--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I fear that, as conditions worsen, many…" description: "\"I fear that, as conditions worsen, many will react to the failures of too much government by calling for even more government. Then there will be more ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/738/neal-a-maxwell-925_calling_i-fear-that-as-conditions-worsen-many-wi_1937238.jpg" --- # I fear that, as conditions worsen, many will react to the… ![“I fear that, as conditions worsen, many will react to the failures of too much government by calling for even more government. Then there will be more and more lifeboats launched because fewer and fewer citizens know how to swim. Unlike some pendulums, political pendulums to not swing back…” quote by Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/738/neal-a-maxwell-925_calling_i-fear-that-as-conditions-worsen-many-wi_1937238.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/738/neal-a-maxwell-925_calling_i-fear-that-as-conditions-worsen-many-wi_1937238.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/738/neal-a-maxwell-925_calling_i-fear-that-as-conditions-worsen-many-wi_1937238.jpg) > “I fear that, as conditions worsen, many will react to the failures of too much government by calling for even more government. Then there will be more and more lifeboats launched because fewer and fewer citizens know how to swim. Unlike some pendulums, political pendulums to not swing back automatically; they must be pushed. History is full of instances when people have waited in vain for pendulums to swing back.” [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When government expands, people may demand even more, leading to dependency and loss of self‑reliance; change must be actively driven, not passively awaited. **In simple terms:** Too much government creates dependence; change requires effort. Key Takeaway Encourage personal responsibility and active civic engagement. Themes government dependence self‑reliance political change civic duty Mood concerned reflective Type political motivational When to use this quote - community organizing - education on civic skills - policy reform - volunteerism Key Concepts public policy social dynamics individual agency Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens cultivate self‑reliance? - What actions actively push the political pendulum forward? A Different Perspective Relying on automatic reversal can ignore structural inertia. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Calling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calling/) [Calling Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calling-government-3065662/) [Citizens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizens/) [Conditions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conditions/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Failures Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failures-government-3065659/) [Fewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fewer/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Government Lifeboats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-lifeboats-3065661/) [Instance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instance/) [Know how](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-how/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Lifeboats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifeboats/) [Pendulums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pendulums/) [Pendulums Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pendulums-political-3065660/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political Pendulums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-pendulums-3065658/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Swim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swim/) [Swings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swings/) [Too much](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-much/) [Vain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vain/) ## Related quotes > [Many politicians and pundits claim that the credit crunch and high mortgage foreclosure rate is an example of market failure and want government to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-e-williams/many-politicians-and-pundits-claim-that-the-credit-crunch-and-high/) [Walter E. Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-e-williams/) > [Political pendulums swing hard and feed on stark contrast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-maccallum/political-pendulums-swing-hard-and-feed-on-stark-contrast/) [Martha MacCallum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-maccallum/) > [“Two blind people in two separate lifeboats meeting up in the Pacific–the coincidence seems a little far-fetched, no?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/two-blind-people-in-two-separate-lifeboats-meeting-up-in-the-pacific/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [Raksin worked for Alfred Hitchcock, about whom one of the most famous Raksin anecdotes was spoken. 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Today, lifeboats bigger than the Sierra are found on the Queen Mary and other luxury liners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-allen/the-s-s-sierra-was-a-ten-thousand-ton-vessel-today-lifeboats-bigger/) [Fred Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-allen/) > [Life on a lifeboat isn’t much of a life. It is like an end game in chess, a game with few pieces. The elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/life-on-a-lifeboat-isn-t-much-of-a-life-it-is-like-an-end-game-in/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [We have been shark to one another, but also lifeboat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/we-have-been-shark-to-one-another-but-also-lifeboat/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > ["I look upon this world as a wrecked vessel. God has given me a lifeboat and said, 'Moody, save all you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-look-upon-this-world-as-a-wrecked-vessel-god-has-given-me-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The euro Titanic has now hit the iceberg - and there simply aren't enough lifeboats to go round.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/the-euro-titanic-has-now-hit-the-iceberg-and-there-simply-aren-t/) [Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/) > [I sort of jumped out of movies and into the lifeboat of comics. I loved it right away. It was the opposite of film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-k-vaughan/i-sort-of-jumped-out-of-movies-and-into-the-lifeboat-of-comics-i/) [Brian K. Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-k-vaughan/) > [Japanese-owned cargo ship Tsimtsum, flying Panamanian flag, sank July 2nd, 1977, in Pacific, four days out of Manila. Am in lifeboat. Pi Patel my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/japanese-owned-cargo-ship-tsimtsum-flying-panamanian-flag-sank-july/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [the captain is supposed to go down with the ship" . "unless the first mate knocks him out and throws him in a lifeboat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/the-captain-is-supposed-to-go-down-with-the-ship-unless-the-first/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [Some loves are like that. Your heart starts to feel like an overcrowded lifeboat. You throw your pride out to keep it afloat, &…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-david-roberts/some-loves-are-like-that-your-heart-starts-to-feel-like-an/) [Gregory David Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-david-roberts/) ## More by Neal A. Maxwell > [Clearly, when we baptize, our eyes should gaze beyond the baptismal font to the holy temple. The great garner into which the sheaves should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/clearly-when-we-baptize-our-eyes-should-gaze-beyond-the-baptismal/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [We should not assume; however, that just because something is unexplainable by us, it is unexplainable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/we-should-not-assume-however-that-just-because-something-is/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Naive optimism and pervasive pessimism are both to be avoided, therefore. It's not an easy balance to maintain, to be asked to work away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/naive-optimism-and-pervasive-pessimism-are-both-to-be-avoided/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Occasionally some individuals let the seeming ordinariness of life dampen their spirits. Though actually coping and growning, others lack the quiet, inner-soul satisfaction that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/occasionally-some-individuals-let-the-seeming-ordinariness-of-life/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [The acceptance of the reality that we are in the Lord's loving hands is only a recognition that we have never really been anywhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-acceptance-of-the-reality-that-we-are-in-the-lord-s-loving-hands/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [We can't dwell upon another's ingratitude without using up our time and talents unprofitably.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/we-can-t-dwell-upon-another-s-ingratitude-without-using-up-our-time/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [The winds of tribulation, which blow out some men's candles of commitment, only fan the fires of faith of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-winds-of-tribulation-which-blow-out-some-men-s-candles-of/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Power is most safe with those who are not in love with it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/power-is-most-safe-with-those-who-are-not-in-love-with-it/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Ultimate hope constitutes the anchor of the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/ultimate-hope-constitutes-the-anchor-of-the-soul/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Frequently, we busily search for group service projects, which are surely needed and commendable, when quiet, personal service is also urgently needed. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/frequently-we-busily-search-for-group-service-projects-which-are/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [The cumulative weight of all mortal sins--past, present, and future--pressed upon that perfect, sinless, and sensitive Soul! All our infirmities and sicknesses were somehow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-cumulative-weight-of-all-mortal-sins-past-present-and-future/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [“When we feel so alone, we cannot presume to teach him who, at the apogee of his agony, trod “the winepress alone” anything about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/when-we-feel-so-alone-we-cannot-presume-to-teach-him-who-at-the/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [How myopic it is to view His ministry as all crucifixion and no resurrection!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/how-myopic-it-is-to-view-his-ministry-as-all-crucifixion-and-no/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Patience stoutly resists pulling up the daisies to see how the roots are doing!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/patience-stoutly-resists-pulling-up-the-daisies-to-see-how-the-roots/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [Our little pebble of poor performance helps to start, or to sustain, an avalanche.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/our-little-pebble-of-poor-performance-helps-to-start-or-to-sustain-an/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) [Explore all 328 Neal A. Maxwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) ## More Calling quotes > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. They come into the ring all pumped up and acting like they're invincible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/many-republicans-have-always-reminded-me-of-professional-wwf/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [“The power of imagination is strongest in the place of solitude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/the-power-of-imagination-is-strongest-in-the-place-of-solitude/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [God is not calling us to go to church; he is calling us to be his church, the hope of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/god-is-not-calling-us-to-go-to-church-he-is-calling-us-to-be-his/) [Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/) > [When you heed the calling of your heart, you are following your purpose. 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This turning toward what you deeply love saves you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/sometimes-you-hear-a-voice-through-the-door-calling-you-this-turning/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Please be slow to judge ‘brothers’ who have a different calling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-foreman/please-be-slow-to-judge-brothers-who-have-a-different-calling/) [Jon Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-foreman/) [Browse all 3,811 Calling quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calling/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I fear that, as conditions worsen, many will react to the failures of too much government by calling for even more government. Then there will be more and more lifeboats launched because fewer and fewer citizens know how to swim. Unlike some pendulums, political pendulums to not swing back automatically; they must be pushed. 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