---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a…"
description: "\"Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a Napoleon who decides on the fate of any particular war but a piece of software! In short, the political intelligence..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg"
---

#  Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a Napoleon who decides on…

![“Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a Napoleon who decides on the fate of any particular war but a piece of software! In short, the political intelligence of war and the political intelligence of society no longer penetrate the techno-scientific world.” quote by Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg)

> “Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a Napoleon who decides on the fate of any particular war but a piece of software! In short, the political intelligence of war and the political intelligence of society no longer penetrate the techno-scientific world.”

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Technology now decides war outcomes, eclipsing traditional leaders, and political insight struggles to influence the techno-scientific realm.

**In simple terms:** Software controls war more than generals.

Key Takeaway

Recognize tech's power in conflict.

Themes

technology war politics power society

Mood

cautious critical reflective

Type

analytical philosophical

When to use this quote

- military strategy
- policy making
- cybersecurity
- media analysis
- public discourse

Key Concepts

technological determinism political ecology information warfare

Questions to Reflect On

- How can societies retain agency over tech-driven warfare?
- What safeguards can limit software dominance?

A Different Perspective

Human agency is still crucial; tech can be guided.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Fate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Programming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/programming/) [Software](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/software/) [Techno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/techno/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [War is thus divine in itself, since it is a law of the world. War is divine through its consequences of a supernatural nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-de-maistre/war-is-thus-divine-in-itself-since-it-is-a-law-of-the-world-war-is/)

[Joseph de Maistre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-de-maistre/)

> [Intelligence and war are games, perhaps the only meaningful games left. If any player becomes too proficient, the game is threatened with termination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/intelligence-and-war-are-games-perhaps-the-only-meaningful-games-left/)

[William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/)

> [Election campaigns seem to siphon away political anger and even basic political intelligence into this great vaudeville, after which we all end up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/election-campaigns-seem-to-siphon-away-political-anger-and-even-basic/)

[Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/)

> [I don't feel like I possess a particular political intelligence, and when I read work that does, I feel like somebody else is going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-kazan/i-don-t-feel-like-i-possess-a-particular-political-intelligence-and/)

[Zoe Kazan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-kazan/)

> [Writing about a war will always be political writing, no matter what amount of hermetical hide-and-seek or aesthetical operations are involved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sa-a-stani-i/writing-about-a-war-will-always-be-political-writing-no-matter-what/)

[Sasa Stanisic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sa-a-stani-i/)

> [ We're running a war by politicians and we're running a war by political correctness as per that question \[with ISIS\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-re-running-a-war-by-politicians-and-we-re-running-a-war-by/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [“It means this War was never political at all, the politics was all theatre, all just to keep the people distracted … secretly, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/it-means-this-war-was-never-political-at-all-the-politics-was-all/)

[Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/)

> [Be skeptical of concepts that divorce war from its political nature, particularly those that promise fast, cheap victory through technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-r-mcmaster/be-skeptical-of-concepts-that-divorce-war-from-its-political-nature/)

[H. R. McMaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-r-mcmaster/)

> [Peace is an extension of war by political means. Plenty of elbow-room is pleasanter -- and much safer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/peace-is-an-extension-of-war-by-political-means-plenty-of-elbow-room/)

[Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/)

> [We all know that in war the political and military factors have to complement each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nguyen-cao-ky/we-all-know-that-in-war-the-political-and-military-factors-have-to/)

[Nguyen Cao Ky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nguyen-cao-ky/)

> [I am not protesting against the conduct of the war, but against the political errors and insincerities for which the fighting men are being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siegfried-sassoon/i-am-not-protesting-against-the-conduct-of-the-war-but-against-the/)

[Siegfried Sassoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siegfried-sassoon/)

> [“It means this War was never political at all, the politics was all theatre, all just to keep the people distracted…secretly, it was being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/it-means-this-war-was-never-political-at-all-the-politics-was-all-2/)

[Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/)

> [Let us put it this way, techno-scientific intelligence is presently insufficiently spread among society at large to enable us to interpret the sorts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/let-us-put-it-this-way-techno-scientific-intelligence-is-presently/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [People agree to say that it is rationality and science which have eliminated what is called magic and religion. But ultimately, the ironic outcome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/people-agree-to-say-that-it-is-rationality-and-science-which-have/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [I was very into tribal techno and used to go and really lose myself in great dance music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/i-was-very-into-tribal-techno-and-used-to-go-and-really-lose-myself/)

[KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/)

