--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Bush has not read enough books to have a…" description: "\"Bush has not read enough books to have a developed moral sense. The fewer books you read, the easier it is to become fundamental. In some ways my antiw..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/sherman-alexie-444_antiwar_bush-has-not-read-enough-books-to-have-a_1396621.png" --- # Bush has not read enough books to have a developed moral… ![“Bush has not read enough books to have a developed moral sense. The fewer books you read, the easier it is to become fundamental. In some ways my antiwar stand here is also a stand on anti-literacy. Someone should get G.W. into a reading program, get him to join a book club. Have him read Hamlet…” quote by Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/sherman-alexie-444_antiwar_bush-has-not-read-enough-books-to-have-a_1396621.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/sherman-alexie-444_antiwar_bush-has-not-read-enough-books-to-have-a_1396621.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/sherman-alexie-444_antiwar_bush-has-not-read-enough-books-to-have-a_1396621.png) > “Bush has not read enough books to have a developed moral sense. The fewer books you read, the easier it is to become fundamental. In some ways my antiwar stand here is also a stand on anti-literacy. Someone should get G.W. into a reading program, get him to join a book club. Have him read Hamlet, King Lear.” [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker warns that lacking literary exposure can limit moral development and foster extreme views, suggesting reading classic literature can broaden perspective. **In simple terms:** Reading builds moral depth and reduces extremism. Key Takeaway Encourage reading classic works. Themes education morality politics literacy extremism Mood reflective critical hopeful Type advice observational political When to use this quote - political debates - education reform - personal growth - community discussions Key Concepts critical thinking empathy cultural literacy Questions to Reflect On - How does literature shape moral judgment? - Can reading alone counteract fundamentalism? A Different Perspective Reading alone may not change deeply held beliefs without dialogue. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Antiwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antiwar/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book club](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-club/) [Book reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-reading/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Clubs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clubs/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Literacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literacy/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) ## Related quotes > [If Bush had read all the documents about the Russians and British in Afghanistan in the 19th century, he would have not done what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/if-bush-had-read-all-the-documents-about-the-russians-and-british-in/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [A man's moral sense must be unusually strong if slavery does not make him a thief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/a-man-s-moral-sense-must-be-unusually-strong-if-slavery-does-not-make/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I believe there is a moral sense and a global ethic that commands attention from people of every religion and every faith, and people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/i-believe-there-is-a-moral-sense-and-a-global-ethic-that-commands/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [Man was destined for society. His morality, therefore, was to be formed to this object. He was endowed with a sense of right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/man-was-destined-for-society-his-morality-therefore-was-to-be-formed/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [I fully subscribe to the judgement of those writers who maintain that of all the differences between man and the lower animal, the moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-fully-subscribe-to-the-judgement-of-those-writers-who-maintain-that/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Man has no moral instinct. He is not born with moral sense. You were not born with it, I was not - and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/man-has-no-moral-instinct-he-is-not-born-with-moral-sense-you-were/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [I never came across anyone in whom the moral sense was dominant who was not heartless, cruel, vindictive, log-stupid, and entirely lacking in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-never-came-across-anyone-in-whom-the-moral-sense-was-dominant-who/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The best causes tend to attract to their support the worst arguments, which seems to be equally true in the intellectual and in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-fisher/the-best-causes-tend-to-attract-to-their-support-the-worst-arguments/) [Ronald Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-fisher/) > [To have a moral sense is not to be dogmatic in dealing with rules. It can be an open way with dealing with questions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/to-have-a-moral-sense-is-not-to-be-dogmatic-in-dealing-with-rules-it/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I ask myself, have nations ever declined from a loss of moral sense rather than from physical reasons or the pressure of barbarians? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-tuchman/i-ask-myself-have-nations-ever-declined-from-a-loss-of-moral-sense/) [Barbara Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-tuchman/) > [I believe that an evolutionary approach specifying the foundation of our moral sense can allow us to appreciate Hindu and Muslim cultures where women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/i-believe-that-an-evolutionary-approach-specifying-the-foundation-of/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) > [“What we now call "morality" was evolved – as nearly all social and physical human attributes were – to aid us in survival and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/what-we-now-call-morality-was-evolved-as-nearly-all-social-and/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [The moral truth here is obvious: anyone who feels that the interests of a blastocyst just might supersede the interests of a child with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-moral-truth-here-is-obvious-anyone-who-feels-that-the-interests/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“What our generation is in danger of forgetting is not only that morals are of necessity a phenomenon of individual conduct but also that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-hayek/what-our-generation-is-in-danger-of-forgetting-is-not-only-that/) F. A. Hayek > [“The Church still prizes the Moral Sense as man's noblest asset today, although the Church knows God had a distinctly poor opinion of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-church-still-prizes-the-moral-sense-as-man-s-noblest-asset-today/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## More by Sherman Alexie > [“He says the earth is an oval marble that nobody can win. He says the sky is not blue and the grass is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/he-says-the-earth-is-an-oval-marble-that-nobody-can-win-he-says-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Now, in the old days, Indians used to be forgiving of any kind of eccentricity. In fact, weird people were often celebrated. Epileptics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/now-in-the-old-days-indians-used-to-be-forgiving-of-any-kind-of/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Since Jesus was human then he most assuredly farted and burped. And if God did create us in God's image then God must