--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That's what I've never been able to get…" description: "\"“That's what I've never been able to get about religion: that charmless combination of altruism and insanity. Give me a cynical, self-interested bastar..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/mike-carey-8578_cynic_that-s-what-i-ve-never-been-able-to-get_28507.jpg" --- # That's what I've never been able to get about religion… ![“That's what I've never been able to get about religion: that charmless combination of altruism and insanity. Give me a cynical, self-interested bastard any day of the week; at least you can play chicken with him and know he'll stick to the rules.” quote by Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/mike-carey-8578_cynic_that-s-what-i-ve-never-been-able-to-get_28507.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/mike-carey-8578_cynic_that-s-what-i-ve-never-been-able-to-get_28507.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/mike-carey-8578_cynic_that-s-what-i-ve-never-been-able-to-get_28507.jpg) > ““That's what I've never been able to get about religion: that charmless combination of altruism and insanity. Give me a cynical, self-interested bastard any day of the week; at least you can play chicken with him and know he'll stick to the rules.”” [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker finds religion paradoxical, mixing selfless altruism with irrationality, and prefers a selfish, predictable opponent over the unpredictable moral demands of faith. **In simple terms:** Religion seen as altruistic yet irrational; prefers predictable selfishness. Key Takeaway Predictable selfishness is preferable to chaotic altruism. Themes Religion Altruism Irrationality Predictability Moral Philosophy Mood Cynical Skeptical Reflective Type Aphorism Critique When to use this quote - Debating religious ethics - Choosing political allies - Analyzing moral behavior Key Concepts Moral relativism Human nature Faith vs reason Practical Applications - Critiquing religious doctrine - Designing negotiation strategies Questions to Reflect On - Is altruism inherently irrational? - Can selfishness be ethically consistent? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cynic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynic/) [Cynical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynical/) [Cynicism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynicism/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [Despotism may be able to do without religion, but democracy cannot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/despotism-may-be-able-to-do-without-religion-but-democracy-cannot/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [It is good to be a cynic — it is better to be a contented cat — and it is best not to exist at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-good-to-be-a-cynic-it-is-better-to-be-a-contented-cat-and-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ Essentially, the \[New York\] Philharmonic is just like any other orchestra-they all have the spirit of kids, and if you scratch away a little… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/essentially-the-new-york-philharmonic-is-just-like-any-other/) [Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/) > [The cynic sees only cynicism, the depressive can taint creation with one glance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-funder/the-cynic-sees-only-cynicism-the-depressive-can-taint-creation-with/) [Anna Funder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-funder/) > [A cynic should never marry an idealist. For the cynic, marriage represents the welcome end of romantic life, with all its agony and ecstasy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-burchill/a-cynic-should-never-marry-an-idealist-for-the-cynic-marriage/) [Julie Burchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-burchill/) > [“The imagination is a cynic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hugo/the-imagination-is-a-cynic/) [Richard Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hugo/) > [ \[Christianity\] neither enjoins the nastiness of the Cynic, nor the insensibility of the Stoic. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-berkeley/christianity-neither-enjoins-the-nastiness-of-the-cynic-nor-the/) [George Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-berkeley/) > [Cynicism was a school in Greece - the Cynics. Diogenes is a famous Cynic. There was a strong belief in nihilism and narcissism. Those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-stone/cynicism-was-a-school-in-greece-the-cynics-diogenes-is-a-famous-cynic/) [Oliver Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-stone/) > [A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past, his is also one who is permanently disappointed in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-j-harris/a-cynic-is-not-merely-one-who-reads-bitter-lessons-from-the-past-his/) [Sydney J. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-j-harris/) > [The only way to do my job without optimism would be as a cynic, and that's not my nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-snow/the-only-way-to-do-my-job-without-optimism-would-be-as-a-cynic-and/) [Jon Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-snow/) > [The cynic makes fun of all earnestness; he makes fun of everything and everyone who feels that something can be done. . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-edgar-vincent/the-cynic-makes-fun-of-all-earnestness-he-makes-fun-of-everything-and/) George Edgar Vincent > [The idea of The Boy Vs. The Cynic is the tension between the wide-eyed optimism in youthfulness where you think nothing can go wrong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-reuben-zappin/the-idea-of-the-boy-vs-the-cynic-is-the-tension-between-the-wide-eyed/) [John Reuben Zappin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-reuben-zappin/) > [I get the cynicism thing all the time, although I don't really know where that comes from, because I think I'm actually the opposite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-taibbi/i-get-the-cynicism-thing-all-the-time-although-i-don-t-really-know/) [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) > [Only the broken-hearted idealist can become a cynic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-clifton/only-the-broken-hearted-idealist-can-become-a-cynic/) Mark Clifton > [Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/cynicism-masquerades-as-wisdom-but-it-is-the-farthest-thing-from-it/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) ## More by Mike Carey > [“No, there are no special places in hell. Hell is a democracy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/no-there-are-no-special-places-in-hell-hell-is-a-democracy/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“And send not to ask for whom the fucking bell tolls, because you're not going to like the answer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/and-send-not-to-ask-for-whom-the-fucking-bell-tolls-because-you-re/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“The light of a hunter's moon bleached the unresisting pastels from the faces of the towers, so that they looked like titanic ribs of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/the-light-of-a-hunter-s-moon-bleached-the-unresisting-pastels-from/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“You're a vampire, Richie. And I've got a gun the size of Nebraska. What's the worst that could happen?