--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only thing more dangerous than an…" description: "\"The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. I mean: might get people killed.\" — Sarah Vowell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/sarah-vowell-2016_belief_the-only-thing-more-dangerous-than-an-id_2771918.png" --- # The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief… ![“The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. I mean: might get people killed.” quote by Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/sarah-vowell-2016_belief_the-only-thing-more-dangerous-than-an-id_2771918.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/sarah-vowell-2016_belief_the-only-thing-more-dangerous-than-an-id_2771918.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c61/sarah-vowell-2016_belief_the-only-thing-more-dangerous-than-an-id_2771918.png) > “The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. I mean: might get people killed.” [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ideas inspire thought; beliefs can drive extreme actions, sometimes lethal, because they are held as absolute truth. **In simple terms:** Beliefs can be more dangerous than ideas. Key Takeaway Question beliefs that may harm. Themes philosophy danger belief truth Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical cautionary When to use this quote - political movements - religious sects - online radicalization - personal convictions Key Concepts extremism psychology social influence Questions to Reflect On - When does a belief become harmful? - How can we challenge dangerous beliefs responsibly? A Different Perspective Ideas also have power to inspire good. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Thought provoking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-provoking/) ## Related quotes > [The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/the-only-thing-more-dangerous-than-an-idea-is-a-belief/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [One's belief that one is sincere is not so dangerous as one's conviction that one is right. We all feel we are right; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/igor-stravinsky/one-s-belief-that-one-is-sincere-is-not-so-dangerous-as-one-s/) [Igor Stravinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/igor-stravinsky/) > [“Even a righteous man who views murder as sin will kill if he feels the cause is just and right. That is what makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celia-kyle/even-a-righteous-man-who-views-murder-as-sin-will-kill-if-he-feels/) [Celia Kyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celia-kyle/) > [I am a child of the Enlightenment. I think irrational belief is a dangerous phenomenon, and I try to consciously avoid irrational belief. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-am-a-child-of-the-enlightenment-i-think-irrational-belief-is-a/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Knowledge, idea, belief stands in the way of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/knowledge-idea-belief-stands-in-the-way-of-wisdom/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [Belief is one of the most powerful organic forces in the multiverse. It may not be able to move mountains, exactly. But it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/belief-is-one-of-the-most-powerful-organic-forces-in-the-multiverse/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Become a thought leader by taking an idea, belief, or process and turning it inside-out and upside-down. Bust beyond the box and shatter a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/become-a-thought-leader-by-taking-an-idea-belief-or-process-and/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [Pragmatism asks its usual question. "Grant an idea or belief to be true," it says, "what concrete difference will its being true make in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/pragmatism-asks-its-usual-question-grant-an-idea-or-belief-to-be-true/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [You can’t trap justice. It’s an idea, a belief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-pitt/you-can-t-trap-justice-it-s-an-idea-a-belief/) [Brad Pitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-pitt/) > [I think what's dangerous is the idea that someone can wash away your sins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/i-think-what-s-dangerous-is-the-idea-that-someone-can-wash-away-your/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [Yesterday's dangerous idea is today's orthodoxy and tomorrow's cliché.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/yesterday-s-dangerous-idea-is-today-s-orthodoxy-and-tomorrow-s-clich/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The notion that the species can be improved in some way, that everyone could live in harmony, is a really dangerous idea. Those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-notion-that-the-species-can-be-improved-in-some-way-that-everyone/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“Nothing is more dangerous than an idea if it's the only one you have. • Emil-Auguste Chartier, Propos sur la religion, 1938 Engineers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-hunt/nothing-is-more-dangerous-than-an-idea-if-it-s-the-only-one-you-have/) [Andrew Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-hunt/) > [Nothing is more dangerous than an idea when it is the only one you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/nothing-is-more-dangerous-than-an-idea-when-it-is-the-only-one-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Contessa was surely way ahead of her time, too, in believing that men were not only usless and idiotic, but downright dangerous. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-contessa-was-surely-way-ahead-of-her-time-too-in-believing-that/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## More by Sarah Vowell > [“She is either male property (Mrs.), wannabe male property (Miss), or man-hating harpy (Ms.).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/she-is-either-male-property-mrs-wannabe-male-property-miss-or-man/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“We were breathing sooty air. The soot was composed of incinerated glass and steel but also, we knew, incinerated human flesh. When the local…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/we-were-breathing-sooty-air-the-soot-was-composed-of-incinerated/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [I was a big Nancy Drew reader. Nancy figures it out. Case closed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/i-was-a-big-nancy-drew-reader-nancy-figures-it-out-case-closed/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“After Hymns and tears, they boarded the brig Thaddeus, a vessel so crappy, it made the Mayflower look like the QE2.