---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than…"
description: "\"“It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run on time. What is it that Mister Churchill used to say? “Democracy is the worst form of gover..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png"
---

#  It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run…

![“It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run on time. What is it that Mister Churchill used to say? “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” quote by Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png)

> ““It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run on time. What is it that Mister Churchill used to say? “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.””

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Blowing up trains is easier than keeping them on schedule; Churchill’s quote highlights democracy’s flaws yet its relative superiority.

**In simple terms:** Trains are hard to run; democracy is imperfect but better than alternatives.

Key Takeaway

Recognize complexity in systems and appreciate imperfect solutions.

Themes

politics efficiency government critique humor

Mood

critical thought‑provoking humorous

Type

political philosophical

When to use this quote

- transport planning
- government reform
- public discourse
- critical thinking

Key Concepts

public policy systems theory historical quotes

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you balance criticism with appreciation?
- What improvements can you support in public systems?

A Different Perspective

Democracy can still fail despite being the best option.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/churchill/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Democracy Worst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy-worst-425325/) [Fitness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitness/) [Mister Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mister-churchill-5199499/) [Say Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-democracy-571570/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [Democracy is the worst form of government. It is the most inefficient, the most clumsy, the most unpractical… It reduces wisdom to impotence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-briffault/democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government-it-is-the-most-inefficient/)

[Robert Briffault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-briffault/)

> [“Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-s-churchill/many-forms-of-government-have-been-tried-and-will-be-tried-in-this-2/)

[Winston S. Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-s-churchill/)

> [“Similar to Churchill's view that “democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried,” although it is by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-krantz/similar-to-churchill-s-view-that-democracy-is-the-worst-form-of/)

[Matthew Krantz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-krantz/)

> [You know, the primary process itself is very confusing. But in the end, I guess I believe what Winston Churchill said, which is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-cowan/you-know-the-primary-process-itself-is-very-confusing-but-in-the-end/)

[Geoffrey Cowan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-cowan/)

> [Democracy's worst fault is that its leaders are likely to reflect the faults and virtues of their constituents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/democracy-s-worst-fault-is-that-its-leaders-are-likely-to-reflect-the/)

[Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/)

> [“Democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government-except-for-all-those-other/)

[Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/)

> [“Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-s-churchill/democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government-except-for-all-the-others/)

[Winston S. Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-s-churchill/)

> [Joe and I are still very aware of the fact that we live in a country where he criticised the government and lived another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-plame/joe-and-i-are-still-very-aware-of-the-fact-that-we-live-in-a-country/)

[Valerie Plame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-plame/)

> [“Democracy is a poor system of government at best; the only thing that can honestly be said in its favor is that it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/democracy-is-a-poor-system-of-government-at-best-the-only-thing-that/)

[Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/)

> [I'm sort of always trying to reinvent and recreate a better way of being, because, you know, democracy has been "the worst of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-grenier/i-m-sort-of-always-trying-to-reinvent-and-recreate-a-better-way-of/)

[Adrian Grenier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-grenier/)

> [ I think \[Winston\] Churchill said it was " \[democracy\] the worst of all systems except for all the others." And that's probably true. It's… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bloomberg/i-think-winston-churchill-said-it-was-democracy-the-worst-of-all/)

[Michael Bloomberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bloomberg/)

> [Democracy is the worst kind of government, I'm sorry. Would you still call yourself a Christian if they elected a new Jesus every four…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-stanhope/democracy-is-the-worst-kind-of-government-i-m-sorry-would-you-still/)

[Doug Stanhope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-stanhope/)

> [Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/many-forms-of-government-have-been-tried-and-will-be-tried-in-this/)

[Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/)

> [ I think most of \[people\] are not very well educated themselves to understand the Winston Churchill line - democracy is the worst of all… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reid-hoffman/i-think-most-of-people-are-not-very-well-educated-themselves-to/)

[Reid Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reid-hoffman/)

> [It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/it-has-been-said-that-democracy-is-the-worst-form-of-government/)

[Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/)

## More by Max Brooks

> [When I believe in my ability to do something, there is no such word as no.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/when-i-believe-in-my-ability-to-do-something-there-is-no-such-word-as/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [Fear is the most valuable commodity in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/fear-is-the-most-valuable-commodity-in-the-universe/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [I think the general anxiety of the 1960s - '70s spawned our interest in the living dead. When people worry about the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/i-think-the-general-anxiety-of-the-1960s-70s-spawned-our-interest-in/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [Sometimes you find your path, sometimes it finds you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/sometimes-you-find-your-path-sometimes-it-finds-you/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [I wanted to serve. It was Desert Storm. I thought, 'I was a rich kid, and America's been good to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/i-wanted-to-serve-it-was-desert-storm-i-thought-i-was-a-rich-kid-and/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [ \[...\]you don’t have to be Sun freakin Tzu to know that real fighting isn’t about killing or even hurting the other guy, it’s about… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/you-don-t-have-to-be-sun-freakin-tzu-to-know-that-real-fighting-isn-t/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [“rank warehouses among your most attractive hideouts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/rank-warehouses-among-your-most-attractive-hideouts/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [I think Americans are at our best when we recover from a crisis. We've suffered some blows that other countries would have never recovered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/i-think-americans-are-at-our-best-when-we-recover-from-a-crisis-we-ve/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [“The living dead had taken more from us than land and loved ones. They'd robbed us of our confidence as the planet's dominant life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/the-living-dead-had-taken-more-from-us-than-land-and-loved-ones-they/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [“PARNELL AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, TENNESSEE”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/parnell-air-national-guard-base-tennessee/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [Often, a school is your best bet-perhaps not for education but certainly for protection from an undead attack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/often-a-school-is-your-best-bet-perhaps-not-for-education-but/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [Any survival guide will tell you, don't buy a pair of combat boots before any disaster. They'll tear your feet up. Or water -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/any-survival-guide-will-tell-you-don-t-buy-a-pair-of-combat-boots/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [When I read Frank Miller's 'The Dark Knight Returns', I think it's a wonderful record of the Reagan era. I think it's amazing. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/when-i-read-frank-miller-s-the-dark-knight-returns-i-think-it-s-a/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [The dead walk among us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/the-dead-walk-among-us/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

