--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is a residual sense for me, having…" description: "\"There is a residual sense for me, having grown up in the early '70s, that I did not know I had, which was a sense that the military are different than ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png" --- # There is a residual sense for me, having grown up in the… ![“There is a residual sense for me, having grown up in the early '70s, that I did not know I had, which was a sense that the military are different than I. Because there was such a divide between the military world - and there still is, because there's no draft - and the civilian world is one of the…” quote by Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png) > “There is a residual sense for me, having grown up in the early '70s, that I did not know I had, which was a sense that the military are different than I. Because there was such a divide between the military world - and there still is, because there's no draft - and the civilian world is one of the rotten harvests of the Vietnam War, was this sort of bifurcation of America in that way.” [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He senses a lingering divide between military and civilian life, rooted in historical conflicts and cultural separation. **In simple terms:** Military and civilian worlds feel divided. Key Takeaway Bridge gaps between distinct cultural groups. Themes division military civilian history culture social commentary Mood thoughtful critical Type political social When to use this quote - policy discussion - community outreach - education Key Concepts social cohesion identity Questions to Reflect On - How can mutual understanding be fostered? - What steps reduce civilian‑military gaps? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Civilians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilians/) [Harvest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harvest/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [Vietnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vietnam/) [Vietnam war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vietnam-war/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The danger of having the military take over intelligence is that the military has a very different perspective on the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hoekstra/the-danger-of-having-the-military-take-over-intelligence-is-that-the/) [Pete Hoekstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hoekstra/) > [A bifurcation of loyalties that requires religious to put canon law above civil law and moral law puts us in a situation where the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-d-chittister/a-bifurcation-of-loyalties-that-requires-religious-to-put-canon-law/) [Joan D. Chittister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-d-chittister/) > [One way to find food for thought is to use the fork in the road, the bifurcation that marks the place of emergence in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-irwin-thompson/one-way-to-find-food-for-thought-is-to-use-the-fork-in-the-road-the/) [William Irwin Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-irwin-thompson/) > [In a dynamical system, or a massively complex dynamical system such as we live in, when there is a moment of bifurcation, which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-abraham/in-a-dynamical-system-or-a-massively-complex-dynamical-system-such-as/) [Ralph Abraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-abraham/) > [One by one, these governments came undone, and were forced into IMF tutelage (and national illegitimacy) by the careening oil prices, the debt imbroglio,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-wallerstein/one-by-one-these-governments-came-undone-and-were-forced-into-imf/) [Immanuel Wallerstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-wallerstein/) > [I think it's worrisome that Barack Obama actually contributed to the bifurcation of our society. I don't think that he made nearly enough effort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-charen/i-think-it-s-worrisome-that-barack-obama-actually-contributed-to-the/) [Mona Charen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-charen/) > [We seem to be in the midst of a process of cascading bifurcations that may last some 50 more years. We can be sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-wallerstein/we-seem-to-be-in-the-midst-of-a-process-of-cascading-bifurcations/) [Immanuel Wallerstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-wallerstein/) > [When systems come to be far from points of equilibrium, they reach bifurcation points, wherein multiple, as opposed to unique, solutions, to instability become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-wallerstein/when-systems-come-to-be-far-from-points-of-equilibrium-they-reach/) [Immanuel Wallerstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-wallerstein/) > [There was no place at all for me in my father's military world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-swanson/there-was-no-place-at-all-for-me-in-my-father-s-military-world/) [Gloria Swanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-swanson/) > [The most powerful military in the world cannot invade, kill or capture a network or destroy every loose weapon on the planet. The best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/the-most-powerful-military-in-the-world-cannot-invade-kill-or-capture/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [Peace through strength works. We've got the greatest military in the world. I want them to dominate any potential conflict.