--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in…" description: "\"If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in the world is third-rate?\" — Joseph Heller" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png" --- # If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in the world is… ![“If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in the world is third-rate?” quote by Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png) > “If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in the world is third-rate?” [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He uses a rhetorical question to mock the absurdity of hierarchical rankings, suggesting that if a lower rank is flawed, higher ranks are even more questionable. **In simple terms:** Questioning the logic of ranking systems. Key Takeaway Critically examine hierarchical structures. Themes satire political commentary absurdity critical thinking hierarchy Mood witty critical Type satirical philosophical When to use this quote - organizational leadership - political analysis - education - personal ethics Key Concepts logic social critique irony power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you assess the validity of hierarchical claims? - What alternatives to ranking exist? A Different Perspective Satire may oversimplify complex issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nixon/) [Nixon Second](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nixon-second-1027286/) [Rate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rate/) [Rate World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rate-world-1027287/) [Richard nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richard-nixon/) [Second](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/second/) [Second rate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/second-rate/) [Thirds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thirds/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The exchange rate between first-world lives and third-world lives in disaster stories in the media is about 50:1.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-reucassel/the-exchange-rate-between-first-world-lives-and-third-world-lives-in/) [Craig Reucassel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-reucassel/) > [Richard Nixon was the best thing that ever happened to journalism. I mean this guy was wonderful. Just when you thought he could get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/richard-nixon-was-the-best-thing-that-ever-happened-to-journalism-i/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [George Washington was the president who could never tell a lie, and Richard Nixon was the president who could never tell the truth. Donald…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-shields/george-washington-was-the-president-who-could-never-tell-a-lie-and/) [Mark Shields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-shields/) > [John Kennedy won the first televised presidential debate among those watching it, while Richard Nixon won among those listening on the radio.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-estrich/john-kennedy-won-the-first-televised-presidential-debate-among-those/) [Susan Estrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-estrich/) > [We forced Richard Nixon and the Congress who established, and thanks to your leadership, we supported you and we got the Environmental Protection Act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/we-forced-richard-nixon-and-the-congress-who-established-and-thanks/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [ Mr. \[Richard M.\] Nixon never has anything but hindsight. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-roosevelt/mr-richard-m-nixon-never-has-anything-but-hindsight/) [Eleanor Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-roosevelt/) > [ \[democrats\] hated Richard Nixon, and no wonder. It was Nixon who sent Alger Hiss to jail, and Nixon who waged the Vietnam War after… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-frum/democrats-hated-richard-nixon-and-no-wonder-it-was-nixon-who-sent/) [David Frum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-frum/) > [The essence of Richard Nixon is loneliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/the-essence-of-richard-nixon-is-loneliness/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) > [For Obama to save himself, he should be thinking about the example of an unlikely Republican predecessor: Richard Nixon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/for-obama-to-save-himself-he-should-be-thinking-about-the-example-of/) [John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/) > [Only a cheap politician, greedy for political gain, would try to single out one individual for blame. The fault lies not with the individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-paulsen/only-a-cheap-politician-greedy-for-political-gain-would-try-to-single/) [Pat Paulsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-paulsen/) > [ I'd almost prefer \[Richard\] Nixon. I'd say \[Bill\] Clinton is every bit as corrupt as Nixon, but a lot smoother. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/i-d-almost-prefer-richard-nixon-i-d-say-bill-clinton-is-every-bit-as/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [ \[On Richard M. Nixon:\] Americans began with a president who couldn't tell a lie and now they have one who can't tell the truth. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benazir-bhutto/on-richard-m-nixon-americans-began-with-a-president-who-couldn-t-tell/) [Benazir Bhutto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benazir-bhutto/) > [Experience helped Richard Nixon, but it didn't save him, and it certainly wasn't a blanket endorsement. He blundered terribly in dealing with Vietnam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/experience-helped-richard-nixon-but-it-didn-t-save-him-and-it/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [ There were really funny characteristics about this guy \[Richard Nixon\], chief of which would be that he seemed to devote about 85 percent of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-shearer/there-were-really-funny-characteristics-about-this-guy-richard-nixon/) [Harry Shearer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-shearer/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## More by Joseph Heller > [“Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle. "That's some catch, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/yossarian-was-moved-very-deeply-by-the-absolute-simplicity-of-this/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [From men motivated by moral certitude, history teaches, no lasting good ever comes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/from-men-motivated-by-moral-certitude-history-teaches-no-lasting-good/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [I’m cold,' Snowden said softly, 'I’m cold.' 