--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can’t sleep if there’s murderers on the…" description: "\"“I can’t sleep if there’s murderers on the loose!” cried another guest. “Amen, brother!” said another person. “If a crime has been committed, then it’s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb0/lemony-snicket-663_crime_i-can-t-sleep-if-there-s-murderers-on-th_567912.jpg" --- # I can’t sleep if there’s murderers on the loose!” cried… ![“I can’t sleep if there’s murderers on the loose!” cried another guest. “Amen, brother!” said another person. “If a crime has been committed, then it’s our duty to stand around in our pajamas in the name of justice!” quote by Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb0/lemony-snicket-663_crime_i-can-t-sleep-if-there-s-murderers-on-th_567912.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb0/lemony-snicket-663_crime_i-can-t-sleep-if-there-s-murderers-on-th_567912.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb0/lemony-snicket-663_crime_i-can-t-sleep-if-there-s-murderers-on-th_567912.jpg) > ““I can’t sleep if there’s murderers on the loose!” cried another guest. “Amen, brother!” said another person. “If a crime has been committed, then it’s our duty to stand around in our pajamas in the name of justice!”” [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Justice is absurdly performed by idle observers, highlighting the farcical nature of societal response to crime. **In simple terms:** Justice is often a farcical, passive act. Key Takeaway Question the effectiveness of passive justice. Themes satire justice absurdity Mood ironic critical Type satirical philosophical When to use this quote - law enforcement - community watch - online activism Key Concepts social critique inactivity bureaucracy Questions to Reflect On - Why do people stay passive during crises? - How can active engagement replace complacency? A Different Perspective Passive observers may enable injustice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) ## Related quotes > [“The first crime was mine: I committed it when I made man mortal. 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They live in a world where there are murderers on the loose and they haven't been caught…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/crime-writers-i-ve-noticed-can-be-jumpy-they-live-in-a-world-where/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [I committed the first crime by creating men as mortals. After that, what more could you do, you the murderers? Come on; they already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/i-committed-the-first-crime-by-creating-men-as-mortals-after-that/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [Every time a crime was committed by a Muslim, that person's faith was mentioned, regardless of its relevance. When a crime is committed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/every-time-a-crime-was-committed-by-a-muslim-that-person-s-faith-was/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [The fact that a crime might have been committed with impunity in the past may make it seem more familiar and less gruesome, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-kozol/the-fact-that-a-crime-might-have-been-committed-with-impunity-in-the/) [Jonathan Kozol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-kozol/) > [You can be stopped if a police officer reasonably suspects a crime is about to be committed, is being committed or has been committed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-kelly/you-can-be-stopped-if-a-police-officer-reasonably-suspects-a-crime-is/) [Raymond Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-kelly/) > [My approach to the story... is if you can get into a criminal's mind and understand how it works and understand how crime is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hansen/my-approach-to-the-story-is-if-you-can-get-into-a-criminal-s-mind-and/) [Chris Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hansen/) > [What have I done? What horrid crime committed? To me the worst of crimes-outliv'd my liking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/what-have-i-done-what-horrid-crime-committed-to-me-the-worst-of/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [I have doubtless erred more or less in politics, but a crime I never committed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/i-have-doubtless-erred-more-or-less-in-politics-but-a-crime-i-never/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [They sent me to the pen for five years for a crime that was never committed. I aint no bank robber but that five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mac-dre/they-sent-me-to-the-pen-for-five-years-for-a-crime-that-was-never/) [Mac Dre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mac-dre/) > [“The ordinary detective discovers from a ledger or a diary that a crime has been committed. We discover from a book of sonnets that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/the-ordinary-detective-discovers-from-a-ledger-or-a-diary-that-a/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [“People also felt that a great crime had been committed, yet there was not going to be a great punishment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bethany-mclean/people-also-felt-that-a-great-crime-had-been-committed-yet-there-was/) [Bethany McLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bethany-mclean/) > [“The crime they committed was… music.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-neve/the-crime-they-committed-was-music/) J.K. Neve ## More by Lemony Snicket > [“Nevermore Tree was gargantuan, a word which here means 'having attained an inordinate amount of botanical volume.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/nevermore-tree-was-gargantuan-a-word-which-here-means-having-attained/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) > [“But even if they could go home it would be difficult for me to tell you what the moral of the story is. 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It was a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/they-tried-picturing-leaving-uncle-monty-and-living-by-themselves/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) > [“To Beatrice- darling, dearest, dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/to-beatrice-darling-dearest-dead/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) > [“The French expression 'cul-de-sac' describes what the Baudelaire orphans found when they reached the end of the dark hallway, and like all French expressions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/the-french-expression-cul-de-sac-describes-what-the-baudelaire/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) [Explore all 384 Lemony Snicket quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) ## More Crime quotes > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [“Crime and punishment can be summed up in two classifications: there are bad people and there are people who get into bad situations. 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I don't want to make the same mistakes the criminals do! ;)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/taking-notes-while-watching-forensic-files-and-snapped-i-don-t-want/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Nations sometimes flourish by denying the crimes that brought them into being. 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