--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Human Beings are just good enough to make…" description: "\"Human Beings are just good enough to make democracy possible...just bad enough to make it neccessary.\" — Reinhold Niebuhr" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/780/reinhold-niebuhr-1881_democracy_human-beings-are-just-good-enough-to-mak_2189157.png" --- # Human Beings are just good enough to make democracy… ![“Human Beings are just good enough to make democracy possible...just bad enough to make it neccessary.” quote by Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/780/reinhold-niebuhr-1881_democracy_human-beings-are-just-good-enough-to-mak_2189157.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/780/reinhold-niebuhr-1881_democracy_human-beings-are-just-good-enough-to-mak_2189157.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/780/reinhold-niebuhr-1881_democracy_human-beings-are-just-good-enough-to-mak_2189157.png) > “Human Beings are just good enough to make democracy possible...just bad enough to make it neccessary.” [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human nature is sufficient for democracy but also creates its own necessity. **In simple terms:** People are both capable and flawed, driving democracy. Key Takeaway Recognize both strengths and flaws in society. Themes politics human nature democracy Mood reflective critical Type political philosophical When to use this quote - government policy - civic education - public debate Key Concepts philosophy ethics social contract Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of humanity sustain democracy? - How do flaws demand democratic safeguards? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Good enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-enough/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) ## Related quotes > [It is the evil in man that makes democracy necessary, and man's belief in justice that makes democracy possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/it-is-the-evil-in-man-that-makes-democracy-necessary-and-man-s-belief/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/man-s-capacity-for-justice-makes-democracy-possible-but-man-s/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [“Whether people are beautiful and friendly or unattractive and disruptive, ultimately they are human beings, just like oneself. Like oneself, they want happiness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama-xiv/whether-people-are-beautiful-and-friendly-or-unattractive-and/) [Dalai Lama XIV](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama-xiv/) > [God does not love some ideal person, but rather human beings just as we are, not some ideal world, but rather the real world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/god-does-not-love-some-ideal-person-but-rather-human-beings-just-as/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [When I say that human beings are just gene machines, one shouldn't put too much emphasis on the word 'just.' There is a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/when-i-say-that-human-beings-are-just-gene-machines-one-shouldn-t-put/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Human beings are just way more complex than they'd like to be. They like to be simple machines. And they'll set up fantasy scenarios…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nell-zink/human-beings-are-just-way-more-complex-than-they-d-like-to-be-they/) [Nell Zink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nell-zink/) > [We consider that the lives of all beings are just as precious as our own, and through this we develop a sense of concern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/we-consider-that-the-lives-of-all-beings-are-just-as-precious-as-our/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [Human beings are just gene machines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/human-beings-are-just-gene-machines/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I don't think it's fair for people to put fellow beings down just because they're only known for their looks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coco-rocha/i-don-t-think-it-s-fair-for-people-to-put-fellow-beings-down-just/) [Coco Rocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coco-rocha/) > [We were, the two of us, still fragmentary beings, just beginning to sense the presence of an unexpected, to be-aquired reality that would fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/we-were-the-two-of-us-still-fragmentary-beings-just-beginning-to/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [No perfect democracy is possible without perfect nonviolence at the back of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/no-perfect-democracy-is-possible-without-perfect-nonviolence-at-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Evolution of democracy is not possible if we are not prepared to hear the other side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/evolution-of-democracy-is-not-possible-if-we-are-not-prepared-to-hear/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“Man's inclination to justice makes democracy possible; but man's capacity for injustice makes it necessary.' The optimism we need to prevent ourselves from destroying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-crick/man-s-inclination-to-justice-makes-democracy-possible-but-man-s/) [Bernard Crick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-crick/) > [Real democracy is only possible when people truly imbibe democratic principles and respect ethical values above everything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/real-democracy-is-only-possible-when-people-truly-imbibe-democratic/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [Throughout American history many of our social gains and much of our progress toward democracy were made possible by the active intervention of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-washington/throughout-american-history-many-of-our-social-gains-and-much-of-our/) [Harold Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-washington/) ## More by Reinhold Niebuhr > [There are evidently limits to the achievements of science; and