## More by Paul Virilio

> [“It is, in fact, impossible clearly to distinguish economic war from information war, since each involves the same hegemonic ambition of making commercial and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/it-is-in-fact-impossible-clearly-to-distinguish-economic-war-from/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [There is a French expression that says: to be exposed to an accident, to cross a street without looking at the cars means exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-is-a-french-expression-that-says-to-be-exposed-to-an-accident/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [There cannot be an animal body without a territorial body: three bodies are grafted over each other: the territorial body - the planet, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-cannot-be-an-animal-body-without-a-territorial-body-three/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [... the blinding Hiroshima flash... literally photographed the shadow cast by beings and things, so that every surface immediately became war's recording surface, its film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/the-blinding-hiroshima-flash-literally-photographed-the-shadow-cast/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [GPS not only played a large and delocalizing role in the war in Kosovo but is increasingly playing a role in social life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/gps-not-only-played-a-large-and-delocalizing-role-in-the-war-in/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [The Gulf War may not have occurred in the actual global space, but it did occur in global time. And this thanks to CNN…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/the-gulf-war-may-not-have-occurred-in-the-actual-global-space-but-it/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [The cinema was certainly an art, but television can't be, because it is the museum of accidents. In other words, its art is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/the-cinema-was-certainly-an-art-but-television-can-t-be-because-it-is/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [What happened in Kosovo was the exact reversal of what happened in 'Fortress Europe' in 1943-45. Let me explain. Air Marshall 'Bomber' Harris used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/what-happened-in-kosovo-was-the-exact-reversal-of-what-happened-in/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [The technologies of virtual reality are attempting to make us see from beneath, from inside, from behind... as if we were God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/the-technologies-of-virtual-reality-are-attempting-to-make-us-see/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [There are eyes everywhere. No blind spot left. What shall we dream of when everything becomes visible? We'll dream of being blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-are-eyes-everywhere-no-blind-spot-left-what-shall-we-dream-of/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [I am of course thinking here about new planes such as the Sukhois. There is very little discussion about such developments but, for me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/i-am-of-course-thinking-here-about-new-planes-such-as-the-sukhois/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [Moreover, I would like to say that the sort of polar inertia we witnessed in the Kosovo War, the polar inertia involving 'automated war'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/moreover-i-would-like-to-say-that-the-sort-of-polar-inertia-we/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [How can we live if there is no more here and everything is now?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/how-can-we-live-if-there-is-no-more-here-and-everything-is-now/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [The simulator is the stage in-between television and virtual reality, a moment, a phase. The simulator is a moment that leads to cyberspace, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/the-simulator-is-the-stage-in-between-television-and-virtual-reality/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

> [These new technologies try to make virtual reality more powerful than actual reality, which is the true accident. The day when virtual reality becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/these-new-technologies-try-to-make-virtual-reality-more-powerful-than/)

[Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

[Explore all 181 Paul Virilio quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/)

## More Fate quotes

> [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/)

[Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/)

> [When you have counted eighty years and more, Time and Fate will batter at your door; But if you should survive to be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khushwant-singh/when-you-have-counted-eighty-years-and-more-time-and-fate-will-batter/)

[Khushwant Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khushwant-singh/)

> [“To be a Sufi is to detach from fixed ideas and from preconceptions; and not to try to avoid what is your lot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/to-be-a-sufi-is-to-detach-from-fixed-ideas-and-from-preconceptions/)

[Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/)

> [ Man blindly works the will of fate. \[Ger., Blindlings that er blos den Willen des Geschickes.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-martin-wieland/man-blindly-works-the-will-of-fate-ger-blindlings-that-er-blos-den/)

[Christoph Martin Wieland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-martin-wieland/)

> [Fate with impartial hand turns out the doom of high and low; her capacious urn is constantly shaking the names of all mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/fate-with-impartial-hand-turns-out-the-doom-of-high-and-low-her/)

[Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/)

> [Real chessplayers think about chess more or less 24 hours a day. It is a passion and a fate that one has to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simen-agdestein/real-chessplayers-think-about-chess-more-or-less-24-hours-a-day-it-is/)

Simen Agdestein

> [Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/holy-shadows-of-the-dead-i-m-not-to-blame-for-your-cruel-and-bitter/)

[Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/)

> [You can't choose what stays and what stays away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-welch/you-can-t-choose-what-stays-and-what-stays-away/)

[Florence Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-welch/)

> [“In that instant it all seemed to come clear to him- it came in a grisly flash of light, and he realized that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/in-that-instant-it-all-seemed-to-come-clear-to-him-it-came-in-a/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [“Fate and future both are servant to the determined, for they are nothing but creation of human determination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/fate-and-future-both-are-servant-to-the-determined-for-they-are/)

[Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/)

> [My fate cannot be mastered; it can only be collaborated with and thereby, to some extent, directed. Nor am I the captain of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/my-fate-cannot-be-mastered-it-can-only-be-collaborated-with-and/)

[Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/)

> [“What would have been the fate of sages if there were no fools?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ogwo-david-emenike/what-would-have-been-the-fate-of-sages-if-there-were-no-fools/)

[Ogwo David Emenike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ogwo-david-emenike/)

> [“I’ve always seen this in you, ever since you were a little girl — this hunger to love other people into their highest selves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-elisabeth/i-ve-always-seen-this-in-you-ever-since-you-were-a-little-girl-this/)

[Jennifer Elisabeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-elisabeth/)

> [“God has a way of picking a “nobody” and turning their world upside down, in order to create a “somebody” that will remove the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/god-has-a-way-of-picking-a-nobody-and-turning-their-world-upside-down/)

[Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/)

> [Do we make ourselves into what we become or is it built into our genes, into the fate spun for us by whatever shapes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-bruchac/do-we-make-ourselves-into-what-we-become-or-is-it-built-into-our/)

[Joseph Bruchac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-bruchac/)

[Browse all 5,152 Fate quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fate/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a Napoleon who decides on the fate of any particular war but a piece of software! In short, the political intelligence of war and the political intelligence of society no longer penetrate the techno-scientific world.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Paul Virilio"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napoleon-who-decides-on-the-fate/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Fate"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napoleon-who-decides-on-the-fate/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/650/paul-virilio-2130_fate_thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napol_2007928.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Thus it is no longer a Caesar or a Napoleon who decides on the fate of any particular war but a piece of…” — Paul Virilio",
                "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": "Paul Virilio",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Thus it is no longer a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napoleon-who-decides-on-the-fate/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/thus-it-is-no-longer-a-caesar-or-a-napoleon-who-decides-on-the-fate/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
