---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The question is not how to get good…"
description: "\"The question is not how to get good people to rule; THE QUESTION IS: HOW TO STOP THE POWERFUL from doing as much damage as they can to us.\" — Karl Popper"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg"
---

#  The question is not how to get good people to rule; THE…

![“The question is not how to get good people to rule; THE QUESTION IS: HOW TO STOP THE POWERFUL from doing as much damage as they can to us.” quote by Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg)

> “The question is not how to get good people to rule; THE QUESTION IS: HOW TO STOP THE POWERFUL from doing as much damage as they can to us.”

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

## About This Quote

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

The real issue is controlling powerful entities to prevent them from causing harm.

**In simple terms:** Control the powerful to limit damage.

Key Takeaway

Implement checks on power.

Themes

politics ethics power responsibility

Mood

serious urgent

Type

political analytical

When to use this quote

- government policy
- corporate governance
- social movements

Key Concepts

authority corruption preventive measures

Questions to Reflect On

- What mechanisms effectively limit power?
- How can citizens hold leaders accountable?

A Different Perspective

Powerful groups may resist oversight.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Damage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damage/) [Good people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/)

## Related quotes

> [Yes, I'm doing damage to my body now. The human body isn't designed to be this size.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-hall/yes-i-m-doing-damage-to-my-body-now-the-human-body-isn-t-designed-to/)

[Eddie Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-hall/)

> [I'm like one of those firecrackers that goes off in your pocket occasionally. I'm not really struggling with it as much as the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-plant/i-m-like-one-of-those-firecrackers-that-goes-off-in-your-pocket/)

[Robert Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-plant/)

> [I'm like anyone else - sometimes you hear yourself asking a stupid question before you can even stop yourself, especially when you meet someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mullin/i-m-like-anyone-else-sometimes-you-hear-yourself-asking-a-stupid/)

[Paul Mullin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mullin/)

> [I got a trivia question...How do you stop 85?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-ochocinco/i-got-a-trivia-question-how-do-you-stop-85/)

[Chad Ochocinco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chad-ochocinco/)

> [The question was never whether stop, question and frisk should be allowed; it was how it should be done. Those who claimed it should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-adams/the-question-was-never-whether-stop-question-and-frisk-should-be/)

[Eric Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-adams/)

> [I think the Tories are doing - and are intent on doing - damage to things I hold dear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/i-think-the-tories-are-doing-and-are-intent-on-doing-damage-to-things/)

[Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/)

> [Mexican leadership has been doing serious damage to the United States by out-negotiating our representatives and political leaders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/mexican-leadership-has-been-doing-serious-damage-to-the-united-states/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [Nothing appeals to intellectuals more than the feeling that they represent 'the people'. Nothing, as a rule, is further from the truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-johnson/nothing-appeals-to-intellectuals-more-than-the-feeling-that-they/)

[Paul Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-johnson/)

> [People as a rule do mean much more than they understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenway-wescott/people-as-a-rule-do-mean-much-more-than-they-understand/)

[Glenway Wescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenway-wescott/)

> [Unlike any other nation, here the people rule, and their will is the supreme law. It is sometimes sneeringly said by those who do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/unlike-any-other-nation-here-the-people-rule-and-their-will-is-the/)

[William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/)

> [“If the heart had a brain kind people would rule the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/if-the-heart-had-a-brain-kind-people-would-rule-the-world/)

[Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/)

> [“Only two types of people will rule. The one who king and the other one who belonging to Queen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil/only-two-types-of-people-will-rule-the-one-who-king-and-the-other-one/)

Nikhil

> [We on the left have forgotten that the question is not how do you get good people to rule, most people who rule are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/we-on-the-left-have-forgotten-that-the-question-is-not-how-do-you-get/)

[Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/)

> [How is it possible to live in world where people can rule millions of others? It's incredible! It's like we've gone back to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-lee-anderson/how-is-it-possible-to-live-in-world-where-people-can-rule-millions-of/)

[Jon Lee Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-lee-anderson/)

> [The power of Open Source is the power of the people. The people rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philippe-kahn/the-power-of-open-source-is-the-power-of-the-people-the-people-rule/)

[Philippe Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philippe-kahn/)

