--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not an anarchist. I believe in…" description: "\"I'm not an anarchist. I believe in government.\" — Keith Olbermann" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fc/keith-olbermann-10325_anarchist_i-m-not-an-anarchist-i-believe-in-govern_2051832.jpg" --- # I'm not an anarchist. I believe in government. ![“I'm not an anarchist. I believe in government.” quote by Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fc/keith-olbermann-10325_anarchist_i-m-not-an-anarchist-i-believe-in-govern_2051832.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fc/keith-olbermann-10325_anarchist_i-m-not-an-anarchist-i-believe-in-govern_2051832.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fc/keith-olbermann-10325_anarchist_i-m-not-an-anarchist-i-believe-in-govern_2051832.jpg) > “I'm not an anarchist. I believe in government.” [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Anarchists oppose all authority, yet the speaker claims belief in government, highlighting a paradox **In simple terms:** Belief in government contradicts anarchist label Key Takeaway Recognize contradictions in beliefs Themes politics paradox identity Mood questioning critical Type opinion philosophical When to use this quote - Political debates - personal philosophy Key Concepts Ideological consistency government critique Questions to Reflect On - How do you reconcile opposing ideas? - What defines true anarchism? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex political views ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anarchist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anarchist/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) ## Related quotes > [As a social anarchist, I believe that capitalism itself is an inherently exploitative hierarchical situation - you do have a boss, you do have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vermin-supreme/as-a-social-anarchist-i-believe-that-capitalism-itself-is-an/) [Vermin Supreme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vermin-supreme/) > [“It is impossible for me to be an Anarchist, for I do not believe in the essential goodness of man. The world, the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-st-vincent-millay-2/it-is-impossible-for-me-to-be-an-anarchist-for-i-do-not-believe-in/) [Edna St Vincent Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-st-vincent-millay-2/) > [I'm not an anarchist, but I believe that people don't want the royal family - the so-called royal family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-an-anarchist-but-i-believe-that-people-don-t-want-the-royal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The least Anararchic person in that conversation is the person saying 'you can't be an anarchist if you believe in god.' Because that's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-molyneux/the-least-anararchic-person-in-that-conversation-is-the-person-saying/) [Stefan Molyneux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-molyneux/) > [I am an Anarchist not because I believe Anarchism is the final goal, but because there is no such thing as a final goal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-rocker/i-am-an-anarchist-not-because-i-believe-anarchism-is-the-final-goal/) [Rudolf Rocker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-rocker/) > [The modern day anarchists known as the Tea Party, they believe in no government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-reid/the-modern-day-anarchists-known-as-the-tea-party-they-believe-in-no/) [Harry Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-reid/) > [I believe that government is too large, costs too much, spends too much, and has too much regulatory power in our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-walberg/i-believe-that-government-is-too-large-costs-too-much-spends-too-much/) [Tim Walberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-walberg/) > [I believe that government should confine itself to the public realm and that it should be as stripped down as possible, within reason. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/i-believe-that-government-should-confine-itself-to-the-public-realm/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [My most earnest wish is to see the republican element of popular control pushed to the maximum of its practicable exercise. I shall then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/my-most-earnest-wish-is-to-see-the-republican-element-of-popular/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [But I'm very libertarian in the sense that I believe in small government and, as a general rule, I don't believe in imposing values…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-harper/but-i-m-very-libertarian-in-the-sense-that-i-believe-in-small/) [Stephen Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-harper/) > [“An anarchist government somehow creates an impression in the hearts of citizens that no one cares.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/an-anarchist-government-somehow-creates-an-impression-in-the-hearts/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [We believe in a government that is characterized by fairness and reasonableness, a reasonableness that goes beyond labels, that doesn't distort or promise to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-cuomo/we-believe-in-a-government-that-is-characterized-by-fairness-and/) [Mario Cuomo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-cuomo/) > [“I believe Government should encourage competition, NOT prop up the weak when the going gets tough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/i-believe-government-should-encourage-competition-not-prop-up-the/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [I believe that a government has only one religion - India first. A government has only one holy book - our Constitution. A government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/i-believe-that-a-government-has-only-one-religion-india-first-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) ## More by Keith Olbermann > [Reagan's dead, and he was a lousy President.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/reagan-s-dead-and-he-was-a-lousy-president/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [ On so many levels \[S.E. Cupp\]’s a perfect demonstration of the necessity of the work Planned Parenthood does. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/on-so-many-levels-s-e-cupp-s-a-perfect-demonstration-of-the-necessity/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [I just think if you're 44 years old and you're not smarter than you were when you were 35 years old or 25 years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/i-just-think-if-you-re-44-years-old-and-you-re-not-smarter-than-you/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [I don't think there are huge divergences between my personality and what they see on TV. And I think that's why I have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/i-don-t-think-there-are-huge-divergences-between-my-personality-and/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. But he still says so. There was no link between Saddam Hussein and al Qaida.