--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You ought to try being cruel to some…" description: "\"You ought to try being cruel to some people.\" — Mike Judge" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png" --- # You ought to try being cruel to some people. ![“You ought to try being cruel to some people.” quote by Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png) > “You ought to try being cruel to some people.” [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) ## 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 suggests that occasional cruelty can be a strategic tool, perhaps to set boundaries or test character. **In simple terms:** Sometimes cruelty is useful. Key Takeaway Use firmness wisely, not malice. Themes boundaries strategy ethics Mood cautious pragmatic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - leadership - parenting - negotiation Key Concepts psychological tactics social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - When is firmness appropriate? - How do you balance kindness and firmness? A Different Perspective Cruelty can damage trust if misused. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cruel People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cruel-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [“I try not to be cruel, just persistent. There are days when the difference is pretty damn slight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/i-try-not-to-be-cruel-just-persistent-there-are-days-when-the/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [All cruel people describe themselves as paragons of frankness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/all-cruel-people-describe-themselves-as-paragons-of-frankness/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [“It was not the sea that was cruel, but the people”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-rogan/it-was-not-the-sea-that-was-cruel-but-the-people/) [Charlotte Rogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-rogan/) > [A tactic of cruel people is to kill kindness in the name of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-tactic-of-cruel-people-is-to-kill-kindness-in-the-name-of-virtue/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No! You listen! All my life, you've told me that the world is a dark, cruel place! But now I see that the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/no-you-listen-all-my-life-you-ve-told-me-that-the-world-is-a-dark/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [Cruel people are ever cowards in emergency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-swift/cruel-people-are-ever-cowards-in-emergency/) [Jonathan Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-swift/) > [We live in a cruel world with cruel people and suicidal teens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-live-in-a-cruel-world-with-cruel-people-and-suicidal-teens/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It never ceases to amaze me how cruel some people are. Do you think people would be so merciless and torturous if fish and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-irwin/it-never-ceases-to-amaze-me-how-cruel-some-people-are-do-you-think/) [Steve Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-irwin/) > [I hate how cruel people can be when they judge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-hate-how-cruel-people-can-be-when-they-judge/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Seems to me there are a million examples of how nice or how cruel people act every moment of every day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-trueman/seems-to-me-there-are-a-million-examples-of-how-nice-or-how-cruel/) [Terry Trueman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-trueman/) > [She didn’t understand a damned thing about life except that it was arbitrary and cruel, and some people got away with murder while others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liane-moriarty/she-didn-t-understand-a-damned-thing-about-life-except-that-it-was/) [Liane Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liane-moriarty/) > [Girls are the most cruel people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/girls-are-the-most-cruel-people/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [That is the key to history. Terrific energy is expended - civilizations are built up - excellent institutions devised; but each time something goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/that-is-the-key-to-history-terrific-energy-is-expended-civilizations/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [“Bombs kill terrorists, Books kill terrorism. Missiles kill extremists, Mindfulness kills extremism. Guns kill supremacists, Goodness kills supremacy. Law restrains cruel people, Love reforms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/bombs-kill-terrorists-books-kill-terrorism-missiles-kill-extremists/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [The individual attributes of warmth and competence are often perceived to be negatively correlated. That doesn't mean they actually are, but that's how people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/the-individual-attributes-of-warmth-and-competence-are-often/) [Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/) ## More by Mike Judge > [I went to a Catholic high school and it seemed like every time I drew something for a class project, it either got thrown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-went-to-a-catholic-high-school-and-it-seemed-like-every-time-i-drew/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [I'm sorry I can't get into Scooby Doo on any level.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-m-sorry-i-can-t-get-into-scooby-doo-on-any-level/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [Susie Lynn, the producer of those segments, goes in and lays all the voices over the video.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/susie-lynn-the-producer-of-those-segments-goes-in-and-lays-all-the/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [It's amazing what we can get away with and what we can't. But it's not for me to decide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/it-s-amazing-what-we-can-get-away-with-and-what-we-can-t-but-it-s-not/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [When you make movies, you've picked the most expensive art form, and somebody has to pay for it. You kind of owe it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/when-you-make-movies-you-ve-picked-the-most-expensive-art-form-and/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [She defaced my fly. And I've never been the same since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/she-defaced-my-fly-and-i-ve-never-been-the-same-since/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [“I don't get as much fan mail as an actor or singer would, but when I get a letter 99% of the time it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-don-t-get-as-much-fan-mail-as-an-actor-or-singer-would-but-when-i/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [I think I do too many voices in these shows. I think it's because we have