--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They are people who, by and large, think…" description: "\"They are people who, by and large, think the Administration's policy - and the Iranian case is a classic one - is very stupid. They can't get that view..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/seymour-hersh-9648_accomplish_they-are-people-who-by-and-large-think-t_2681103.jpg" --- # They are people who, by and large, think the… ![“They are people who, by and large, think the Administration's policy - and the Iranian case is a classic one - is very stupid. They can't get that view in, and so by talking to me, they accomplish something. It's a way of saying, this ought to be discussed, we got to get this out. That's a form of…” quote by Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/seymour-hersh-9648_accomplish_they-are-people-who-by-and-large-think-t_2681103.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/seymour-hersh-9648_accomplish_they-are-people-who-by-and-large-think-t_2681103.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/seymour-hersh-9648_accomplish_they-are-people-who-by-and-large-think-t_2681103.jpg) > “They are people who, by and large, think the Administration's policy - and the Iranian case is a classic one - is very stupid. They can't get that view in, and so by talking to me, they accomplish something. It's a way of saying, this ought to be discussed, we got to get this out. That's a form of patriotism, in a funny way.” [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He suggests that criticizing government policy publicly is a form of patriotism, even if done humorously **In simple terms:** Criticizing policy can be patriotic Key Takeaway Speak up, even humorously Themes politics patriotism criticism Mood ironic thoughtful Type political commentary When to use this quote - media interviews - policy debates - public forums Key Concepts public discourse civic duty Questions to Reflect On - How does humor affect political criticism? - When is satire effective in policy discussion? A Different Perspective Humor may undermine seriousness of critique ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accomplish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accomplish/) [Administration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/administration/) [Cases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cases/) [Classic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/classic/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Form Patriotism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form-patriotism-697980/) [Iranian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iranian/) [Iranian Case](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iranian-case-2581861/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [Patriotism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotism/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Policy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/policy/) [Policy Iranian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/policy-iranian-2581860/) [Stupid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupid/) [Stupid View](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupid-view-2581862/) [Talking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talking/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Very stupid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very-stupid/) [Views](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/views/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [Our patriotism comes straight from the Romans. This is why French children are encouraged to seek inspiration for it in Corneille. It is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/our-patriotism-comes-straight-from-the-romans-this-is-why-french/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/dissent-is-the-highest-form-of-patriotism/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“To begin with, we have to be more clear about what we mean by patriotic feelings. For a time when I was in high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/to-begin-with-we-have-to-be-more-clear-about-what-we-mean-by/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [During President George W. Bush's two terms, you couldn't drive far without seeing a particular bumper sticker: 'Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-crowley/during-president-george-w-bush-s-two-terms-you-couldn-t-drive-far-2/) [Monica Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-crowley/) > [The highest form of patriotism is dissent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-dowd/the-highest-form-of-patriotism-is-dissent/) [Matthew Dowd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-dowd/) > [To criticize one's country is to do it a service… Criticism, in short, is more than a right; it is an act of patriotism-a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/to-criticize-one-s-country-is-to-do-it-a-service-criticism-in-short/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [There is a higher form of patriotism than nationalism, and that higher form is not limited by the boundaries of one's country; but by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-straus/there-is-a-higher-form-of-patriotism-than-nationalism-and-that-higher/) [Oscar Straus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-straus/) > [Democrats are so spineless, so afraid to go against the tide... but dissension is the greatest form of patriotism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/democrats-are-so-spineless-so-afraid-to-go-against-the-tide-but/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) > [ Dissent is the highest form of patriotism. \[Misattributed\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/dissent-is-the-highest-form-of-patriotism-misattributed/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [For a writer only one form of patriotism exists: his attitude toward language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/for-a-writer-only-one-form-of-patriotism-exists-his-attitude-toward/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Dissent is the highest form of patriotism, and I intend to continue to push my country to respect the rights of all its citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-sarsour/dissent-is-the-highest-form-of-patriotism-and-i-intend-to-continue-to/) [Linda Sarsour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-sarsour/) > [During President George W. Bush's two terms, you couldn't drive far without seeing a particular bumper sticker: Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-crowley/during-president-george-w-bush-s-two-terms-you-couldn-t-drive-far/) [Monica Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-crowley/) > [If what your country is doing seems to you practically and morally wrong, is dissent the highest form of patriotism?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-what-your-country-is-doing-seems-to-you-practically-and-morally/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [In the wake of Katrina, what you're witnessing and what we are very careful to depict is a form of patriotism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-simon/in-the-wake-of-katrina-what-you-re-witnessing-and-what-we-are-very/) [David Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-simon/) > [What is it that unites, on the left of British politics, George Orwell, Billy Bragg, Gordon Brown and myself? An understanding that identity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-blunkett/what-is-it-that-unites-on-the-left-of-british-politics-george-orwell/) [David Blunkett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-blunkett/) ## More by Seymour Hersh > [I can't fudge what I write. But I can certainly fudge what I say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/i-can-t-fudge-what-i-write-but-i-can-certainly-fudge-what-i-say/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [If Bush had gone into Iraq for cynical reasons, we could cut our losses now. What's frightening is that he did it for ideological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/if-bush-had-gone-into-iraq-for-cynical-reasons-we-could-cut-our/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [At a meeting in her office in the late summer of 2002, months before the war in Iraq, prisoner abuse at Guantanamo is discussed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/at-a-meeting-in-her-office-in-the-late-summer-of-2002-months-before/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [Using words to make other people less big made me feel bigger, though the psychological dimension to that... well, I don't want to explore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/using-words-to-make-other-people-less-big-made-me-feel-bigger-though/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [I didn't know I was gonna be a writer when I started out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/i-didn-t-know-i-was-gonna-be-a-writer-when-i-started-out/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [We'd be better off if the whole purpose of the adventure in Iraq was, say, to protect Israel or to protect the flow of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/we-d-be-better-off-if-the-whole-purpose-of-the-adventure-in-iraq-was/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [The idea of photographing an Arab man naked and having him simulate homosexual activity, and having an American GI woman in the photographs, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/the-idea-of-photographing-an-arab-man-naked-and-having-him-simulate/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [There's been a lot of talk about how bad the reporting was, particularly with the George W. Bush Administration after 9/11. The general assumption,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/there-s-been-a-lot-of-talk-about-how-bad-the-reporting-was/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [Grab whom you must. Do what you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/grab-whom-you-must-do-what-you-want/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [If George W. Bush had gone into Iraq for cynical reasons, we could cut our losses now. What's frightening is that he did it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/if-george-w-bush-had-gone-into-iraq-for-cynical-reasons-we-could-cut/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [I don't think I've ever met a public official that didn't think he was doing the right thing. 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But I derive my hope above all, and most especially, from our utter incapacity, for it… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-guerin/the-community-s-crosses-and-trials-give-me-confidence-but-i-derive-my/) [Theodore Guerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-guerin/) > [There's things that you want to accomplish, but to do that you have to work. 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