there are irresolvable contradictions both between prosperity and virtue, and between happiness and ''the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/there-are-evidently-limits-to-the-achievements-of-science-and-there/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Perhapsthemost sublimeinsights oftheJewishprophets and the Christian gospel is the knowledge that since perfection is love, the apprehension of perfection is at once the means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/perhapsthemost-sublimeinsights-ofthejewishprophets-and-the-christian/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [The essence of man is his freedom. Sin is committed in that freedom. Sin can therefore not be attributed to a defect in his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/the-essence-of-man-is-his-freedom-sin-is-committed-in-that-freedom/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Liberalism makes this mistake in regard to private property and Marxism makes it in regard to socialized property... The Marxist illusion is partly derived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/liberalism-makes-this-mistake-in-regard-to-private-property-and/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Human beings are endowed by nature with both selfish and unselfish impulses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/human-beings-are-endowed-by-nature-with-both-selfish-and-unselfish/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [There are historic situations in which refusal to defend the inheritance of a civilization, however imperfect, against tyranny and aggression may result in consequences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/there-are-historic-situations-in-which-refusal-to-defend-the/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/god-grant-me-the-serenity-to-accept-the-things-i-cannot-change/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Freedom is necessary for two reasons. It's necessary for the individual, because the individual, no matter how good the society is, every individual has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/freedom-is-necessary-for-two-reasons-it-s-necessary-for-the/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [The pretensions of final truth are always partlyan effort to obscure a darkly felt consciousness of the limits of human knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/the-pretensions-of-final-truth-are-always-partlyan-effort-to-obscure/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [All social cooperation on a larger scale than the most intimate social group requires a measure of coercion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/all-social-cooperation-on-a-larger-scale-than-the-most-intimate/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Man is always worse than most people suspect, but also generally better than most people dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/man-is-always-worse-than-most-people-suspect-but-also-generally/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [When a church reaches up beyond its group and tries to enforce its standards upon a society that doesn't accept these standards, and perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/when-a-church-reaches-up-beyond-its-group-and-tries-to-enforce-its/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [...(I)ndividual selfhood is expressed in the self's capacity for self-transcendence and not in its rational capacity for conceptual and analytic procedures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/i-ndividual-selfhood-is-expressed-in-the-self-s-capacity-for-self/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [The whole art of politics consists in directing rationally the irrationalities of men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/the-whole-art-of-politics-consists-in-directing-rationally-the/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [Religion is so frequently a source of confusion in political life, and so frequently dangerous to democracy, precisely because it introduces absolutes into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/religion-is-so-frequently-a-source-of-confusion-in-political-life-and/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) [Explore all 200 Reinhold Niebuhr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) ## More Democracy quotes > [Elections belong to the people. 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But right now, as of October 17, 2014, the Republican Senate candidates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-continetti/there-is-plenty-of-time-for-republicans-to-have-a-macaca-moment-but/) [Matthew Continetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-continetti/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [ Vote for Donald Trump. You're going to see something and you'll be so happy, you'll be so thrilled. This \[presidential\] election is about every… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/vote-for-donald-trump-you-re-going-to-see-something-and-you-ll-be-so/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-peaceful-transition-of-power-is-one-of-the-hallmarks-of-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The Republicans do not look on the Democrats as the evil empire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/the-republicans-do-not-look-on-the-democrats-as-the-evil-empire/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [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/) > [Failure to find a way to incorporate political Islam in democracy, however uncomfortable its ideology is for secular liberals, will mean we have given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crispin-blunt/failure-to-find-a-way-to-incorporate-political-islam-in-democracy/) [Crispin Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crispin-blunt/) > [In a democratic nation, power must be linked with responsibility, and obliged to defend and justify itself within the framework of the general good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/in-a-democratic-nation-power-must-be-linked-with-responsibility-and/) [Franklin D. 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