trouble getting voice talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-think-i-do-too-many-voices-in-these-shows-i-think-it-s-because-we/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [People say that the Beavis voice doesn't sound like me or some other voices. Butt-Head I think sounds like me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/people-say-that-the-beavis-voice-doesn-t-sound-like-me-or-some-other/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [Why should every single character be an honor student who goes around helping others and never doing anything wrong? Is that like the rule…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/why-should-every-single-character-be-an-honor-student-who-goes-around/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [I put the storyboard down and came back to it like two weeks later and saw that I had written 'Butt-Head' next to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-put-the-storyboard-down-and-came-back-to-it-like-two-weeks-later/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [They say it figures MTV would do such a vulgar, awful, horrible show and they completely miss that it's satirizing the people who watch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/they-say-it-figures-mtv-would-do-such-a-vulgar-awful-horrible-show/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [I've seen a lot of pairs of guys that have been hanging out together way too long-until they're laughing all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-ve-seen-a-lot-of-pairs-of-guys-that-have-been-hanging-out-together/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [I think at the point when they were first starting to talk about a movie, it was a little bit different back then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-think-at-the-point-when-they-were-first-starting-to-talk-about-a/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) > [I often feel that my life, much like my shows, will end on a cliffhanger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/i-often-feel-that-my-life-much-like-my-shows-will-end-on-a-cliffhanger/) [Mike Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) [Explore all 51 Mike Judge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/) ## More Cruel quotes > [“History has a cruel way of disappointing optimists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-thompson/history-has-a-cruel-way-of-disappointing-optimists/) Keith Thompson > [“I think the reason we're cruel sometimes is that we're afraid we're going to like something.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/i-think-the-reason-we-re-cruel-sometimes-is-that-we-re-afraid-we-re/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“Don't be so cruel to me. Don't promise me anything. I've got everything that i need. I need love in a good way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tegan-quin/don-t-be-so-cruel-to-me-don-t-promise-me-anything-i-ve-got-everything/) [Tegan Quin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tegan-quin/) > [Pity is cruel. Pity destroys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/pity-is-cruel-pity-destroys/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [“Even the cruel feel pain. And even the cruel can change. I hope this changes him. He could do so much, if only he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brown/even-the-cruel-feel-pain-and-even-the-cruel-can-change-i-hope-this/) [Pierce Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brown/) > [You must learn that to endure cruelty is to become cruel yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bleach/you-must-learn-that-to-endure-cruelty-is-to-become-cruel-yourself/) [Bleach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bleach/) > [“my power is as cruel a joke as it can get? That’s”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-d-anderson/my-power-is-as-cruel-a-joke-as-it-can-get-that-s/) Katie D. Anderson > [I must be cruel only to be kind; Thus bad begins, and worse remains behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-must-be-cruel-only-to-be-kind-thus-bad-begins-and-worse-remains/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Huamns, uregulated, are cruel and capricious; violet and selfish; miserable and quarrelsome. It is only after their instincts and basic emotions have been controlled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/huamns-uregulated-are-cruel-and-capricious-violet-and-selfish/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“You would think those who have endured unkindness would be kinder as a result, intent on sparing others the awful suffering they abhorred firsthand.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/you-would-think-those-who-have-endured-unkindness-would-be-kinder-as/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [how cruel, your veins are full of ice-water and mine are boiling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/how-cruel-your-veins-are-full-of-ice-water-and-mine-are-boiling/) [Emily Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [There is no kindness more cruel than the kindness which consigns another person to their sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/there-is-no-kindness-more-cruel-than-the-kindness-which-consigns/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Vanity can create a very cruel space for you if you don't know how to manage it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/vanity-can-create-a-very-cruel-space-for-you-if-you-don-t-know-how-to/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [Life is cruel and we do terrible things to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-pym/life-is-cruel-and-we-do-terrible-things-to-each-other/) [Barbara Pym](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-pym/) > [What people loathe the most is to be orphaned, desolate, unworthy. But this is what princes and kings call themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/what-people-loathe-the-most-is-to-be-orphaned-desolate-unworthy-but/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) Browse all 1,069 Cruel quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You ought to try being cruel to some people.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mike Judge" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-people/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cruel" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-people/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a5/mike-judge-13169_cruel_you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-peo_1514852.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You ought to try being cruel to some people.” — Mike Judge", "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": "Mike Judge", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-judge/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You ought to try being cruel...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-people/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-judge/you-ought-to-try-being-cruel-to-some-people/#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 } } ] } ```