--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The truth is a good thing." description: "\"The truth is a good thing.\" — Michael Portillo" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png" --- # The truth is a good thing. ![“The truth is a good thing.” quote by Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png) > “The truth is a good thing.” [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Truth is valuable and should be upheld, even when inconvenient. **In simple terms:** Truth is good. Key Takeaway Uphold truth despite difficulty. Themes integrity truth ethics communication Mood reflective serious Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - political debate - journalism - personal relationships - media reporting Key Concepts moral philosophy public discourse transparency Questions to Reflect On - When have you chosen truth over comfort? - How does truth affect trust? A Different Perspective Truth can be suppressed by power structures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [A good thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/a-good-thing/) [Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good/) [Good thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-thing/) [Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Truth Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-good/) [Truth is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-is/) ## Related quotes > [To copy the truth can be a good thing, but to invent the truth is better, much better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-verdi/to-copy-the-truth-can-be-a-good-thing-but-to-invent-the-truth-is/) [Giuseppe Verdi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-verdi/) > [Knowledge is generally considered a good thing; so, presumably, knowing more about how the U.S. thinks and operates around the world is also good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/knowledge-is-generally-considered-a-good-thing-so-presumably-knowing/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Being authentic can be a good thing in that often people who are fixated on that are also fixated on having very high standards,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-meyer/being-authentic-can-be-a-good-thing-in-that-often-people-who-are/) [Edgar Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-meyer/) > [Just because we're rid of Saddam and the evil Batthists doesn't mean the occupation is a good thing. Our salvation from Saddam was only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muqtada-al-sadr/just-because-we-re-rid-of-saddam-and-the-evil-batthists-doesn-t-mean/) [Muqtada al Sadr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muqtada-al-sadr/) > [First, I was opposed to gay marriage because it seemed like one more way that gays were wanting to assimilate. When I realized the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/first-i-was-opposed-to-gay-marriage-because-it-seemed-like-one-more/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [I think about death all the time. I think that's a good thing because we're all going to die, and the only thing we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-gleason/i-think-about-death-all-the-time-i-think-that-s-a-good-thing-because/) [Steve Gleason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-gleason/) > [I am not opposed to e-readers. Any technology that encourages the reading of literature is a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-glass/i-am-not-opposed-to-e-readers-any-technology-that-encourages-the/) [Julia Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-glass/) > [It's flattering that there are lots of Internet fan sites about me. I'm a bit of a technophobe and I don't even own a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-armstrong/it-s-flattering-that-there-are-lots-of-internet-fan-sites-about-me-i/) [Jonas Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-armstrong/) > [When I had a full-time job, I really wasn't that busy, but now I'm really busy. I guess that's a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-moneymaker/when-i-had-a-full-time-job-i-really-wasn-t-that-busy-but-now-i-m/) [Chris Moneymaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-moneymaker/) > [Money is a good thing, but every morning you have to get up with something no one else in the world gets up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/money-is-a-good-thing-but-every-morning-you-have-to-get-up-with/) [George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/) > [I was raised that emotion was a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-peele/i-was-raised-that-emotion-was-a-good-thing/) [Jordan Peele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-peele/) > [I love Florida Georgia Line. I love 'Round Here.' So if a fan wants to listen to that, and if a fan that wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scotty-mccreery/i-love-florida-georgia-line-i-love-round-here-so-if-a-fan-wants-to/) [Scotty McCreery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scotty-mccreery/) > [I keep threatening to write a non-fantasy book, and they keep offering me the kind of money I can't refuse to write a fantasy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-e-feist/i-keep-threatening-to-write-a-non-fantasy-book-and-they-keep-offering/) [Raymond E. Feist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-e-feist/) > [My mother raised three kids on her own, so I was taught that to be a working mom was a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-shahi/my-mother-raised-three-kids-on-her-own-so-i-was-taught-that-to-be-a/) [Sarah Shahi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-shahi/) > [I think it is a good thing to buy less and choose well - it's good for the environment and to be fair it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-westwood/i-think-it-is-a-good-thing-to-buy-less-and-choose-well-it-s-good-for/) [Vivienne Westwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-westwood/) ## More by Michael Portillo > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [You never quite know what you do in life that leaves a seed behind that grows into an oak tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/you-never-quite-know-what-you-do-in-life-that-leaves-a-seed-behind/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [If the Tories and Lib Dems fought together, they'd keep their ministerial offices and limousines, and continue to do the right things for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/if-the-tories-and-lib-dems-fought-together-they-d-keep-their/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [Were we ever to find ourselves living under a totalitarian regime, place no faith in the mercy of your fellow citizens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/were-we-ever-to-find-ourselves-living-under-a-totalitarian-regime/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [America, to me, is this enormous contrast between the heady idealism of founding fathers such as Thomas Jefferson, who said, 'All men are created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/america-to-me-is-this-enormous-contrast-between-the-heady-idealism-of/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [There's only one person who knows me - and that's me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/there-s-only-one-person-who-knows-me-and-that-s-me/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [I think a lot of people of my generation have a certain guilt that, from the Sixties onwards, we started taking package holidays abroad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/i-think-a-lot-of-people-of-my-generation-have-a-certain-guilt-that/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [Television brings with it two dangerous hazards: the worship of celebrity and the blurring of reality and fantasy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/television-brings-with-it-two-dangerous-hazards-the-worship-of/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [People have said to me, 'Oh, you are much nicer making documentaries than you were in politics.' So I should be. If you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/people-have-said-to-me-oh-you-are-much-nicer-making-documentaries/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > ['Bradshaw's' is a lovely device for the time-travelling television presenter. I just hope that people buying it aren't doing so with the intention of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/bradshaw-s-is-a-lovely-device-for-the-time-travelling-television/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [King Edward VIII was forced to abdicate because he was determined to marry a divorced woman. As a result of that decision, the Queen's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/king-edward-viii-was-forced-to-abdicate-because-he-was-determined-to/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [Three letters send a chill down the spine of the enemy: SAS. Those letters spell out one clear message. Don't mess with Britain!