--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are all kinds of different forms of…" description: "\"There are all kinds of different forms of public service, but there's no form of public service that can make more difference for more people than part..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg" --- # There are all kinds of different forms of public service… ![“There are all kinds of different forms of public service, but there's no form of public service that can make more difference for more people than partisan political activity.” quote by Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg) > “There are all kinds of different forms of public service, but there's no form of public service that can make more difference for more people than partisan political activity.” [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political engagement can affect the greatest number of people more than any other form of service. **In simple terms:** Politics can impact many lives. Key Takeaway Engage in politics for broad impact. Themes politics service impact Mood reflective critical Type analytical motivational When to use this quote - election campaigns - legislative work - community organizing Key Concepts civic duty public policy democratic participation Questions to Reflect On - What motivates you to enter politics? - How can political work stay true to service? A Different Perspective Political systems can be slow and contentious. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Activity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/activity/) [All kinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/all-kinds/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Partisan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/partisan/) [Partisan Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/partisan-political-661598/) [Partisans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/partisans/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Partisan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-partisan-2971518/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political Activity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-activity-372278/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Public service](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-service/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) ## Related quotes > [Public service does not necessarily mean service in the House of Commons, and public service is not synonymous with partisan political activity. It comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/public-service-does-not-necessarily-mean-service-in-the-house-of/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [No partisan political activity transpired in my office during the recount period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-harris/no-partisan-political-activity-transpired-in-my-office-during-the/) [Katherine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-harris/) > [You see, party labels do not ensure unanimity any more than trying to cast the challenge we confront as a people through a partisan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-hayworth/you-see-party-labels-do-not-ensure-unanimity-any-more-than-trying-to/) [J. D. Hayworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-hayworth/) > [The Archivist of the United States essentially works for the American people across partisan lines and not, regardless of which Administration nominates the person,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-weinstein/the-archivist-of-the-united-states-essentially-works-for-the-american/) [Allen Weinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-weinstein/) > [I'm really not a partisan political person. I remember when I was in Washington they kept trying to get me to say whether I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-zigler/i-m-really-not-a-partisan-political-person-i-remember-when-i-was-in/) [Edward Zigler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-zigler/) > [I don't back down. I don't cave when the pressure gets too great from these partisan political ideological forces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-rather/i-don-t-back-down-i-don-t-cave-when-the-pressure-gets-too-great-from/) [Dan Rather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-rather/) > [There are two strategies available in a partisan political environment for communities working for justice. You can join the Democratic Party - and, once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-perlstein/there-are-two-strategies-available-in-a-partisan-political/) [Rick Perlstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-perlstein/) > [I have been accused of acting out of partisan political motives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-blasey-ford/i-have-been-accused-of-acting-out-of-partisan-political-motives/) [Christine Blasey Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-blasey-ford/) > [I've worked very hard in this book to keep the lines of communication open. I don't want to turn someone away from this information…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-diamond/i-ve-worked-very-hard-in-this-book-to-keep-the-lines-of-communication/) [Jared Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-diamond/) > [No man or woman should be denied the fruits of his labor simply because they refuse to toe a partisan or political line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-cawthorn/no-man-or-woman-should-be-denied-the-fruits-of-his-labor-simply/) [Madison Cawthorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-cawthorn/) > [In the beginning I thought, and still think, he did great good in giving support and encouragement to this movement. But I did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-stannard-baker/in-the-beginning-i-thought-and-still-think-he-did-great-good-in/) [Ray Stannard Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-stannard-baker/) > [The letter writers span the spectrum from left to right. Members say they don't want this to become a partisan political issue. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-gjelten/the-letter-writers-span-the-spectrum-from-left-to-right-members-say/) [Tom Gjelten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-gjelten/) > [When you have strong views about how to approach thinking about the law, then that view is going to lead to certain results in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-sotomayor/when-you-have-strong-views-about-how-to-approach-thinking-about-the/) [Sonia Sotomayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-sotomayor/) > [The partisan when he is engaged in a dispute, cares nothing about the rights of the question, but is anxious only to convince his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/socrates/the-partisan-when-he-is-engaged-in-a-dispute-cares-nothing-about-the/) [Socrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/socrates/) > [Children's books are by nature partisan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-walters/children-s-books-are-by-nature-partisan/) [Eric Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-walters/) ## More by Michael Ignatieff > [The Only cure for nihilism is for liberal democratic societies - their electorates, their judiciary, and their political leadership- to insist that force is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/the-only-cure-for-nihilism-is-for-liberal-democratic-societies-their/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [What really matters is getting new people in. The constitutional changes matter, but the thing that the party mustn't do is turn in on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/what-really-matters-is-getting-new-people-in-the-constitutional/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [The medium's gaze is brief, intense, and promiscuous. The shelf life of the moral causes it makes its own is brutally short.