--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As for us, we were never concerned with…" description: "\"As for us, we were never concerned with the Kantian-priestly and vegetarian-Quaker prattle about the \"sacredness of human life.\" We were revolutionarie..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg" --- # As for us, we were never concerned with the… ![“As for us, we were never concerned with the Kantian-priestly and vegetarian-Quaker prattle about the "sacredness of human life." We were revolutionaries in opposition, and have remained revolutionaries in power. To make the individual sacred we must destroy the social order which crucifies him…” quote by Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg) > “As for us, we were never concerned with the Kantian-priestly and vegetarian-Quaker prattle about the "sacredness of human life." We were revolutionaries in opposition, and have remained revolutionaries in power. To make the individual sacred we must destroy the social order which crucifies him. And this problem can only be solved by blood and iron.” [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argues that to honor individuals, the oppressive social order must be destroyed, requiring force. **In simple terms:** Freedom demands dismantling oppressive structures, even violently. Key Takeaway Challenge systemic oppression, not just rhetoric. Themes revolution human dignity violence Mood urgent radical Type political revolutionary When to use this quote - political activism - policy reform - grassroots movements Key Concepts marxism power social change Questions to Reflect On - Is violent upheaval ever justified? - What non‑violent alternatives exist for radical change? A Different Perspective Violence can undermine moral legitimacy and cause collateral harm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Blood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blood/) [Concerned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concerned/) [Crucifies Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crucifies-problem-5876959/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [He man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he-man/) [Historic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/historic/) [Human life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-life/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Importance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/importance/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Individual Sacred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual-sacred-2462289/) [Iron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iron/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Quaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quaker/) [Red](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/red/) [Revolutionaries Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionaries-opposition-5876958/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) [Sacred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacred/) [Sacredness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacredness/) [Sacredness Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacredness-human-1811974/) [Sanctions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanctions/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-order/) [Soviet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soviet/) [Terror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terror/) [Vegetarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vegetarian/) ## Related quotes > [As for us, we were never concerned with the Kantian-priestly and vegetarian-Quaker prattle about the sacredness of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-the-kantian-priestly-and/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [As long as human labor power, and, consequently, life itself, remain articles of sale and purchase, of exploitation and robbery, the principle of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-long-as-human-labor-power-and-consequently-life-itself-remain/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [Sacredness of human life! The world has never believed it! It has been with life that we settled our quarrels, won wives, gold and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-tarbell/sacredness-of-human-life-the-world-has-never-believed-it-it-has-been/) [Ida Tarbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-tarbell/) > [Now let me say that the next thing we must be concerned about if we are to have peace on earth and good will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/now-let-me-say-that-the-next-thing-we-must-be-concerned-about-if-we/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [As a Christian and a feminist, the most important message I can carry and fight for is the sacredness of each human life, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/as-a-christian-and-a-feminist-the-most-important-message-i-can-carry/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [Be sanctuaries of respect for life, proclaiming the sacredness of every human life from conception to natural death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/be-sanctuaries-of-respect-for-life-proclaiming-the-sacredness-of/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [The struggle is always between the individual and his sacred right to express himself and... the power structure that seeks conformity, suppression and obedience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/the-struggle-is-always-between-the-individual-and-his-sacred-right-to/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [A love of neighbor manifests itself in the tolerance not only of opinions of others but, what is more important, of the essence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-l-liebman/a-love-of-neighbor-manifests-itself-in-the-tolerance-not-only-of/) [Joshua L. Liebman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-l-liebman/) > [I was maybe 5 or 6, and my grandmother would begin sitting me in the Quaker meeting house. I asked my grandmother, 'What am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-turrell/i-was-maybe-5-or-6-and-my-grandmother-would-begin-sitting-me-in-the/) [James Turrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-turrell/) > [All that you seek is already within you. In Hinduism it is called the Atman, in Buddhism the pure Buddha-Mind. Christ said, 'the kingdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/all-that-you-seek-is-already-within-you-in-hinduism-it-is-called-the/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [All writers who can claim to be called 'living' must be political in a sense. They must have what the Quakers call a concern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/storm-jameson/all-writers-who-can-claim-to-be-called-living-must-be-political-in-a/) [Storm Jameson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/storm-jameson/) > [There is no way to find yourself until you discover how utterly to lose yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rufus-jones/there-is-no-way-to-find-yourself-until-you-discover-how-utterly-to/) [Rufus Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rufus-jones/) > [Out here you better have a gun, and a gun in the wagon ain't good for nothin'. I believe what the old Quaker said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/out-here-you-better-have-a-gun-and-a-gun-in-the-wagon-ain-t-good-for/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [As the Quakers say, "When you pray, move your feet."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-butterworth/as-the-quakers-say-when-you-pray-move-your-feet/) [Eric Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-butterworth/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) [James Nayler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nayler/) ## More by Leon Trotsky > [The dialectic is neither fiction nor mysticism, but a science of the forms of our thinking insofar as it is not limited to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/the-dialectic-is-neither-fiction-nor-mysticism-but-a-science-of-the/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [ \[Joseph\] Stalin closes the exposition of these \[Leon Trotsky\] ideas with the words, "Such are in general the characteristic features of \[Vladimir\] Lenin's conception… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/joseph-stalin-closes-the-exposition-of-these-leon-trotsky-ideas-with/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [The creative union of the conscious with the unconscious is what one usually calls 'inspiration.