--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's always sort of amazing, sitting in…" description: "\"It's always sort of amazing, sitting in Baghdad, to watch visiting dignitaries being received in the Green Zone by politicians who have usually very li..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png" --- # It's always sort of amazing, sitting in Baghdad, to watch… ![“It's always sort of amazing, sitting in Baghdad, to watch visiting dignitaries being received in the Green Zone by politicians who have usually very little support and seldom go outside the Green Zone.” quote by Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png) > “It's always sort of amazing, sitting in Baghdad, to watch visiting dignitaries being received in the Green Zone by politicians who have usually very little support and seldom go outside the Green Zone.” [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Political power can be isolated, with leaders operating in protected zones, detached from public support. **In simple terms:** Leaders in safe zones lack real backing. Key Takeaway Question the legitimacy of isolated authority. Themes politics power disconnect Mood critical inquisitive Type analytical journalistic When to use this quote - policy analysis - foreign affairs - public opinion Key Concepts journalism geopolitics Questions to Reflect On - How does this separation affect governance? - What are the risks of leaders staying within secure zones? A Different Perspective Isolation can breed echo chambers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Baghdad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baghdad/) [Green zone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/green-zone/) [Politician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politician/) [Support](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/support/) ## Related quotes > [Iraqi Kurds, out of desperate necessity, have forged one of the most watchful and vigilant anti-terrorist communities in the world. Terrorists from elsewhere just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-totten/iraqi-kurds-out-of-desperate-necessity-have-forged-one-of-the-most/) [Michael Totten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-totten/) > [The day that I can land at the airport in Baghdad and ride in an unarmed car down the highway to the Green Zone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/the-day-that-i-can-land-at-the-airport-in-baghdad-and-ride-in-an/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [Politicians are usually the first to forget that if you assume someone else is acting in bad faith, they will do the same to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sununu/politicians-are-usually-the-first-to-forget-that-if-you-assume/) [John Sununu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sununu/) > [Character is destiny, and politicians usually get the scandals they deserve, with a sense of inevitability about them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/character-is-destiny-and-politicians-usually-get-the-scandals-they/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [Politicians usually get the blame for dragging their feet on environmental issues. And fair enough. Most of them do just that. But the blame…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zac-goldsmith/politicians-usually-get-the-blame-for-dragging-their-feet-on/) [Zac Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zac-goldsmith/) > [Scholars who become politicians are usually assigned the comic role of having to be the good conscience of state policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/scholars-who-become-politicians-are-usually-assigned-the-comic-role/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [In trying to imagine this world, I kept coming back to Michel Aflaq. He's a Christian Arab, a Syrian, who ends up finding his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/in-trying-to-imagine-this-world-i-kept-coming-back-to-michel-aflaq-he/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [The president and others say that if we leave, it will just be chaos in Iraq. Well, right now when you come to Iraq,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russ-feingold/the-president-and-others-say-that-if-we-leave-it-will-just-be-chaos/) [Russ Feingold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russ-feingold/) > [We shouldn't turn the home of our democracy into a fortress. We don't want the Capitol to become a 'Green Zone' that is unwelcoming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/we-shouldn-t-turn-the-home-of-our-democracy-into-a-fortress-we-don-t/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [“Through the window I looked across the oil-black Tigris at the Green Zone, lit up like Disneyland in Dystopia. I thought about J.G. Ballard's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/through-the-window-i-looked-across-the-oil-black-tigris-at-the-green/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [ One book that I heard was circulating the Green Zone was "Bureaucracy Does Its Thing" by Robert Komer , who worked for President \[Lindon\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/one-book-that-i-heard-was-circulating-the-green-zone-was-bureaucracy/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [“When you’re in the middle and stuck, you need to know when to back out and call for help. If that person is someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-sheedy-kurcinka/when-you-re-in-the-middle-and-stuck-you-need-to-know-when-to-back-out/) [Mary Sheedy Kurcinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-sheedy-kurcinka/) > [In the Green Zone in Iraq you have your radio, you have your food, you