## More by Karl Popper

> [Science is not a system of certain, or -established, statements; nor is it a system which steadily advances towards a state of finality... And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/science-is-not-a-system-of-certain-or-established-statements-nor-is/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [“As indicated by our example, methodological nominalism is nowadays fairly generally accepted in the natural sciences. The problems of the social sciences, on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/as-indicated-by-our-example-methodological-nominalism-is-nowadays/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [Science is perhaps the only human activity in which errors are systematically criticized and, in time, corrected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/science-is-perhaps-the-only-human-activity-in-which-errors-are/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [A system is empirical or scientific only if it is capable of being tested by experience. These considerations suggest that not the verifiability but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/a-system-is-empirical-or-scientific-only-if-it-is-capable-of-being/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [Bold ideas, unjustified anticipations, and speculative thought, are our only means for interpreting nature: our only organon, our only instrument, for grasping her. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/bold-ideas-unjustified-anticipations-and-speculative-thought-are-our/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [ \[The aim of science is\] to explain what so far has taken to be an explicans, such as a law of nature. The task… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-aim-of-science-is-to-explain-what-so-far-has-taken-to-be-an/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [There can be no ultimate statements science: there can be no statements in science which can not be tested, and therefore none which cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/there-can-be-no-ultimate-statements-science-there-can-be-no/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [Evolution is not a fact. Evolution doesn't even qualify as a theory or as a hypothesis. It is a metaphysical research program, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/evolution-is-not-a-fact-evolution-doesn-t-even-qualify-as-a-theory-or/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [I am opposed to looking upon logic as a kind of game. ... One might think that it is a matter of choice or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/i-am-opposed-to-looking-upon-logic-as-a-kind-of-game-one-might-think/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [The history of science, like the history of all human ideas, is a history of irresponsible dreams, of obstinacy, and of error.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-history-of-science-like-the-history-of-all-human-ideas-is-a/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [Good tests kill flawed theories; we remain alive to guess again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/good-tests-kill-flawed-theories-we-remain-alive-to-guess-again/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [There is no pure, disinterested, theory-free observation,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/there-is-no-pure-disinterested-theory-free-observation/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [We have the right not to tolerate the intolerant. We should tolerate even them whenever we can do so without running a great risk;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/we-have-the-right-not-to-tolerate-the-intolerant-we-should-tolerate/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [Better our hypotheses die for our errors than ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/better-our-hypotheses-die-for-our-errors-than-ourselves/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

> [“Every time we proceed to explain some conjectural law or theory by a new conjectural theory of a higher degree of universality, we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/every-time-we-proceed-to-explain-some-conjectural-law-or-theory-by-a/)

[Karl Popper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

[Explore all 181 Karl Popper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/)

## More Damage quotes

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [I think what bothers us about fighting sports isn't the damage to the athlete but the fact that you win by doing more harm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-gottschall/i-think-what-bothers-us-about-fighting-sports-isn-t-the-damage-to-the/)

[Jonathan Gottschall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-gottschall/)

> [I was told I had brain damage. I always knew it was an unfair label. Now I have a clearer understanding of what's wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-boyle/i-was-told-i-had-brain-damage-i-always-knew-it-was-an-unfair-label/)

[Susan Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-boyle/)

> [How strange that something so simple could have been instrumental in my decision to ruin one of my most relationships and friendships, and damage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/how-strange-that-something-so-simple-could-have-been-instrumental-in/)

[Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/)

> [The miracle drugs (neuroleptics) cause the worst plague of brain damage in medical history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-breggin/the-miracle-drugs-neuroleptics-cause-the-worst-plague-of-brain-damage/)

[Peter Breggin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-breggin/)

> [The socially redeeming aspect of golf lies in the vast number of lawyers and bankers and managers who play it, and when you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/the-socially-redeeming-aspect-of-golf-lies-in-the-vast-number-of/)

[Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/)

> [Gun control laws don't work. What is worse, they act perversely. While legitimate users of firearms encounter intense regulation, scrutiny and bureaucratic control, illicit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-d-polsby/gun-control-laws-don-t-work-what-is-worse-they-act-perversely-while/)

Daniel D. Polsby

> [The pace of global warming is accelerating and the scale of the impact is devastating. The time for action is limited - we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliot-spitzer/the-pace-of-global-warming-is-accelerating-and-the-scale-of-the/)

[Eliot Spitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliot-spitzer/)

> [My first job was a film called 'Storm Damage' for the BBC. I was 16 and working with really respected British actors. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-madekwe/my-first-job-was-a-film-called-storm-damage-for-the-bbc-i-was-16-and/)

[Ashley Madekwe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-madekwe/)

> [But people only die in proper duels, you know, with real wizards. The most you and Malfoy’ll be able to do is send sparks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-people-only-die-in-proper-duels-you-know-with-real-wizards-the/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [President Obama has never summarized the Obama Doctrine with such clarity, but here is what it would look like: 'I will undertake any military…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/president-obama-has-never-summarized-the-obama-doctrine-with-such/)

[Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/)

> [The superpowers often behave like two heavily armed blind men feeling their way around a room, each believing himself in mortal peril from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-superpowers-often-behave-like-two-heavily-armed-blind-men-feeling/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I couldn't stand being identified by my sexuality, I retaliated by insisting that people regard me for my intellectual worth. My intellect became a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leora-tanenbaum/i-couldn-t-stand-being-identified-by-my-sexuality-i-retaliated-by/)

[Leora Tanenbaum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leora-tanenbaum/)

> [One simply cannot engage in barbarous action without becoming a barbarian, because one cannot defend human values by calculated and unprovoked violence without doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/one-simply-cannot-engage-in-barbarous-action-without-becoming-a/)

[J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/)

> [This strongly asserted but ill-defined license to kill without accountability is not an entitlement which the United States or other states can have without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-alston/this-strongly-asserted-but-ill-defined-license-to-kill-without/)

Philip Alston

[Browse all 1,271 Damage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/damage/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The question is not how to get good people to rule; THE QUESTION IS: HOW TO STOP THE POWERFUL from doing as much damage as they can to us.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Karl Popper"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-people-to-rule-the-question-is/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Damage"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-people-to-rule-the-question-is/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f3/karl-popper-2167_damage_the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-peop_1759164.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The question is not how to get good people to rule; THE QUESTION IS: HOW TO STOP THE POWERFUL from doing as…” — Karl Popper",
                "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": "Karl Popper",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-popper/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The question is not how to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-people-to-rule-the-question-is/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-popper/the-question-is-not-how-to-get-good-people-to-rule-the-question-is/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