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/the-creative-union-of-the-conscious-with-the-unconscious-is-what-one/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [Religions are illogical primitive ignorance. There is nothing as ridiculous and tragic as a religious government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/religions-are-illogical-primitive-ignorance-there-is-nothing-as/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [“As a battle cry against feudalism, the demand for democracy had a progressive character. As time went on, however, the metaphysics of natural law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-a-battle-cry-against-feudalism-the-demand-for-democracy-had-a/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [All the parties of capitalist society, all its moralists and all its sycophants will perish beneath the debris of the impending catastrophe. The only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/all-the-parties-of-capitalist-society-all-its-moralists-and-all-its/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [What shall we call an "immediate possibility"? In 1923 the situation in Germany was profoundly revolutionary, but what was lacking for a victorious revolution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/what-shall-we-call-an-immediate-possibility-in-1923-the-situation-in/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [The history of a revolution is for us first of all a history of the forcible entrance of the masses into the realm of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/the-history-of-a-revolution-is-for-us-first-of-all-a-history-of-the/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [I wrote a study about this question, The Lessons of October, which served as a pretext for my elimination from the government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/i-wrote-a-study-about-this-question-the-lessons-of-october-which/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [A program of "disarmament," while imperialist antagonisms survive, is the most pernicious of fictions. Even if it were realized by way of general agreement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/a-program-of-disarmament-while-imperialist-antagonisms-survive-is-the/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [ In Stalin each \[Soviet bureaucrat\] easily finds himself. But Stalin also finds in each one a small part of his own spirit. Stalin is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/in-stalin-each-soviet-bureaucrat-easily-finds-himself-but-stalin-also/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [As long as I breathe I hope. As long as I breathe I shall fight for the future, that radiant future, in which man,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-long-as-i-breathe-i-hope-as-long-as-i-breathe-i-shall-fight-for/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [If we had had more time for discussion we should probably have made a great many more mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/if-we-had-had-more-time-for-discussion-we-should-probably-have-made-a/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [Is it possible to fulfill this task, is it possible to achieve the definite victory of Socialism in one country without the combined efforts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/is-it-possible-to-fulfill-this-task-is-it-possible-to-achieve-the/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [The motive force of history is truth and not lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/the-motive-force-of-history-is-truth-and-not-lies/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) [Explore all 161 Leon Trotsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) ## More Blood quotes > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [Don't trust everyone, because one day you will shed tears of blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunshine/don-t-trust-everyone-because-one-day-you-will-shed-tears-of-blood/) [SunShine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunshine/) > [I have no intention of retiring. Even my blood sugar is better when I'm working.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-stritch/i-have-no-intention-of-retiring-even-my-blood-sugar-is-better-when-i/) [Elaine Stritch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-stritch/) > [What about you three, where are you going?" Even before Halt answered, Will knew what he was going to say. But that didn't make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/what-about-you-three-where-are-you-going-even-before-halt-answered/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [A day without blood is like a day without sunshine!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-lee-ermey/a-day-without-blood-is-like-a-day-without-sunshine/) [R. Lee Ermey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-lee-ermey/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“...I wore his blood for clothing, on my legs and thighs and hands: a dry, stiff, brown garment with no warmth in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-wore-his-blood-for-clothing-on-my-legs-and-thighs-and-hands-a-dry/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I don't think you should ever say, 'This is the last time'. Music isn't like that. You'll be sitting there not wishing to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-daltrey/i-don-t-think-you-should-ever-say-this-is-the-last-time-music-isn-t/) [Roger Daltrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-daltrey/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [I think cricket is there in Usain Bolt's blood. Since I got to watch from close quarters, it was amazing to see him run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh/i-think-cricket-is-there-in-usain-bolt-s-blood-since-i-got-to-watch/) [Harbhajan Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh/) > [Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/holy-shadows-of-the-dead-i-m-not-to-blame-for-your-cruel-and-bitter/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [“The sun had burned through and the day had gone from dull to dazzling, yet in the west blask-satin thunderheads continued to stack up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-sun-had-burned-through-and-the-day-had-gone-from-dull-to-dazzling/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) [Browse all 6,234 Blood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blood/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As for us, we were never concerned with the Kantian-priestly and vegetarian-Quaker prattle about the \"sacredness of human life.\" We were revolutionaries in opposition, and have remained revolutionaries in power. To make the individual sacred we must destroy the social order which crucifies him. And this problem can only be solved by blood and iron.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Leon Trotsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-the-kantian-priestly-and-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Blood" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-the-kantian-priestly-and-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccc/leon-trotsky-2558_blood_as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-t_3189299.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As for us, we were never concerned with the Kantian-priestly and vegetarian-Quaker prattle about the…” — Leon Trotsky", "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": "Leon Trotsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As for us, we were never...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-the-kantian-priestly-and-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/as-for-us-we-were-never-concerned-with-the-kantian-priestly-and-2/#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 } } ] } ```