--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The best defense against democracy is to…" description: "\"The best defense against democracy is to distract people.\" — Noam Chomsky" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg" --- # The best defense against democracy is to distract people. ![“The best defense against democracy is to distract people.” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg) > “The best defense against democracy is to distract people.” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democracy can be undermined when leaders divert public attention away from substantive issues. **In simple terms:** Distraction weakens democratic engagement. Key Takeaway Stay informed and resist diversion tactics. Themes democracy politics media distraction engagement Mood critical concerned analytical Type political educational philosophical When to use this quote - public discourse - civic education - activism Key Concepts political theory media studies critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - What distractions dominate today’s media? - How can citizens maintain focus on core issues? A Different Perspective Distraction is not the only threat to democracy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [By attracting attention to yourself, you distract people from the movie. Ideally, you like a movie to speak for itself. You don't describe a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-beatty/by-attracting-attention-to-yourself-you-distract-people-from-the/) [Warren Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-beatty/) > [You make a film to distract people, to interest them, perhaps to make them think, perhaps to help them be a little less naive,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-chabrol/you-make-a-film-to-distract-people-to-interest-them-perhaps-to-make/) [Claude Chabrol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-chabrol/) > [“At her core, she was broken, and life was just one long attempt to distract people from noticing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/at-her-core-she-was-broken-and-life-was-just-one-long-attempt-to/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [Gossip is just a tool to distract people who have nothing better to do from feeling jealous of those few of us still remaining…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-godbersen/gossip-is-just-a-tool-to-distract-people-who-have-nothing-better-to/) [Anna Godbersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-godbersen/) > [There's more to distract people, isn't there? When I was a kid there was music and football and clothes. And that was kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-weller/there-s-more-to-distract-people-isn-t-there-when-i-was-a-kid-there/) [Paul Weller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-weller/) > [To make fun of an administration, to make fun of anything, Mark Twain said, is the last defense of democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/to-make-fun-of-an-administration-to-make-fun-of-anything-mark-twain/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [The defense of our democracy against the forces that threaten it from without has made some of its failures to function at home glaringly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-willkie/the-defense-of-our-democracy-against-the-forces-that-threaten-it-from/) [Wendell Willkie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-willkie/) > [The best defense of democracy is an informed electorate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-best-defense-of-democracy-is-an-informed-electorate/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Until defense of democracy in the digital era is taken up by governments collectively, both in NATO and outside the alliance, liberal democracies will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toomas-hendrik-ilves/until-defense-of-democracy-in-the-digital-era-is-taken-up-by/) [Toomas Hendrik Ilves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toomas-hendrik-ilves/) > [“The best defense is a confusing offense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-pauley/the-best-defense-is-a-confusing-offense/) [Kimberly Pauley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-pauley/) > [The best defense for any group of people is what we do to defend other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-simmons/the-best-defense-for-any-group-of-people-is-what-we-do-to-defend/) [Russell Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-simmons/) > [“The best defense is great offense. . .We fight through our mistakes and failures by maximizing our forward motion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayde-goodall/the-best-defense-is-great-offense-we-fight-through-our-mistakes-and/) [Wayde Goodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayde-goodall/) > [In politics as in sports, the best defense is a good offense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kirk/in-politics-as-in-sports-the-best-defense-is-a-good-offense/) [Charlie Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kirk/) > [“Let a book be your best defense to bordem”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmela-dutra/let-a-book-be-your-best-defense-to-bordem/) [Carmela Dutra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmela-dutra/) > [A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-well-informed-citizenry-is-the-best-defense-against-tyranny/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## More by Noam Chomsky > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/governments-regard-their-own-citizens-as-their-main-enemy-and-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The first thing you ought to do is verify what I present. Just because I say it doesn't make it true. So check it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-thing-you-ought-to-do-is-verify-what-i-present-just-because/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ I wrote an article about the marine landing \[in Haiti\] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-landing-in-haiti-right-away-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's an interesting book about that called The Third Reich and the Ivory Tower, written by Stephen H. Norwood. It has a long discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-an-interesting-book-about-that-called-the-third-reich-and-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [This is class war on an international scale, and power is in the hands of those who control the international economic system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/this-is-class-war-on-an-international-scale-and-power-is-in-the-hands/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are big, extremely irrational parts of the society, and they have now been mobilized politically by the Republican establishment, hoping that these people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-big-extremely-irrational-parts-of-the-society-and-they-have/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Explore all 2,129 Noam Chomsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## More Defense quotes > [Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-bond/advances-in-technology-will-continue-to-reach-far-into-every-sector/) [Christopher Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-bond/) > [On the McLaughlin Report, August 26, 1990: 'There are only two groups that are beating the drums for war in the middle East, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/on-the-mclaughlin-report-august-26-1990-there-are-only-two-groups/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [My last defense / Is the present tense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwendolyn-brooks/my-last-defense-is-the-present-tense/) [Gwendolyn Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwendolyn-brooks/) > [Football is not just all about throwing the ball. You got to run the ball, too. Defense has to be good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-jefferson/football-is-not-just-all-about-throwing-the-ball-you-got-to-run-the/) [Justin Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-jefferson/) > [The law is the collective organization of the individual's right to lawful defense of his life, liberty and property. When it is used for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/the-law-is-the-collective-organization-of-the-individual-s-right-to/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [Witness for the defense, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/witness-for-the-defense-albus-percival-wulfric-brian-dumbledore/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You say I have a bad attitude. But have you ever stopped to check yours?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasha-marie/you-say-i-have-a-bad-attitude-but-have-you-ever-stopped-to-check-yours/) Tasha Marie > [ Their \[the U.S.’s\] defense budget in absolute figures is almost 25 times bigger than Russia’s. This is what in defense is referred to as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/their-the-u-s-s-defense-budget-in-absolute-figures-is-almost-25-times/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-well-informed-citizenry-is-the-best-defense-against-tyranny/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [He should release the tax returns tomorrow. It's crazy. You've got to release six, eight, ten years back tax returns. Take the hit for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/he-should-release-the-tax-returns-tomorrow-it-s-crazy-you-ve-got-to/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) > [Defense is a definite part of the game, and a great part of defense is learning to play it without fouling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wooden/defense-is-a-definite-part-of-the-game-and-a-great-part-of-defense-is/) [John Wooden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wooden/) > [When you shoot someone who is fleeing, it's not self-defense. It's an execution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-shoot-someone-who-is-fleeing-it-s-not-self-defense-it-s-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Virtually every major technological advance in the history of the human species- back to the invention of stone tools and the domestication of fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-dennett/virtually-every-major-technological-advance-in-the-history-of-the/) [Daniel Dennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-dennett/) Browse all 2,426 Defense quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The best defense against democracy is to distract people.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Noam Chomsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to-distract-people/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Defense" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to-distract-people/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/511/noam-chomsky-42_defense_the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to_521400.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The best defense against democracy is to distract people.” — Noam Chomsky", "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": "Noam Chomsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The best defense against democracy is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to-distract-people/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-best-defense-against-democracy-is-to-distract-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 } } ] } ```