash everything. Where else...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else-in-the-world-does-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-carroll/the-viennese-wash-everything-where-else-in-the-world-does-the/#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 } } ] } ```