--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is depressing but not shocking to…" description: "\"It is depressing but not shocking to witness the liberal intelligentsia embrace Ari Shavit so enthusiastically. Shavit is someone who is as consistentl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/max-blumenthal-32607_consistently_it-is-depressing-but-not-shocking-to-wit_914521.png" --- # It is depressing but not shocking to witness the liberal… ![“It is depressing but not shocking to witness the liberal intelligentsia embrace Ari Shavit so enthusiastically. Shavit is someone who is as consistently wrong as Thomas Friedman on major issues, and at least as much a courtier of power.” quote by Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/max-blumenthal-32607_consistently_it-is-depressing-but-not-shocking-to-wit_914521.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/max-blumenthal-32607_consistently_it-is-depressing-but-not-shocking-to-wit_914521.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d5/max-blumenthal-32607_consistently_it-is-depressing-but-not-shocking-to-wit_914521.png) > “It is depressing but not shocking to witness the liberal intelligentsia embrace Ari Shavit so enthusiastically. Shavit is someone who is as consistently wrong as Thomas Friedman on major issues, and at least as much a courtier of power.” [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critique of liberal intellectuals uncritically endorsing a controversial figure, suggesting bias and power alignment. **In simple terms:** Intellectuals may uncritically support biased voices. Key Takeaway Question sources and seek diverse perspectives. Themes politics media bias critical thinking Mood skeptical analytical Type critical inspirational When to use this quote - news consumption - academic discourse - public debates Key Concepts journalism ideology power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you assess credibility? - What alternative viewpoints exist? A Different Perspective Risk of overgeneralization. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Courtiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courtiers/) [Depressing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depressing/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/issues/) ## Related quotes > [The liberal intelligentsia has allowed its party to become a captive of corporate interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/the-liberal-intelligentsia-has-allowed-its-party-to-become-a-captive/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [I think my love of truth and honesty forces me to notice that the liberal intelligentsia of Western countries is betraying itself where Islam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-think-my-love-of-truth-and-honesty-forces-me-to-notice-that-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Where this age differs from those immediately preceding it is that a liberal intelligentsia is lacking. Bully-worship, under various disguises, has become a universal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/where-this-age-differs-from-those-immediately-preceding-it-is-that-a/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [My love of truth and honesty forces me to notice that the liberal intelligentsia of Western countries is betraying itself where Islam is concerned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/my-love-of-truth-and-honesty-forces-me-to-notice-that-the-liberal/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“Thomas Friedman captures the twin tasks when he says: “Avoid the unmanageable and manage the unavoidable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-christina-wood/thomas-friedman-captures-the-twin-tasks-when-he-says-avoid-the/) [Mary Christina Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-christina-wood/) > [When I heard the book (Thomas Friedman's latest) was actually coming out, I started to worry. Among other things, I knew I would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-taibbi/when-i-heard-the-book-thomas-friedman-s-latest-was-actually-coming/) [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) > [There is something more severe than the problem with Thomas Friedman, which can be generalized to represent someone causing action while being completely unaccountable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/there-is-something-more-severe-than-the-problem-with-thomas-friedman/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [By now, it seems as if everyone has already read Thomas L. Friedman's 'The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-ross-sorkin/by-now-it-seems-as-if-everyone-has-already-read-thomas-l-friedman-s/) [Andrew Ross Sorkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-ross-sorkin/) > [“Thomas Friedman, the New York Times foreign affairs columnist, in his typical fashion, trivialized—and did much to popularize—the “dictator’s dilemma” fallacy by coining a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeny-morozov/thomas-friedman-the-new-york-times-foreign-affairs-columnist-in-his/) [Evgeny Morozov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeny-morozov/) > [“But it would be a mistake to assume that the liberal class was simply seduced by the Utopian promises of globalism. It was also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/but-it-would-be-a-mistake-to-assume-that-the-liberal-class-was-simply/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [A rule that may serve for a statesman, a courtier, or a lovernever make a defence or an apology before you be accused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-i-of-england/a-rule-that-may-serve-for-a-statesman-a-courtier-or-a-lovernever-make/) [Charles I of England](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-i-of-england/) > [The Westerly Wind asserting his sway from the south-west quarter is often like a monarch gone mad, driving forth with wild imprecations the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-westerly-wind-asserting-his-sway-from-the-south-west-quarter-is/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Oh how unhappy is the prince served by such men who are so easily corrupted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-rabelais/oh-how-unhappy-is-the-prince-served-by-such-men-who-are-so-easily/) [Francois Rabelais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-rabelais/) > [The neo-conservatives, who are closely linked to the neo-corporatists, are rather different. They claim to be conservatives, when everything they stand for is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ralston-saul/the-neo-conservatives-who-are-closely-linked-to-the-neo-corporatists/) [John Ralston Saul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ralston-saul/) > [In the humanist ideal, the mainstream is where interesting debate, the generating of new ideas and creativity take place. In rational society this mainstream…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ralston-saul/in-the-humanist-ideal-the-mainstream-is-where-interesting-debate-the/) [John Ralston Saul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ralston-saul/) ## More by Max Blumenthal > [After a few months you stop noticing every incarnation of radicalism and violence. It is so saturated into your reality that it practically fades…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/after-a-few-months-you-stop-noticing-every-incarnation-of-radicalism/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [While I regard the Nakba as an ongoing crime that needs to be prosecuted and reversed...Shavit defends its necessity and lectures Palestinians trapped in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/while-i-regard-the-nakba-as-an-ongoing-crime-that-needs-to-be/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [I haven't seen American Sniper, but correct me if I'm wrong: An occupier mows down faceless Iraqis but the real victim is his anguished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/i-haven-t-seen-american-sniper-but-correct-me-if-i-m-wrong-an/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [I think we need to draw a contextual distinction between what the neo-fascists of Europe would like to do and what the state of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/i-think-we-need-to-draw-a-contextual-distinction-between-what-the-neo/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [“A week later, a mob of assorted right-wing nationalists assaulted an anti-war rally in Haifa, bombarding the gathering of Palestinians and leftists with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/a-week-later-a-mob-of-assorted-right-wing-nationalists-assaulted-an/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [You can be a bigot in the US, but you can't come out and openly declare your support for racial nationalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/you-can-be-a-bigot-in-the-us-but-you-can-t-come-out-and-openly/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [My privilege as a white Jewish American in Israel is a major factor in getting me so much access to the key institutions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/my-privilege-as-a-white-jewish-american-in-israel-is-a-major-factor/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [There's still massive racism in the United States today that is rooted in sexual fears, but it's at least considered unacceptable. In Israel it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/there-s-still-massive-racism-in-the-united-states-today-that-is/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [There will be no Palestinian state](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/there-will-be-no-palestinian-state/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [If we don't kill, we will cease to exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/if-we-don-t-kill-we-will-cease-to-exist/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [It was not the right-wing Russians or the gun-toting settlers who carried out the Nakba. The Nakba is the legacy of Zionism's putatively socialist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/it-was-not-the-right-wing-russians-or-the-gun-toting-settlers-who/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [There are fewer Arabs in Tel Aviv, one of the largest cities in the Middle East, than there are in Chicago, the largest city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/there-are-fewer-arabs-in-tel-aviv-one-of-the-largest-cities-in-the/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [Only Zionists get to proclaim their fear of a brown planet while simultaneously maintaining a patina of liberal respectability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/only-zionists-get-to-proclaim-their-fear-of-a-brown-planet-while/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) > [“paper Yedioth Ahronoth, Israelis saw soldiers as “their children”—the loss of a single one was occasion for a national outpouring of grief. According to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-blumenthal/paper-yedioth-ahronoth-israelis-saw-soldiers-as-their-children-the/) [Max Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) [Explore all 15 Max Blumenthal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-blumenthal/) ## More Consistently quotes > [I have always worked really hard off the court. I think it's helped me play more consistently on the tour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-draper/i-have-always-worked-really-hard-off-the-court-i-think-it-s-helped-me/) [Jack Draper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-draper/) > [David Cronenberg is the most provocative, original, and consistently excellent North American director of his generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-hoberman/david-cronenberg-is-the-most-provocative-original-and-consistently/) J. Hoberman > [... even the most sublimely accomplished non-stop talker can't consistently please.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger-2/even-the-most-sublimely-accomplished-non-stop-talker-can-t/) [J. D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger-2/) > [If I do the same thing consistently, no matter how I feel, I'm probably going to produce a consistent result.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-seager/if-i-do-the-same-thing-consistently-no-matter-how-i-feel-i-m-probably/) [Corey Seager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-seager/) > [I think if you look all across the country, the so-called Blue Dogs are all gone to kennel. There are no more Blue Dogs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-if-you-look-all-across-the-country-the-so-called-blue-dogs/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ It cannot be an American fight. And I think what the president \[Barack Obama\] has consistently said - which I agree with - is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/it-cannot-be-an-american-fight-and-i-think-what-the-president-barack/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [If you see someone lying out knives and forks consistently, but then one day those knives and forks become weapons you're not sure if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-fuqua/if-you-see-someone-lying-out-knives-and-forks-consistently-but-then/) [Antoine Fuqua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-fuqua/) > [I'm fortunate in one way and I can take pride from the fact that I've consistently performed for 10 years, which is something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cavendish/i-m-fortunate-in-one-way-and-i-can-take-pride-from-the-fact-that-i-ve/) [Mark Cavendish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cavendish/) > [“Leadership is producing a standard in someone that they will live by to produce higher level results consistently.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/leadership-is-producing-a-standard-in-someone-that-they-will-live-by/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [One of the great qualities of Chancellor Merkel is that she is steady. She analyzes a situation. She's honest. Sometimes we've had disagreements, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/one-of-the-great-qualities-of-chancellor-merkel-is-that-she-is-steady/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The Bush Administration's failure to be consistently involved in helping Israel achieve peace with the Palestinians has been both wrong for our friendship with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-bush-administration-s-failure-to-be-consistently-involved-in/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Mental Toughness: The ability to consistently perform toward the upper range of your talent and skill regardless of the competitive circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-e-loehr/mental-toughness-the-ability-to-consistently-perform-toward-the-upper/) James E. Loehr > [No parent can consistently teach faith in Christ who profanes the name of Deity. Profanity is never heard in the well-ordered home. Swearing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-o-mckay/no-parent-can-consistently-teach-faith-in-christ-who-profanes-the/) [David O. McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-mckay/) > [Vision gets the dreams started. Dreaming employs your God-given imagination to reinforce the vision. Both are part of something I believe is absolutely necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmitt-smith/vision-gets-the-dreams-started-dreaming-employs-your-god-given/) [Emmitt Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmitt-smith/) > [Success doesn’t come from what you do occasionally, it comes from what you do consistently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-forleo/success-doesn-t-come-from-what-you-do-occasionally-it-comes-from-what/) [Marie Forleo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-forleo/) Browse all 868 Consistently quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is depressing but not shocking to witness the liberal intelligentsia embrace Ari Shavit so enthusiastically. 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