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/there-were-no-weapons-of-mass-destruction-in-iraq-but-he-still-says/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [Wanting to be on television is a mental illness. Wanting to be president of the United States, wanting to be an actor - these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/wanting-to-be-on-television-is-a-mental-illness-wanting-to-be/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [What would you do, sir, if terrorists were killing 45,000 people every year in this country? Well, the current health care system, the insurance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/what-would-you-do-sir-if-terrorists-were-killing-45-000-people-every/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [What was the more likely cause of the Oklahoma City bombing: talk radio or Bill Clinton and Janet Renos hands-on management of Waco, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/what-was-the-more-likely-cause-of-the-oklahoma-city-bombing-talk/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [I do know without fear of contradiction what the definition of life is and it is 12 words long. 'Life is defined by how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/i-do-know-without-fear-of-contradiction-what-the-definition-of-life/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [The format of the nightly newscasts is still very much 1981 - "Tremble, onlookers! I am the anchorman and now here is a miracle:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/the-format-of-the-nightly-newscasts-is-still-very-much-1981-tremble/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [Success is overrated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/success-is-overrated/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [You risk becoming a parody of yourself by not innovating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/you-risk-becoming-a-parody-of-yourself-by-not-innovating/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [It's very tough to get yourself around the idea that there could be a mechanism being used or abused to restrict and alter the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/it-s-very-tough-to-get-yourself-around-the-idea-that-there-could-be-a/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [Health care is, at its core, about improving the odds of life in its struggle against death. Of extending that game which we will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/health-care-is-at-its-core-about-improving-the-odds-of-life-in-its/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [Once the Republicans get rolling, they assume they're going to win everything. They are zealots, and zealots assume the last five percent of whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/once-the-republicans-get-rolling-they-assume-they-re-going-to-win/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) [Explore all 66 Keith Olbermann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) ## More Anarchist quotes > [The minimum that most minimalists want leaves in place just the institutions who protect their interests. That's libertarians for you - anarchists who want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-stanley-robinson/the-minimum-that-most-minimalists-want-leaves-in-place-just-the/) [Kim Stanley Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-stanley-robinson/) > [Anarchism is a definite intellectual current in the life of our times, whose adherents advocate the abolition of economic monopolies and of all political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-rocker/anarchism-is-a-definite-intellectual-current-in-the-life-of-our-times/) [Rudolf Rocker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-rocker/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“An anarchist government somehow creates an impression in the hearts of citizens that no one cares.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/an-anarchist-government-somehow-creates-an-impression-in-the-hearts/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [“Bruno was a musician with the temperament of an anarchist and the breath of a bartender's dishrag. He gave the lie to bookselling as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheridan-hay/bruno-was-a-musician-with-the-temperament-of-an-anarchist-and-the/) [Sheridan Hay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheridan-hay/) > [In the sixties, during the Vietnam war, when anarchists and pacifists and socialists, Democrats and Republicans, decent-hearted Americans, all recoiled with horror at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/in-the-sixties-during-the-vietnam-war-when-anarchists-and-pacifists/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [Creativity comes by breaking the rules, by saying that you're in love with the anarchist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-roddick/creativity-comes-by-breaking-the-rules-by-saying-that-you-re-in-love/) [Anita Roddick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-roddick/) > [The modern day anarchists known as the Tea Party, they believe in no government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-reid/the-modern-day-anarchists-known-as-the-tea-party-they-believe-in-no/) [Harry Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-reid/) > [ \[On an anarchist acquaintance:\] Everything in appearance the most alarmist aunt could wish. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-townsend-warner/on-an-anarchist-acquaintance-everything-in-appearance-the-most/) [Sylvia Townsend Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-townsend-warner/) > [Anarchists are opposed to violence; everyone knows that. The main plank of anarchism is the removal of violence from human relations. It is life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errico-malatesta/anarchists-are-opposed-to-violence-everyone-knows-that-the-main-plank/) [Errico Malatesta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errico-malatesta/) > [The Anarchists are simply unterrified Jeffersonian Democrats. They believe that 'the best government is that which governs least,' and that which governs least is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-tucker/the-anarchists-are-simply-unterrified-jeffersonian-democrats-they/) [Benjamin Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-tucker/) > [I am in total opposition to any institutional power. I favor a world of neighborhoods in which all social organization is voluntary and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-hess/i-am-in-total-opposition-to-any-institutional-power-i-favor-a-world/) [Karl Hess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-hess/) > [I'm an anarchist. I'm implacably opposed to heirarchical systems of power and control. I also mistrust crowds, as they often operate according to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-self/i-m-an-anarchist-i-m-implacably-opposed-to-heirarchical-systems-of/) [Will Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-self/) > [We must therefore turn to history for enlightenment; here we find that none of the proclaimed anarchist groups correspond to the libertarian position, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/we-must-therefore-turn-to-history-for-enlightenment-here-we-find-that/) [Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/) > [“I became an anarchist very early on. Anarchism, in my mind, meant taking democracy seriously and organizing prefiguratively- that is, in a way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrej-gruba-i/i-became-an-anarchist-very-early-on-anarchism-in-my-mind-meant-taking/) [Andrej Grubačić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrej-gruba-i/) [Browse all 408 Anarchist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anarchist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not an anarchist. 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