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/the-medium-s-gaze-is-brief-intense-and-promiscuous-the-shelf-life-of/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [Those with a gift for action, for their part, often express contempt for those whose gifts are more reflective. Men of action like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/those-with-a-gift-for-action-for-their-part-often-express-contempt/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [There are lots of nations in the world or national peoples who don't yet have states. They're inside someone else's state and they want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/there-are-lots-of-nations-in-the-world-or-national-peoples-who-don-t/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [There's a civic nationalism in Britain and dozens of other countries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/there-s-a-civic-nationalism-in-britain-and-dozens-of-other-countries/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [Affirming belief that America is an exceptional nation has become a test of patriotism in American politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/affirming-belief-that-america-is-an-exceptional-nation-has-become-a/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [Both Iraq and Syria are a fissile mixture of ethnicities and religions thrown together after Versailles by departing French and British imperialists and only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/both-iraq-and-syria-are-a-fissile-mixture-of-ethnicities-and/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [The legitimacy of coercive acts in a democracy arises from the process by which they are justified and by the degree to which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/the-legitimacy-of-coercive-acts-in-a-democracy-arises-from-the/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [Some of our finest leaders were not intellectuals at all, and I admire them enormously because they weren't. Harry Truman wasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/some-of-our-finest-leaders-were-not-intellectuals-at-all-and-i-admire/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [If you get the access to see history happen, do you understand the history when it does happen? And the answer to that question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/if-you-get-the-access-to-see-history-happen-do-you-understand-the/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [I have been a journalist, off and on, since I was 17. I was a copy boy for the 'New York Times,' when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/i-have-been-a-journalist-off-and-on-since-i-was-17-i-was-a-copy-boy/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [In academic life, false ideas are merely false, and useless ones can be fun to play with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/in-academic-life-false-ideas-are-merely-false-and-useless-ones-can-be/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [Liberal democracy has endured because its institutions are designed for handling morally hazardous forms of coercive power. It puts the question of how far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/liberal-democracy-has-endured-because-its-institutions-are-designed/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [An intellectual may be interested in ideas and policies for their own sake, but a politician's interest is exclusively in the question of whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/an-intellectual-may-be-interested-in-ideas-and-policies-for-their-own/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) [Explore all 138 Michael Ignatieff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) ## More Activity quotes > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [It must be assumed and established as a principle, that the right of private property must be regarded as sacred. Wherefore, the law ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-xiii/it-must-be-assumed-and-established-as-a-principle-that-the-right-of/) [Pope Leo XIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-xiii/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [And also I think the rise of other, you could say, destinations for international jihadis mean that Pakistan isn't necessarily the place where people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/and-also-i-think-the-rise-of-other-you-could-say-destinations-for/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [To evoke in oneself a feeling one has once experienced, and having evoked it in oneself, then by means of movements, lines, colors, sounds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-evoke-in-oneself-a-feeling-one-has-once-experienced-and-having/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Fighting's fun, man. It's a great activity, it's a great sport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mitrione/fighting-s-fun-man-it-s-a-great-activity-it-s-a-great-sport/) [Matt Mitrione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mitrione/) > [There were books everywhere in my house. Books were very present. I just loved books. I never understood reading as anything but a pleasurable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-lucas/there-were-books-everywhere-in-my-house-books-were-very-present-i/) [Lisa Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-lucas/) > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [The only activity a cynic will find contagious is yawning, that is, with other people, at other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-only-activity-a-cynic-will-find-contagious-is-yawning-that-is/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [For the longest time, neuroscientists were forced to be passive observers of brain activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gero-miesenbock/for-the-longest-time-neuroscientists-were-forced-to-be-passive/) [Gero Miesenbock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gero-miesenbock/) > [Enjoyment is not a goal, it is a feeling that accompanies important ongoing activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/enjoyment-is-not-a-goal-it-is-a-feeling-that-accompanies-important/) [Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/) > [Once an activity has been socialized, it is impossible to point out, by concrete example, how men in a free market could better conduct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-read/once-an-activity-has-been-socialized-it-is-impossible-to-point-out-by/) [Leonard Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-read/) > [“Fun is not an activity, it is a state of mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/fun-is-not-an-activity-it-is-a-state-of-mind/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [I have to consider everything I eat; I consider every activity I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kimball/i-have-to-consider-everything-i-eat-i-consider-every-activity-i-do/) [Charlie Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kimball/) > [Almost all good businesses engage in 'pain today, gain tomorrow' activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/almost-all-good-businesses-engage-in-pain-today-gain-tomorrow/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) [Browse all 3,263 Activity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/activity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are all kinds of different forms of public service, but there's no form of public service that can make more difference for more people than partisan political activity.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Ignatieff" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-of-public-service-but-there-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Activity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-of-public-service-but-there-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/280/michael-ignatieff-3146_activity_there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-o_3109433.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are all kinds of different forms of public service, but there's no form of public service that can…” — Michael Ignatieff", "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": "Michael Ignatieff", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There are all kinds of different...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-of-public-service-but-there-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/there-are-all-kinds-of-different-forms-of-public-service-but-there-s/#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 } } ] } ```