--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The most horrible thing is not a…" description: "\"The most horrible thing is not a government that stages public executions, but a government that secretly disposes of its victims.\" — Lu Xun" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg" --- # The most horrible thing is not a government that stages… ![“The most horrible thing is not a government that stages public executions, but a government that secretly disposes of its victims.” quote by Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg) > “The most horrible thing is not a government that stages public executions, but a government that secretly disposes of its victims.” [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A government that hides its crimes is more terrifying than one that openly executes. **In simple terms:** Secret oppression is the worst form of tyranny. Key Takeaway Demand transparency and accountability. Themes politics human rights trust Mood cautionary somber Type political philosophical When to use this quote - Journalism - civil society - legal reform Key Concepts authoritarianism state secrecy psychology Questions to Reflect On - What mechanisms can expose hidden state crimes? - How does secrecy erode public trust? A Different Perspective People may become desensitized to hidden abuses. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Execution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/execution/) [Executions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/executions/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Horrible things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horrible-things/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Stage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stage/) [Tyrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tyrants/) [Victim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victim/) ## Related quotes > [“In North Korea a person has two lives, natural and political. But once you get sent to a prison camp your political life is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-k-martin/in-north-korea-a-person-has-two-lives-natural-and-political-but-once/) Bradley K. Martin > [“Criminals beheaded in Palermo, heretics burned alive in Toledo, assassins drawn and quartered in Paris—Europeans flocked to every form of painful death imaginable, free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-c-mann/criminals-beheaded-in-palermo-heretics-burned-alive-in-toledo/) [Charles C. Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-c-mann/) > [We used to watch executions. I mentioned that in one of my stories. There was a piece of open ground near the area where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hassan-blasim/we-used-to-watch-executions-i-mentioned-that-in-one-of-my-stories/) [Hassan Blasim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hassan-blasim/) > [“There are no bad ideas. Only bad executions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meinos-kaen/there-are-no-bad-ideas-only-bad-executions/) Meinos Kaen > [The goal is justice, not executions. We all want to make sure the process is fair and that the right person is punished. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-goal-is-justice-not-executions-we-all-want-to-make-sure-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Henry VIII, for example, who was king of England from 1509 to 1547, ended his days surrounded by a great many young people for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/henry-viii-for-example-who-was-king-of-england-from-1509-to-1547/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [A solemn day. Barring a stay by Sup Ct, & with my final nod, Utah will use most extreme power & execute a killer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-solemn-day-barring-a-stay-by-sup-ct-with-my-final-nod-utah-will-use-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I tell myself that I had simply better accept the fact that the death penalty is here to stay in our society, at least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-prejean/i-tell-myself-that-i-had-simply-better-accept-the-fact-that-the-death/) [Helen Prejean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-prejean/) > [“The Damned Axe by Stewart Stafford The axe decapitates a head, Society's ills get quickly shed, Can we trust what we don't see? The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-stafford/the-damned-axe-by-stewart-stafford-the-axe-decapitates-a-head-society/) [Stewart Stafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-stafford/) > [A multitude of executions discredits a king, as a multitude of funerals a doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca/a-multitude-of-executions-discredits-a-king-as-a-multitude-of/) [Seneca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca/) > [“I don't know that you'll understand this, but once upon a time, long ago, I was a scholar and a marathon man, but that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/i-don-t-know-that-you-ll-understand-this-but-once-upon-a-time-long/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) > [I think the use of lethal injection is the way of lying to ourselves, to make it look like executions are peaceful, are benign,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-kozinski/i-think-the-use-of-lethal-injection-is-the-way-of-lying-to-ourselves/) [Alex Kozinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-kozinski/) > [ “\[T\]here are some human rights that are so deep that we can't negotiate them away. I mean people do heinous, terrible things. But there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sister-helen-prejean/t-here-are-some-human-rights-that-are-so-deep-that-we-can-t-negotiate/) Sister Helen Prejean > [I have always used rather large execution squads, since I declined to use men who were specialists for shots in the neck (Genickschussspezialisten). Each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-blobel/i-have-always-used-rather-large-execution-squads-since-i-declined-to/) Paul Blobel > [If there were no executioners, there would be no executions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/if-there-were-no-executioners-there-would-be-no-executions/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) ## More by Lu Xun > [The ability to forget the past enables people to free themselves gradually from the pain they once suffered; but it also often makes them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/the-ability-to-forget-the-past-enables-people-to-free-themselves/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Hope is a path on the mountainside. At first there is no path. But then there are people passing that way. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/hope-is-a-path-on-the-mountainside-at-first-there-is-no-path-but-then/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [It is in the nature of things that some people should be unlucky enough to get their heads chopped off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/it-is-in-the-nature-of-things-that-some-people-should-be-unlucky/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [The most painful thing in life is to wake up from a dream and find no way out. Dreamers are fortunate people. If no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/the-most-painful-thing-in-life-is-to-wake-up-from-a-dream-and-find-no/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [I entreat fresh visions from the painters. Be lavish with your vermilion to portray the mountains in the spring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/i-entreat-fresh-visions-from-the-painters-be-lavish-with-your/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Though science has given us many marvels, it has also spoiled many of our pleasant dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/though-science-has-given-us-many-marvels-it-has-also-spoiled-many-of/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Creation, even when it is a mere outpouring from the heart, wishes to find a public. By definition, creation is sociable. Yet it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/creation-even-when-it-is-a-mere-outpouring-from-the-heart-wishes-to/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [“With the weight of four thousand years of cannibalism bearing down upon me, even if I was once innocent how can I now face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/with-the-weight-of-four-thousand-years-of-cannibalism-bearing-down/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [True fighters dare face the sorrows of humanity, and look unflinchingly at bloodshed. What sorrow and joy are theirs! But the Creator's common device…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/true-fighters-dare-face-the-sorrows-of-humanity-and-look/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [I could not blot out hope, for hope belongs to the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/i-could-not-blot-out-hope-for-hope-belongs-to-the-future/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Hope is like a path in the countryside. Originally, there is nothing - but as people walk this way again and again, a path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/hope-is-like-a-path-in-the-countryside-originally-there-is-nothing/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Whoever thinks he is objective must already be half drunk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/whoever-thinks-he-is-objective-must-already-be-half-drunk/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [When a great man has become petrified, and everyone begins to proclaim his greatness, he has already turned into a puppet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/when-a-great-man-has-become-petrified-and-everyone-begins-to-proclaim/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Men who have not known the horror of death are not likely to be awed by it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/men-who-have-not-known-the-horror-of-death-are-not-likely-to-be-awed/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) > [Like students going to school, the planes on their bombing missions fly over Beijing each morning. And each time I hear their engines attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/like-students-going-to-school-the-planes-on-their-bombing-missions/) [Lu Xun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) [Explore all 49 Lu Xun quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/) ## More Execution quotes > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [For the execution of the voyage to the Indies, I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics or maps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-columbus/for-the-execution-of-the-voyage-to-the-indies-i-did-not-make-use-of/) [Christopher Columbus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-columbus/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Ideas are easy. Execution is everything. It takes a team to win.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-doerr/ideas-are-easy-execution-is-everything-it-takes-a-team-to-win/) [John Doerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-doerr/) > [The execution was set for the 29th of March, at nine in the morning. This delay was due to a desire on the part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-execution-was-set-for-the-29th-of-march-at-nine-in-the-morning/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Cooking brings me so much joy. I love everything, down to the execution of the plate to picking out fresh ingredients at the market.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-budig/cooking-brings-me-so-much-joy-i-love-everything-down-to-the-execution/) [Kathryn Budig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-budig/) > [When you shoot someone who is fleeing, it's not self-defense. It's an execution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-shoot-someone-who-is-fleeing-it-s-not-self-defense-it-s-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Art is beauty, the perpetual invention of detail, the choice of words, the exquisite care of execution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theophile-gautier/art-is-beauty-the-perpetual-invention-of-detail-the-choice-of-words/) [Theophile Gautier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theophile-gautier/) > [The pursuit of peace resembles the building of a great cathedral. It is the work of a generation. In concept it requires a mater-architect;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/the-pursuit-of-peace-resembles-the-building-of-a-great-cathedral-it/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [If there were no executioners, there would be no executions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/if-there-were-no-executioners-there-would-be-no-executions/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [It is far more difficult to be simple than to be complicated; far more difficult to sacrifice skill and easy execution in the proper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/it-is-far-more-difficult-to-be-simple-than-to-be-complicated-far-more/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) > [Basketball, like all sports, is predicated on the execution of fundamentals. The coach is a teacher. His subject: fundamentals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ramsay/basketball-like-all-sports-is-predicated-on-the-execution-of/) [Jack Ramsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ramsay/) > [Systems program building is an entropy-decreasing process, hence inherently metastable. Program maintenance is an entropy-increasing process, and even its most skillful execution only delays…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/systems-program-building-is-an-entropy-decreasing-process-hence/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [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 868 Execution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/execution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The most horrible thing is not a government that stages public executions, but a government that secretly disposes of its victims.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lu Xun" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-government-that-stages-public/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Execution" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-government-that-stages-public/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ad/lu-xun-12813_execution_the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-governm_2562601.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The most horrible thing is not a government that stages public executions, but a government that secretly…” — Lu Xun", "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": "Lu Xun", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lu-xun/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The most horrible thing is not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-government-that-stages-public/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lu-xun/the-most-horrible-thing-is-not-a-government-that-stages-public/#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 } } ] } ```