fart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/since-jesus-was-human-then-he-most-assuredly-farted-and-burped-and-if/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“A century ago she might have been beautiful, her face reflected in the river instead of a mirror. But all the years have changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/a-century-ago-she-might-have-been-beautiful-her-face-reflected-in-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“In all those stories, I could fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/in-all-those-stories-i-could-fly/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I don't think there's a whole lot of class literature at all. I think most of that has become racially based, and people don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-whole-lot-of-class-literature-at-all-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [She wanted to be buried in a coffin filled with used paperbacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-wanted-to-be-buried-in-a-coffin-filled-with-used-paperbacks/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Is there really a difference between that killing and this killing? Does God approve of some killing and not other killing? If I kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/is-there-really-a-difference-between-that-killing-and-this-killing/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Son, things have never been like how you think they used to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/son-things-have-never-been-like-how-you-think-they-used-to-be/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [My parents banned nothing, though the Christian fundamentalists in my tribe held book-and-record burnings every now and again. So, yes, fundamentalist assholes can also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/my-parents-banned-nothing-though-the-christian-fundamentalists-in-my/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Or maybe I could have anesthetized myself with homework and extra credit and binge-reading.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/or-maybe-i-could-have-anesthetized-myself-with-homework-and-extra/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Dear wife, I'm sorry that I am mysteriously incapable of folding clean laundry, but I iron, oh, I iron. Sweetheart, I'll make your white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/dear-wife-i-m-sorry-that-i-am-mysteriously-incapable-of-folding-clean/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Gordy,” I said. “I need to talk to you." "I don't have time," he said. "Mr. Orcutt and I have to debug some PCs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/gordy-i-said-i-need-to-talk-to-you-i-don-t-have-time-he-said-mr/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“The United States wants all of us to forget the crimes it committed against the indigenous. The United States wants us to forget. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/the-united-states-wants-all-of-us-to-forget-the-crimes-it-committed/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I think that white women are more apt to read laterally. So I think there's some strong identification for women, and their political and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-think-that-white-women-are-more-apt-to-read-laterally-so-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) [Explore all 546 Sherman Alexie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## More Antiwar quotes > [In the struggle of good against evil, it's always the people who get killed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/in-the-struggle-of-good-against-evil-it-s-always-the-people-who-get/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [“... it would be better for our country and the world in general, if at least the few people who were capable of thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-would-be-better-for-our-country-and-the-world-in-general-if-at/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [In the eyes of empire builders men are not men but instruments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/in-the-eyes-of-empire-builders-men-are-not-men-but-instruments/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [The statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-statesmen-will-invent-cheap-lies-putting-the-blame-upon-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [My first wish is to see this plague of mankind banished from the earth, and the sons and daughters of this world employed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/my-first-wish-is-to-see-this-plague-of-mankind-banished-from-the/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [The practice of violence, like all action, changes the world, but the most probable change is a more violent world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/the-practice-of-violence-like-all-action-changes-the-world-but-the/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [One reason the United States finds itself at the edge of a foreign policy disaster is its underinformed citizenry, a key weakness in democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-halper/one-reason-the-united-states-finds-itself-at-the-edge-of-a-foreign/) Stefan Halper > [The worst evils which mankind has ever had to endure were inflicted by bad governments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-worst-evils-which-mankind-has-ever-had-to-endure-were-inflicted/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [You cannot be on one hand dedicated to peace and on the other dedicated to violence. Those two things are irreconcilable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/condoleezza-rice/you-cannot-be-on-one-hand-dedicated-to-peace-and-on-the-other/) [Condoleezza Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/condoleezza-rice/) > [Free nations don't develop weapons of mass destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/free-nations-don-t-develop-weapons-of-mass-destruction/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [...Uncalled-for aggression arouses the hatred of the civilian population...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/uncalled-for-aggression-arouses-the-hatred-of-the-civilian-population/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [Studies by Medical Corps psychiatrists of combat fatigue cases... found that fear of killing, rather than fear of being killed, was the most common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-lyman-atwood-marshall/studies-by-medical-corps-psychiatrists-of-combat-fatigue-cases-found/) [Samuel Lyman Atwood Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-lyman-atwood-marshall/) > [I believe that the entire effort of modern society should be concentrated on the endeavor to outlaw war as a method of the solution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/i-believe-that-the-entire-effort-of-modern-society-should-be/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [In war, as it is waged now, with the enormous losses on both sides, both sides will lose. It is a form of mutual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-macarthur/in-war-as-it-is-waged-now-with-the-enormous-losses-on-both-sides-both/) [Douglas MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-macarthur/) > [Our reluctance for conflict should not be misjudged as a failure of will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/our-reluctance-for-conflict-should-not-be-misjudged-as-a-failure-of/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) [Browse all 409 Antiwar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antiwar/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Bush has not read enough books to have a developed moral sense. The fewer books you read, the easier it is to become fundamental. In some ways my antiwar stand here is also a stand on anti-literacy. Someone should get G.W. into a reading program, get him to join a book club. 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