Cliffs Quote by P. J. O'Rourke
“Watching Republicans in Washington is like watching lemmings, if lemmings jumped into cesspools instead of off cliffs. Splash! There goes Mark Foley!”
About This Quote
Source Essay: “The United States of Amnesia” by P. J. O'Rourke, 1995
Political behavior can be blind and self‑destructive, following the crowd into harmful situations.
In simple terms: Blind groupthink leads to ruin.
Key Takeaway
Question group dynamics and act independently.
Themes
politics
groupthink
leadership
Mood
cynical
critical
Type
satirical
political
When to use this quote
- campaign strategy
- public policy
- media analysis
Key Concepts
social psychology
political satire
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you recognize when a group is heading toward disaster?
- What steps can you take to avoid following harmful trends?
A Different Perspective
Blind loyalty can ignore rational assessment.
![“The beautiful came to this city [Hollywood] in huge pathetic herds, to suffer, to be humiliated, to see the powerful currency of their beauty devalued like the Russian ruble or Argentine peso;to work as bellhops, as bar hostesses, as garbage collectors, as maids. The city was a cliff and they were…” quote by Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/b8c/salman-rushdie-153_bars_the-beautiful-came-to-this-city-hollywoo_2510447.jpg)