have your own electricity, your own toilets. Everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/in-the-green-zone-in-iraq-you-have-your-radio-you-have-your-food-you/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [My dad's Israeli. He was born in Baghdad to Iraqi Jews. Then, at age two, his parents wanted to move to their homeland and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-yamin/my-dad-s-israeli-he-was-born-in-baghdad-to-iraqi-jews-then-at-age-two/) [Elliott Yamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-yamin/) > [“I know a feeling like that only comes once in a lifetime, and I think you should follow your heart’s desires. I believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmad-ardalan/i-know-a-feeling-like-that-only-comes-once-in-a-lifetime-and-i-think/) [Ahmad Ardalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmad-ardalan/) ## More by Patrick Cockburn > [There are some things that could hold it together, notably oil revenues. But at the moment, the much vaunted surge has had a measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/there-are-some-things-that-could-hold-it-together-notably-oil/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Mosul stands rally at a sort of juncture of sectarian and ethnic differences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/mosul-stands-rally-at-a-sort-of-juncture-of-sectarian-and-ethnic/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [I don't think the whole of Iraq would be under al-Sadr, but I think he would be the predominant force on the Shia side.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/i-don-t-think-the-whole-of-iraq-would-be-under-al-sadr-but-i-think-he/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Young Shia who have been brought up with nothing, who are pretty anarchic, pretty dangerous. In 2004 when they came close to killing me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/young-shia-who-have-been-brought-up-with-nothing-who-are-pretty/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Muqtada leads the only real mass movement in Iraq. It's a mass movement of the Shia, who are 60 percent of the population, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/muqtada-leads-the-only-real-mass-movement-in-iraq-it-s-a-mass/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [But from the moment George Bush decided to overthrow Saddam, the people who were going to benefit here were the Shia, who are 60…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/but-from-the-moment-george-bush-decided-to-overthrow-saddam-the/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Muqtada is radical in the sense that he wants the U.S. occupation to end and has always said so from the beginning. Secondly, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/muqtada-is-radical-in-the-sense-that-he-wants-the-u-s-occupation-to/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Despite the fact that there's billions of dollars sitting in the Iraqi government reserves, somehow they are incapable of getting it out to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/despite-the-fact-that-there-s-billions-of-dollars-sitting-in-the/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [You know, if you want to meet a lot of Iraqi leaders, the best places are the hotels in Amman or in London. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/you-know-if-you-want-to-meet-a-lot-of-iraqi-leaders-the-best-places/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [There's a lot of expectation in the Middle East that post-Obama there will be a sort of tougher U.S. line on Assad, there will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/there-s-a-lot-of-expectation-in-the-middle-east-that-post-obama-there/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [ Muqtada belongs to the most famous religious family in Iraq, which is the al-Sadr family. He's really the third in line. \[Muqtada's father\] drew… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/muqtada-belongs-to-the-most-famous-religious-family-in-iraq-which-is/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Turkey is saying that it wants to preserve Sunni dominance in Mosul. Obviously, there, the Kurds, the Shia, the Iraqi government have their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/turkey-is-saying-that-it-wants-to-preserve-sunni-dominance-in-mosul/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [Everything that happens in Iraq affects countries outside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/everything-that-happens-in-iraq-affects-countries-outside/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [A defeat for ISIS in Iraq will be defeat for ISIS in Syria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/a-defeat-for-isis-in-iraq-will-be-defeat-for-isis-in-syria/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) > [There are sort of Kurdish districts there in Mosul, or there used to be, but the Kurds mostly fled or were driven out. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/there-are-sort-of-kurdish-districts-there-in-mosul-or-there-used-to/) [Patrick Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) [Explore all 20 Patrick Cockburn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/) ## More Baghdad quotes > [“I know a feeling like that only comes once in a lifetime, and I think you should follow your heart’s desires. I believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmad-ardalan/i-know-a-feeling-like-that-only-comes-once-in-a-lifetime-and-i-think/) [Ahmad Ardalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmad-ardalan/) > [My dad's Israeli. He was born in Baghdad to Iraqi Jews. Then, at age two, his parents wanted to move to their homeland and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-yamin/my-dad-s-israeli-he-was-born-in-baghdad-to-iraqi-jews-then-at-age-two/) [Elliott Yamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-yamin/) > [Almost immediately, I remember right when Tikrit even fell, a few days after Baghdad fell, there was talks of insurgency, there was talks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/farnaz-fassihi/almost-immediately-i-remember-right-when-tikrit-even-fell-a-few-days/) Farnaz Fassihi > [What is at stake is how to answer the potential threat Iraq represents with the risk of proliferation of WMD. Baghdad's regime did use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-chirac/what-is-at-stake-is-how-to-answer-the-potential-threat-iraq/) [Jacques Chirac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-chirac/) > [Our military superiority is so great - it's far greater than it was in the Gulf War, and the Gulf War was over in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/our-military-superiority-is-so-great-it-s-far-greater-than-it-was-in/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The authority of the civil defense ... issued a warning to the civilian population not to pick up any of those pencils because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/the-authority-of-the-civil-defense-issued-a-warning-to-the-civilian/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [The mission statement was ordered, and it sent the 800th MP Brigade, effective the first of July, up to Baghdad. I joined my brigade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janis-karpinski/the-mission-statement-was-ordered-and-it-sent-the-800th-mp-brigade/) [Janis Karpinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janis-karpinski/) > [The senior officer who met with reporters in Baghdad said there had been 21 car bombings in the capital in May, and 126 in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-lowry/the-senior-officer-who-met-with-reporters-in-baghdad-said-there-had/) [Rich Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-lowry/) > [There are people who haven't faced the reality of what has gone on in Iraq. They still think that the old central state is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-w-galbraith/there-are-people-who-haven-t-faced-the-reality-of-what-has-gone-on-in/) Peter W. Galbraith > [If the U.N. secretary-general withdraws the inspectors from Baghdad ... this means that the secretary-general has abandoned its own responsibility in maintaining peace and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naji-sabri/if-the-u-n-secretary-general-withdraws-the-inspectors-from-baghdad/) [Naji Sabri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naji-sabri/) > [I think that were I in the middle of an obsession to write about, say, sudden oak death in California or my grandchildren or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/i-think-that-were-i-in-the-middle-of-an-obsession-to-write-about-say/) [Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/) > [They are going to surrender or be burned in their tanks. They will surrender, it is they who will surrender.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/they-are-going-to-surrender-or-be-burned-in-their-tanks-they-will/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [I firmly believed we should not march into Baghdad ...To occupy Iraq would instantly shatter our coalition, turning the whole Arab world against us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-w-bush/i-firmly-believed-we-should-not-march-into-baghdad-to-occupy-iraq/) [George H. W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-w-bush/) > [We're giving them a real lesson today. Heavy doesn't accurately describe the level of casualties we have inflicted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/we-re-giving-them-a-real-lesson-today-heavy-doesn-t-accurately/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [I think that we live in a remarkably networked world. The problem with that, of course, is that tensions can travel in nanoseconds across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eboo-patel/i-think-that-we-live-in-a-remarkably-networked-world-the-problem-with/) [Eboo Patel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eboo-patel/) [Browse all 191 Baghdad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baghdad/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's always sort of amazing, sitting in Baghdad, to watch visiting dignitaries being received in the Green Zone by politicians who have usually very little support and seldom go outside the Green Zone.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Patrick Cockburn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-baghdad-to-watch-visiting/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Baghdad" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-baghdad-to-watch-visiting/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/716/patrick-cockburn-28053_baghdad_it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-b_1978857.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's always sort of amazing, sitting in Baghdad, to watch visiting dignitaries being received in the Green…” — Patrick Cockburn", "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": "Patrick Cockburn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-cockburn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's always sort of amazing, sitting...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-baghdad-to-watch-visiting/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-cockburn/it-s-always-sort-of-amazing-sitting-in-baghdad-to-watch-visiting/#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 } } ] } ```