> [“What we did, what every president since Washington has done, was provide a measured, appropriate response, in direct relation to a realistic threat assessment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/what-we-did-what-every-president-since-washington-has-done-was/)

[Max Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

[Explore all 142 Max Brooks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/)

## More Churchill quotes

> [One of the great things about Churchill is that he had the guts to say the unpalatable, to level with the people, even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-mccarten/one-of-the-great-things-about-churchill-is-that-he-had-the-guts-to/)

[Anthony McCarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-mccarten/)

> [“The price of greatness...is responsibility - Winston Churchill”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/the-price-of-greatness-is-responsibility-winston-churchill/)

[Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/)

> [“Winston Churchill said that people “occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bungay-stanier/winston-churchill-said-that-people-occasionally-stumble-over-the/)

[Michael Bungay Stanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bungay-stanier/)

> [“We shape our dwellings, and afterwards our dwellings shape us. —WINSTON CHURCHILL The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ban-breathnach/we-shape-our-dwellings-and-afterwards-our-dwellings-shape-us-winston/)

[Sarah Ban Breathnach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ban-breathnach/)

> [Winston Churchill never said that people had let him down when he lost the elections after the World War II.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raj-thackeray/winston-churchill-never-said-that-people-had-let-him-down-when-he/)

[Raj Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raj-thackeray/)

> [“his other hand. Sensitive to his guest’s affliction, Churchill realized that “every step” was”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-meacham/his-other-hand-sensitive-to-his-guest-s-affliction-churchill-realized/)

[Jon Meacham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-meacham/)

> [Churchill may have made some horrendous mistakes - Gallipoli, for one - but he had a sense of the profundity and integrity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-starkey/churchill-may-have-made-some-horrendous-mistakes-gallipoli-for-one/)

[David Starkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-starkey/)

> [Winston Churchill is always expecting rabbits to come out of an empty hat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/winston-churchill-is-always-expecting-rabbits-to-come-out-of-an-empty/)

[Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/)

> [“Sure I am that this day we are masters of our fate, that the task which has been set before us is not above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-sharma/sure-i-am-that-this-day-we-are-masters-of-our-fate-that-the-task/)

[Robin S. Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-sharma/)

> [The Atlantic conference in the North Atlantic off Newfoundland is a dramatic moment in World War II history because for the first time, Roosevelt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/the-atlantic-conference-in-the-north-atlantic-off-newfoundland-is-a/)

[Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/)

> [Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill rode to glory on the back of the strong declarative sentence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/abraham-lincoln-and-winston-churchill-rode-to-glory-on-the-back-of/)

[William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/)

> [“First law of poultry farming: keep your livestock busy with trivial problems, so they stay ever oblivious to systemic criminal activities. That's why the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/first-law-of-poultry-farming-keep-your-livestock-busy-with-trivial/)

[Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/)

> [Foyles War made me realise that Churchill actually had questionable morals; his decisions meant that good people died. It must have weighed heavily on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honeysuckle-weeks/foyles-war-made-me-realise-that-churchill-actually-had-questionable/)

[Honeysuckle Weeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honeysuckle-weeks/)

> [Churchill was fundamentally what the English call unstable - by which they mean anybody who has that touch of genius which is inconvenient in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-macmillan/churchill-was-fundamentally-what-the-english-call-unstable-by-which/)

[Harold MacMillan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-macmillan/)

> [Adlai Stevenson, himself a notable speaker, often reminisced about his last meeting with Churchill. I asked him on whom or what he had based…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bourke-cockran/adlai-stevenson-himself-a-notable-speaker-often-reminisced-about-his/)

[William Bourke Cockran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bourke-cockran/)

[Browse all 213 Churchill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/churchill/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run on time. What is it that Mister Churchill used to say? “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Max Brooks"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than-to-make-them-run-on-time-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Churchill"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than-to-make-them-run-on-time-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff7/max-brooks-2735_churchill_it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than_3071690.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It’s a lot easier to blow up trains than to make them run on time. What is it that Mister Churchill used to…” — Max Brooks",
                "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": "Max Brooks",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-brooks/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“It’s a lot easier to blow...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than-to-make-them-run-on-time-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-brooks/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-blow-up-trains-than-to-make-them-run-on-time-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