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-jindal/peace-through-strength-works-we-ve-got-the-greatest-military-in-the/) [Bobby Jindal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-jindal/) > [We have the largest economy and the strongest military in the world. Our core values of freedom and opportunity are ascendant around the globe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-lieberman/we-have-the-largest-economy-and-the-strongest-military-in-the-world/) [Joe Lieberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-lieberman/) > [The military world is characterized by the absence of freedom - in other words, a rigorous discipline-enforced inactivity, ignorance, cruelty, debauchery and drunkenness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/the-military-world-is-characterized-by-the-absence-of-freedom-in/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [We have the best military in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-guilfoyle/we-have-the-best-military-in-the-world/) [Kimberly Guilfoyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-guilfoyle/) > [Thanks to all members of the military around the world for giving me the ultimate motivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalya-neidhart/thanks-to-all-members-of-the-military-around-the-world-for-giving-me/) [Natalya Neidhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalya-neidhart/) ## More by Stephen Colbert > [Don't be bitter. Everybody suffers. If you can accept your suffering then you will understand other people better. Be grateful for pain. Love life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/don-t-be-bitter-everybody-suffers-if-you-can-accept-your-suffering/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/cynicism-masquerades-as-wisdom-but-it-is-the-farthest-thing-from-it/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [We all deserve credit for this new surveillance state that we live in because we the people voted for the Patriot Act. Democrats and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/we-all-deserve-credit-for-this-new-surveillance-state-that-we-live-in/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I've long been against illegal aliens, partly because they distract us from an even bigger threat: real aliens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-ve-long-been-against-illegal-aliens-partly-because-they-distract-us/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Believe in me, cause I don't believe in anything, and I wanna be someone to believe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/believe-in-me-cause-i-don-t-believe-in-anything-and-i-wanna-be/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [It's August, which means Congress is on recess and Mitch McConnell has shimmied back into the ocean to seek a mate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/it-s-august-which-means-congress-is-on-recess-and-mitch-mcconnell-has/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Try to love others and serve others and hopefully find those who love and serve you in return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/try-to-love-others-and-serve-others-and-hopefully-find-those-who-love/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Thirty seconds is the exact amount of time Americans can tolerate something they don't understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/thirty-seconds-is-the-exact-amount-of-time-americans-can-tolerate/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I used to make up stuff in my bio all the time, that I used to be a professional ice-skater and stuff like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-used-to-make-up-stuff-in-my-bio-all-the-time-that-i-used-to-be-a/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I live by syllogisms: God is love. Love is blind. Stevie Wonder is blind. Therefore, Stevie Wonder is God. I don't know what I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-live-by-syllogisms-god-is-love-love-is-blind-stevie-wonder-is-blind/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [“Unlike Paul Newman, who seems to think that salad dressing is the cure-all for America's ills, I'm a man of action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/unlike-paul-newman-who-seems-to-think-that-salad-dressing-is-the-cure/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Now, for my younger viewers out there, a book is something we used to have before the internet. It’s sort of a blog for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/now-for-my-younger-viewers-out-there-a-book-is-something-we-used-to/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Jesus forgives sinners, not criminals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/jesus-forgives-sinners-not-criminals/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Used books are the sluts of the literary world. Passed around from person to person, spreading their pages for anyone, getting cheaper and cheaper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/used-books-are-the-sluts-of-the-literary-world-passed-around-from/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [“Divorce is a marital welfare. It's just couples asking society to bail them out because they didn't do enough research before they got married.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/divorce-is-a-marital-welfare-it-s-just-couples-asking-society-to-bail/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) [Explore all 514 Stephen Colbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is a residual sense for me, having grown up in the early '70s, that I did not know I had, which was a sense that the military are different than I. Because there was such a divide between the military world - and there still is, because there's no draft - and the civilian world is one of the rotten harvests of the Vietnam War, was this sort of bifurcation of America in that way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Colbert" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having-grown-up-in-the-early-70s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having-grown-up-in-the-early-70s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41c/stephen-colbert-503_america_there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having_2839507.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is a residual sense for me, having grown up in the early '70s, that I did not know I had, which was a…” — Stephen Colbert", "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": "Stephen Colbert", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There is a residual sense for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having-grown-up-in-the-early-70s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/there-is-a-residual-sense-for-me-having-grown-up-in-the-early-70s/#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 } } ] } ```