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/after-hymns-and-tears-they-boarded-the-brig-thaddeus-a-vessel-so/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“The last line of Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen is addressed to the American people and their congressmen. "As they deal with me and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/the-last-line-of-hawaii-s-story-by-hawaii-s-queen-is-addressed-to-the/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“In the gravedigger scene in act V, Hamlet looks upon an anonymous skull and jokes that even Alexander the Great decomposed into dust that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/in-the-gravedigger-scene-in-act-v-hamlet-looks-upon-an-anonymous/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“Another reason I’m intrigued with the hanged of Salem, especially the women, is that a number of them aroused suspicion in the first place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/another-reason-i-m-intrigued-with-the-hanged-of-salem-especially-the/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [Listening to the radio every day for an entire year was a prison sentence. It was the most depressing, annoying, debilitating project I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/listening-to-the-radio-every-day-for-an-entire-year-was-a-prison/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [That's what I like to call him, "the current president." I find it difficult to say or type his name, George W. Bush. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/that-s-what-i-like-to-call-him-the-current-president-i-find-it/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“The historical periods I like to learn about aren’t so much costume dramas as slasher flicks. The French Revolution is a favorite because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/the-historical-periods-i-like-to-learn-about-aren-t-so-much-costume/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [While I gave up God a long time ago, I never shook the habit of wanting to believe in something. So I replaced my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/while-i-gave-up-god-a-long-time-ago-i-never-shook-the-habit-of/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [Most people don't like to talk about violent historical death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/most-people-don-t-like-to-talk-about-violent-historical-death/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [There are two kinds of people in the world: the kind who alphabetize their record collections, and the kind who don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-in-the-world-the-kind-who-alphabetize/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [What are you hiding? No one ever asks that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/what-are-you-hiding-no-one-ever-asks-that/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [“I don't have a driver's license (phobia).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/i-don-t-have-a-driver-s-license-phobia/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) [Explore all 190 Sarah Vowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) ## More Belief quotes > [“Cine a ucis stelele? Cine a surpat drumul spre viitor al celor din morminte?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ionel-teodoreanu/cine-a-ucis-stelele-cine-a-surpat-drumul-spre-viitor-al-celor-din/) [Ionel Teodoreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ionel-teodoreanu/) > [“MIND & GRIND Self-belief and hard work can propel you past more talented peers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamil-ali/mind-grind-self-belief-and-hard-work-can-propel-you-past-more/) [Kamil Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamil-ali/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [It took me 20 years of hard training to get the physique I have today. what you need is what i had - BELIEF…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branch-warren/it-took-me-20-years-of-hard-training-to-get-the-physique-i-have-today/) [Branch Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branch-warren/) > [“Here is a fundamental difference between the man of faith and the man of unbelief. The unbeliever is 'of the world', judges everything by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/here-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-the-man-of-faith-and-the-man/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [“She herself vacillated when it came to belief. She did not particularly believe in God. Or, rather, she didn't believe in a particular God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-goodman/she-herself-vacillated-when-it-came-to-belief-she-did-not/) [Allegra Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-goodman/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [“Rigid traditions capture souls prisons of spiritual thought man’s religion has captured a god grown too small and very weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-w-earle/rigid-traditions-capture-souls-prisons-of-spiritual-thought-man-s/) [David W Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-w-earle/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [In business, as in politics, it is never easy to go against the beliefs and attitudes held by the majority. The businessman who moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-paul-getty/in-business-as-in-politics-it-is-never-easy-to-go-against-the-beliefs/) [J. Paul Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-paul-getty/) > [There's no greatest moment in the arts. It's a life; it's a continuity thing. You can't have a great moment because it's spiritual. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-neiman/there-s-no-greatest-moment-in-the-arts-it-s-a-life-it-s-a-continuity/) [LeRoy Neiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-neiman/) > [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) [Browse all 10,268 Belief quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only thing more dangerous than an idea is a belief. And by dangerous I don't mean thought-provoking. 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