--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is not in all America a more…" description: "\"There is not in all America a more dangerous trait than the deification of mere smartness unaccompanied by any sense of moral responsibility.\" — Theodo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/theodore-roosevelt-218_america_there-is-not-in-all-america-a-more-dange_864650.jpg" --- # There is not in all America a more dangerous trait than… ![“There is not in all America a more dangerous trait than the deification of mere smartness unaccompanied by any sense of moral responsibility.” quote by Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/theodore-roosevelt-218_america_there-is-not-in-all-america-a-more-dange_864650.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/theodore-roosevelt-218_america_there-is-not-in-all-america-a-more-dange_864650.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6c/theodore-roosevelt-218_america_there-is-not-in-all-america-a-more-dange_864650.jpg) > “There is not in all America a more dangerous trait than the deification of mere smartness unaccompanied by any sense of moral responsibility.” [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Blind intellectualism without moral grounding is perilous for society. **In simple terms:** Smartness alone is dangerous. Key Takeaway Cultivate ethics with intellect. Themes responsibility intelligence ethics Mood serious concerned Type political philosophical When to use this quote - education - policy making - technology development Key Concepts moral philosophy leadership Questions to Reflect On - How to balance knowledge and morality? - What safeguards exist? A Different Perspective Intelligence can be misused despite good intent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Moral responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-responsibility/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) ## Related quotes > [If there is one tendency of the day which more than any other is unhealthy and undesirable, it is the tendency to deify mere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/if-there-is-one-tendency-of-the-day-which-more-than-any-other-is/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [If I'm in America, I'm safe. I feel very safe. But if I step outside of America, it will be a very dangerous situation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enes-kanter/if-i-m-in-america-i-m-safe-i-feel-very-safe-but-if-i-step-outside-of/) [Enes Kanter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enes-kanter/) > [America's most dangerous export was, is and always will be our fast-food outlets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/america-s-most-dangerous-export-was-is-and-always-will-be-our-fast/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [The irresponsible rhetoric of Barack Obama, who has used the pulpit of the presidency to divide us by race and color, has made America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-irresponsible-rhetoric-of-barack-obama-who-has-used-the-pulpit-of/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [We finally need to pass a prohibition on anyone who's on the terrorist watch list from being able to buy a gun in America.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-finally-need-to-pass-a-prohibition-on-anyone-who-s-on-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [It's one thing to break stuff and damage people's possessions, but when you start aiming at the ideology of America, that's dangerous comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-mckay/it-s-one-thing-to-break-stuff-and-damage-people-s-possessions-but/) [Adam McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-mckay/) > [America's most dangerous diseases have developed an immunity to politics. We suffer not from a failure of political organization or power, but a failure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-thomas/america-s-most-dangerous-diseases-have-developed-an-immunity-to/) [Cal Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-thomas/) > [To be an enemy of America can be dangerous, but to be a friend is fatal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/to-be-an-enemy-of-america-can-be-dangerous-but-to-be-a-friend-is-fatal/) [Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/) > [I had worked on the markets with my father before going to university, so I possessed an apparent street-smartness, had access to a colourful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/i-had-worked-on-the-markets-with-my-father-before-going-to-university/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) > [Some of Mr. Gregory's poems have merely appeared in The New Yorker ; others are New Yorker poems: the inclusive topicality, the informed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-jarrell/some-of-mr-gregory-s-poems-have-merely-appeared-in-the-new-yorker/) [Randall Jarrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-jarrell/) > [Good people eat all their veggies and all the fruits, but they still have good grades. I call this, Freakonomics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-pazandak/good-people-eat-all-their-veggies-and-all-the-fruits-but-they-still/) Adam Pazandak > [The Australian accent is sort of like going down a step in smartness, you could say, because you guys pronounce things as they're spelled.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/callan-mcauliffe/the-australian-accent-is-sort-of-like-going-down-a-step-in-smartness/) [Callan McAuliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/callan-mcauliffe/) > [Whenever you wash dishes, cook, or clean, if you make no sound, this is smartness itself. A person who enters a house and makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kushi/whenever-you-wash-dishes-cook-or-clean-if-you-make-no-sound-this-is/) [Michio Kushi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kushi/) > [“Rather, your smartness and your effectiveness depend on how well you capitalize on your strongest connections.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-o-clifton/rather-your-smartness-and-your-effectiveness-depend-on-how-well-you/) [Donald O. Clifton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-o-clifton/) > [“If you think that you're so smart and holy, that means you haven't yet realized that a part of what we experience today...is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/if-you-think-that-you-re-so-smart-and-holy-that-means-you-haven-t-yet/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) ## More by Theodore Roosevelt > [No people is wholly civilized where a distinction is drawn between stealing an office and stealing a purse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/no-people-is-wholly-civilized-where-a-distinction-is-drawn-between/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [There can be no effective control of corporations while their political activity remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/there-can-be-no-effective-control-of-corporations-while-their/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Get action. Seize the moment. Man was never intended to become an oyster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/get-action-seize-the-moment-man-was-never-intended-to-become-an-oyster/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Argument weak; speak loudly!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/argument-weak-speak-loudly/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Let the watchwords of all our people be the old familiar watchwords of honesty, decency, fair-dealing, and commonsense."... "We must treat each man on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/let-the-watchwords-of-all-our-people-be-the-old-familiar-watchwords/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [The forces that tend for evil are great and terrible, but the forces of truth and love and courage and honesty and generosity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/the-forces-that-tend-for-evil-are-great-and-terrible-but-the-forces/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Every reform movement has a lunatic fringe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/every-reform-movement-has-a-lunatic-fringe/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Conservation and rural-life policies are really two sides of the same policy; and down at the bottom this policy rests upon the fundamental law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/conservation-and-rural-life-policies-are-really-two-sides-of-the-same/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [It is a great mistake to think that the extremist is a better man than the moderate. Usually the difference is not that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/it-is-a-great-mistake-to-think-that-the-extremist-is-a-better-man/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [I am a strong individualist by personal habit, inheritance, and conviction; but it is a mere matter of common sense to recognize that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/i-am-a-strong-individualist-by-personal-habit-inheritance-and/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Alone of human beings the good and wise mother stands on a plane of equal honor with the bravest soldier; for she has gladly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/alone-of-human-beings-the-good-and-wise-mother-stands-on-a-plane-of/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [The greatest privilege and greatest duty for any man is to be happily married, and no other form of success or service, for either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/the-greatest-privilege-and-greatest-duty-for-any-man-is-to-be-happily/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [For unflagging interest and enjoyment, a household of children, if things go reasonably well, certainly all other forms of success and achievement lose their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/for-unflagging-interest-and-enjoyment-a-household-of-children-if/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [There can be no effective control of corporations while their political activity remains. To put an end to it will be neither a short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/there-can-be-no-effective-control-of-corporations-while-their-2/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [If elected, I shall see to it that every man has a square deal, no less and no more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/if-elected-i-shall-see-to-it-that-every-man-has-a-square-deal-no-less/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) [Explore all 876 Theodore Roosevelt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) ## 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. 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