--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Smoking cigarettes seems to alarm peace…" description: "\"Smoking cigarettes seems to alarm peace activists much more than voting for Reagan does.\" — P. J. O'Rourke" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e0/p-j-o-rourke-184_activist_smoking-cigarettes-seems-to-alarm-peace_1321220.png" --- # Smoking cigarettes seems to alarm peace activists much… ![“Smoking cigarettes seems to alarm peace activists much more than voting for Reagan does.” quote by P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e0/p-j-o-rourke-184_activist_smoking-cigarettes-seems-to-alarm-peace_1321220.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e0/p-j-o-rourke-184_activist_smoking-cigarettes-seems-to-alarm-peace_1321220.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5e0/p-j-o-rourke-184_activist_smoking-cigarettes-seems-to-alarm-peace_1321220.png) > “Smoking cigarettes seems to alarm peace activists much more than voting for Reagan does.” [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Activists prioritize symbolic gestures over substantive political action. **In simple terms:** Activists focus on symbols more than voting. Key Takeaway Balance symbolic protest with voting. Themes politics activism priorities Mood critical ironic Type satirical commentary When to use this quote - environmental protests - election campaigns - policy advocacy Key Concepts symbolic action civic engagement Questions to Reflect On - Why do people favor symbolic acts? - How can activism and voting reinforce each other? A Different Perspective Voting can be seen as less urgent than direct action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Activist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/activist/) [Cigarette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cigarette/) [Cigarettes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cigarettes/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Smoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking/) [Smoking cigarettes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoking-cigarettes/) [Voting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voting/) [Wine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wine/) ## Related quotes > [If peace activists really want to make changes, they have to start putting intense pressure on their elected officials. Of course, everything should be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-sheehan/if-peace-activists-really-want-to-make-changes-they-have-to-start/) [Cindy Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-sheehan/) > [We have too many preacherettes preaching too many sermonettes to too many Christianettes smoking cigarettes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/we-have-too-many-preacherettes-preaching-too-many-sermonettes-to-too/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [Each of us should think of the future. Every puff on a cigarette is another tick closer to a time bomb of terrible consequences.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/each-of-us-should-think-of-the-future-every-puff-on-a-cigarette-is/) [Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/) > [I get shocked by people smoking cigarettes sometimes. i get shocked by watching talk shows. people's moralities are so far below what i would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/i-get-shocked-by-people-smoking-cigarettes-sometimes-i-get-shocked-by/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [Hey, I stopped smoking cigarettes. Isn't that something? I'm on to cigars now. I'm on to a five-year plan. I eliminated cigarettes, then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-candy/hey-i-stopped-smoking-cigarettes-isn-t-that-something-i-m-on-to/) [John Candy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-candy/) > [I started smoking cigarettes there's nothing else to do I guess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-lambert/i-started-smoking-cigarettes-there-s-nothing-else-to-do-i-guess/) [Miranda Lambert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-lambert/) > [“Smoking cigarettes is not doing any good to you. It’s just killing you. You don’t wanna die yet. Do you!?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-kumar/smoking-cigarettes-is-not-doing-any-good-to-you-it-s-just-killing-you/) [Abhishek Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-kumar/) > [“Smoking cigarettes is as intimate as we can become with fire without immediate excruciation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/smoking-cigarettes-is-as-intimate-as-we-can-become-with-fire-without/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [When I was in seventh grade my mom caught me smoking cigarettes and punished me by making me smoke the entire carton. All it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pink/when-i-was-in-seventh-grade-my-mom-caught-me-smoking-cigarettes-and/) [Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pink/) > [we sat there smoking cigarettes at 5 in the morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/we-sat-there-smoking-cigarettes-at-5-in-the-morning/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [“We’ll meet you on some corner. I’ll be the man smoking two cigarettes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/we-ll-meet-you-on-some-corner-i-ll-be-the-man-smoking-two-cigarettes/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [“slogans about smoking: “Cigarettes are killers that travel in packs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-johnson/slogans-about-smoking-cigarettes-are-killers-that-travel-in-packs/) [Craig Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-johnson/) > [“You might not remember the days when doctors endorsed smoking cigarettes,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/you-might-not-remember-the-days-when-doctors-endorsed-smoking/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [In the 1960s, you could eat anything you wanted, and of course, people were smoking cigarettes and all kinds of things, and there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/in-the-1960s-you-could-eat-anything-you-wanted-and-of-course-people/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [There's a vested interest in trying to keep people smoking cigarettes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/there-s-a-vested-interest-in-trying-to-keep-people-smoking-cigarettes/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) ## More by P. J. O'Rourke > [I'm fascinated by political enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/i-m-fascinated-by-political-enthusiasm/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [In comparative terms, there's no poverty in America by a long shot. Heritage Foundation political scientist Robert Rector has worked up figures showing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-comparative-terms-there-s-no-poverty-in-america-by-a-long-shot/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [The Democrats said, "We don't know what's wrong with America, but we can fix it." The Republicans said, "There's nothing wrong with America, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-democrats-said-we-don-t-know-what-s-wrong-with-america-but-we-can/) [P. J. 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O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Journalists are notoriously easy to kid. All you have to do is speak to a journalist in a very serious tone of voice, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/journalists-are-notoriously-easy-to-kid-all-you-have-to-do-is-speak/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [I like to think of my behavior in the sixties as a 'learning experience.' Then again, I like to think of anything stupid I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/i-like-to-think-of-my-behavior-in-the-sixties-as-a-learning/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [I'll be 56 this year, I've got two kids, and I think it's probably time to go back to writing one-glove jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/i-ll-be-56-this-year-i-ve-got-two-kids-and-i-think-it-s-probably-time/) [P. J. 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I think nothing's changed, I'm just a little bit more focused on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-bono/i-ve-been-an-activist-in-the-lgbt-community-for-a-long-time-i-think/) [Chaz Bono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaz-bono/) > [I've been an activist since I was a teenager. I was always curious about what we would now call social justice. 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