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/you-re-a-vampire-richie-and-i-ve-got-a-gun-the-size-of-nebraska-what/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“Happy Families. What's that all about, eh? A bloody busted flush is what it is. You surround yourself with other people so the night…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/happy-families-what-s-that-all-about-eh-a-bloody-busted-flush-is-what/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“ Yahweh: You've been unhappy because you've desired things that cannot be. Lucifer: That's what desire IS. The need for what we can't have.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/yahweh-you-ve-been-unhappy-because-you-ve-desired-things-that-cannot/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“My mum’s getting married,” said Cheryl. “Again. At the Brompton Oratory. Fourth time around the track, this is. They don’t say ‘Till death us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/my-mum-s-getting-married-said-cheryl-again-at-the-brompton-oratory/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“And there's a darker side to Peckham, too, once you get in deep: a side I like a lot more, because I identify with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/and-there-s-a-darker-side-to-peckham-too-once-you-get-in-deep-a-side/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [I think Louisville will be fired up for this game. They might be in revenge mode. But, this time of the year records, don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/i-think-louisville-will-be-fired-up-for-this-game-they-might-be-in/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [I took a strong dislike to him right then to save time and effort later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/i-took-a-strong-dislike-to-him-right-then-to-save-time-and-effort/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“Control what people believe, and you control what they do. Who they are. The world is only the aggregate of human perception. Stories are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/control-what-people-believe-and-you-control-what-they-do-who-they-are/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [When a book is read an irrevocable thing happens — a murder, followed by an imposture. The story in the mind murders the story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/when-a-book-is-read-an-irrevocable-thing-happens-a-murder-followed-by/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“When you're a mile outside the limits of your competence, there is some comfort to be had in sounding like you know what you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/when-you-re-a-mile-outside-the-limits-of-your-competence-there-is/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [The world is a book. Some words stand out from the page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/the-world-is-a-book-some-words-stand-out-from-the-page/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) > [“But you can't save people from the world. There's nowhere else to take them”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-carey/but-you-can-t-save-people-from-the-world-there-s-nowhere-else-to-take/) [Mike Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) [Explore all 58 Mike Carey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-carey/) ## More Cynic quotes > [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/) > [Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/cynicism-masquerades-as-wisdom-but-it-is-the-farthest-thing-from-it/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Why should we strive, with cynic frown, to knock their fairy castles down?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliza-cook/why-should-we-strive-with-cynic-frown-to-knock-their-fairy-castles/) [Eliza Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliza-cook/) > [Only the broken-hearted idealist can become a cynic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-clifton/only-the-broken-hearted-idealist-can-become-a-cynic/) Mark Clifton > [I get the cynicism thing all the time, although I don't really know where that comes from, because I think I'm actually the opposite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-taibbi/i-get-the-cynicism-thing-all-the-time-although-i-don-t-really-know/) [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) > [“Skeptics are always marked by their total lack of skepticism towards whatever position they are defending.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-madison/skeptics-are-always-marked-by-their-total-lack-of-skepticism-towards/) Steve Madison > [“Listen, O lord of the meeting rivers, things standing shall fall, but the moving ever shall stay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/basava/listen-o-lord-of-the-meeting-rivers-things-standing-shall-fall-but/) Basava > [An executive should be a realist; and no one is less realistic than the cynic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/an-executive-should-be-a-realist-and-no-one-is-less-realistic-than/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [Remember that all is opinion. For what was said by the Cynic Monimus is manifest: and manifest too is the use of what was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/remember-that-all-is-opinion-for-what-was-said-by-the-cynic-monimus/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [The idea of The Boy Vs. The Cynic is the tension between the wide-eyed optimism in youthfulness where you think nothing can go wrong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-reuben-zappin/the-idea-of-the-boy-vs-the-cynic-is-the-tension-between-the-wide-eyed/) [John Reuben Zappin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-reuben-zappin/) > [The cynic makes fun of all earnestness; he makes fun of everything and everyone who feels that something can be done. . . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-edgar-vincent/the-cynic-makes-fun-of-all-earnestness-he-makes-fun-of-everything-and/) George Edgar Vincent > [To me it seems to be important to believe people to be good even if they tend to be bad, because your own joy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/to-me-it-seems-to-be-important-to-believe-people-to-be-good-even-if/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [ \[in the\]..curious way that my idealism has been mixed with my fatalism, so that I can possess the soul of a dreamer and that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/in-the-curious-way-that-my-idealism-has-been-mixed-with-my-fatalism/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [The only way to do my job without optimism would be as a cynic, and that's not my nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-snow/the-only-way-to-do-my-job-without-optimism-would-be-as-a-cynic-and/) [Jon Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-snow/) > [A sceptic finds Dallas absurd. A cynic thinks the public doesn't](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/a-sceptic-finds-dallas-absurd-a-cynic-thinks-the-public-doesn-t/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) [Browse all 217 Cynic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cynic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“That's what I've never been able to get about religion: that charmless combination of altruism and insanity. 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