'You’re going to be all right, kid,' Yossarian reassured him with a grin. 'You’re going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/i-m-cold-snowden-said-softly-i-m-cold-you-re-going-to-be-all-right/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [The enemy is anybody who's going to get you killed, no matter which side he's on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/the-enemy-is-anybody-who-s-going-to-get-you-killed-no-matter-which/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“They think that they’re smart and that the rest of us are dumb.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/they-think-that-they-re-smart-and-that-the-rest-of-us-are-dumb/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one's safety in the face of dangers that were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/there-was-only-one-catch-and-that-was-catch-22-which-specified-that-a/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“Captain Flume was obsessed with the idea that Chief White Halfoat would tiptoe up to his cot one night when he was sound asleep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/captain-flume-was-obsessed-with-the-idea-that-chief-white-halfoat/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“Depreciating motels, junked automobiles, and quick-food joints grow like amber waves of grain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/depreciating-motels-junked-automobiles-and-quick-food-joints-grow/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“That was where he wanted to be if he had to be there at all, instead of hung out there in front like some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/that-was-where-he-wanted-to-be-if-he-had-to-be-there-at-all-instead/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [I had examined myself pretty thoroughly and discovered that I was unfit for military service.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/i-had-examined-myself-pretty-thoroughly-and-discovered-that-i-was/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“Yossarian was moved by such intense pity for his poverty that he wanted to smash his pale. sad, sickly face with his fist and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/yossarian-was-moved-by-such-intense-pity-for-his-poverty-that-he/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [You have deep-seated survival anxieties. And you don't like bigots, bullies, snobs or hypocrites. Subconsciously there are many people you hate." "Consciously, sir, consciously,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/you-have-deep-seated-survival-anxieties-and-you-don-t-like-bigots/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“His specialty was alfalfa, and he made a good thing out of not growing any. The government paid him well for every bushel of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/his-specialty-was-alfalfa-and-he-made-a-good-thing-out-of-not-growing/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [Every writer I know has trouble writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/every-writer-i-know-has-trouble-writing/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [“No such private nights of ecstasy or hushed-up drinking and sex orgies ever occurred. They might have occurred if either General Dreedle or General…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/no-such-private-nights-of-ecstasy-or-hushed-up-drinking-and-sex/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) [Explore all 420 Joseph Heller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) ## More Ifs quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [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/) > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [Obviously, if you don't love life, you can't enjoy an oyster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-clark/obviously-if-you-don-t-love-life-you-can-t-enjoy-an-oyster/) [Eleanor Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-clark/) > [If I don't have pressure, I don't function.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferran-adria/if-i-don-t-have-pressure-i-don-t-function/) [Ferran Adria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ferran-adria/) > [If you restore a car, and you're making money, then you're doing it wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/if-you-restore-a-car-and-you-re-making-money-then-you-re-doing-it/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/) [Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/) > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. Hitting your kid is really the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-braff/the-thing-about-hitting-kids-is-think-about-if-you-were-doing-the/) [Zach Braff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-braff/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) [Browse all 94,303 Ifs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in the world is third-rate?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joseph Heller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in-the-world-is-third-rate/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ifs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in-the-world-is-third-rate/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/da7/joseph-heller-601_ifs_if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in_2497500.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what in the world is third-rate?” — Joseph Heller", "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": "Joseph Heller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If Richard Nixon was second-rate, what...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in-the-world-is-third-rate/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/if-richard-nixon-was-second-rate-what-in-the-world-is-third-rate/#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 } } ] } ```