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/three-letters-send-a-chill-down-the-spine-of-the-enemy-sas-those/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [If life is a soap opera you shouldn't be in too much of a hurry to get to the final credits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/if-life-is-a-soap-opera-you-shouldn-t-be-in-too-much-of-a-hurry-to/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [Before my teens, my contemporaries were reading Tolkien and were absorbed by his works, but try as I might, I could not be drawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/before-my-teens-my-contemporaries-were-reading-tolkien-and-were/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [I will say what I want to say. I had some homosexual experiences as a young person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/i-will-say-what-i-want-to-say-i-had-some-homosexual-experiences-as-a/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) [Explore all 101 Michael Portillo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) ## More A good thing quotes > [Knowledge is generally considered a good thing; so, presumably, knowing more about how the U.S. thinks and operates around the world is also good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/knowledge-is-generally-considered-a-good-thing-so-presumably-knowing/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Being authentic can be a good thing in that often people who are fixated on that are also fixated on having very high standards,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-meyer/being-authentic-can-be-a-good-thing-in-that-often-people-who-are/) [Edgar Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-meyer/) > [Money is a good thing, but every morning you have to get up with something no one else in the world gets up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/money-is-a-good-thing-but-every-morning-you-have-to-get-up-with/) [George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/) > [I was raised that emotion was a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-peele/i-was-raised-that-emotion-was-a-good-thing/) [Jordan Peele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-peele/) > [When I had a full-time job, I really wasn't that busy, but now I'm really busy. I guess that's a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-moneymaker/when-i-had-a-full-time-job-i-really-wasn-t-that-busy-but-now-i-m/) [Chris Moneymaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-moneymaker/) > [It's flattering that there are lots of Internet fan sites about me. I'm a bit of a technophobe and I don't even own a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-armstrong/it-s-flattering-that-there-are-lots-of-internet-fan-sites-about-me-i/) [Jonas Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-armstrong/) > [I am not opposed to e-readers. Any technology that encourages the reading of literature is a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-glass/i-am-not-opposed-to-e-readers-any-technology-that-encourages-the/) [Julia Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-glass/) > [I think about death all the time. I think that's a good thing because we're all going to die, and the only thing we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-gleason/i-think-about-death-all-the-time-i-think-that-s-a-good-thing-because/) [Steve Gleason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-gleason/) > [First, I was opposed to gay marriage because it seemed like one more way that gays were wanting to assimilate. When I realized the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/first-i-was-opposed-to-gay-marriage-because-it-seemed-like-one-more/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [Just because we're rid of Saddam and the evil Batthists doesn't mean the occupation is a good thing. Our salvation from Saddam was only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muqtada-al-sadr/just-because-we-re-rid-of-saddam-and-the-evil-batthists-doesn-t-mean/) [Muqtada al Sadr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muqtada-al-sadr/) > [I love Florida Georgia Line. I love 'Round Here.' So if a fan wants to listen to that, and if a fan that wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scotty-mccreery/i-love-florida-georgia-line-i-love-round-here-so-if-a-fan-wants-to/) [Scotty McCreery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scotty-mccreery/) > [I keep threatening to write a non-fantasy book, and they keep offering me the kind of money I can't refuse to write a fantasy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-e-feist/i-keep-threatening-to-write-a-non-fantasy-book-and-they-keep-offering/) [Raymond E. Feist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-e-feist/) > [My mother raised three kids on her own, so I was taught that to be a working mom was a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-shahi/my-mother-raised-three-kids-on-her-own-so-i-was-taught-that-to-be-a/) [Sarah Shahi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-shahi/) > [I think it is a good thing to buy less and choose well - it's good for the environment and to be fair it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivienne-westwood/i-think-it-is-a-good-thing-to-buy-less-and-choose-well-it-s-good-for/) [Vivienne Westwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivienne-westwood/) > [I think it's a good thing to have a lot of voices in the media, and I think, you know, let all flowers bloom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cokie-roberts/i-think-it-s-a-good-thing-to-have-a-lot-of-voices-in-the-media-and-i/) [Cokie Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cokie-roberts/) [Browse all 195 A good thing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/a-good-thing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The truth is a good thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Portillo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/the-truth-is-a-good-thing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "A good thing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/the-truth-is-a-good-thing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8a7/michael-portillo-5117_a-good-thing_the-truth-is-a-good-thing-1051339_1051339.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The truth is a good thing.” — Michael Portillo", "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 Portillo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The truth is a good thing.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/the-truth-is-a-good-thing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/the-truth-is-a-good-thing/#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 } } ] } ```