--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What is politics, after all, but the…" description: "\"“What is politics, after all, but the compulsion to preside over property and make other peoples' decisions for them? Liberty, the very opposite of own..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e3/tom-robbins-169_happy-people_what-is-politics-after-all-but-the-compu_1279252.jpg" --- # What is politics, after all, but the compulsion to preside… ![“What is politics, after all, but the compulsion to preside over property and make other peoples' decisions for them? Liberty, the very opposite of ownership and control, cannot, then, result from political action, either at the polls or the barricades, but rather evolves out of attitude. If it…” quote by Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e3/tom-robbins-169_happy-people_what-is-politics-after-all-but-the-compu_1279252.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e3/tom-robbins-169_happy-people_what-is-politics-after-all-but-the-compu_1279252.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e3/tom-robbins-169_happy-people_what-is-politics-after-all-but-the-compu_1279252.jpg) > ““What is politics, after all, but the compulsion to preside over property and make other peoples' decisions for them? Liberty, the very opposite of ownership and control, cannot, then, result from political action, either at the polls or the barricades, but rather evolves out of attitude. If it results from anything, it may be levity. If civilization is ever going to be anything but a grandiose pratfall, anything more than a can of deodorizer in the sh\*thouse of existence, the people are going to have to concern themselves with magic and poetry. Reality is subjective, and there's an unenlightened tendency in this culture to regard something as 'important' only if it's sober and severe. Your Cheerful Dumb are not so much happy as lobotomized. But your Gloomy Smart are just as ridiculous. When you're unhappy, you get to pay a lot of attention to yourself. And you get to take yourself oh so very seriously. Your truly happy people, which is to say, your people who truly LIKE themselves, they don't think about themselves very much. Your unhappy person resents it when you try to cheer him up, because that means he has to stop dwelling on himself and start paying attention to the universe. Unhappiness is the ultimate form of self-indulgence. Humanity has advanced, when it has advanced, not because it has been sober, responsible, and cautious, but because it has been playful, rebellious, and immature.”” [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Politics is about controlling property, but true liberty arises from attitude, playfulness, and poetry rather than formal structures. **In simple terms:** Liberty comes from mindset, not ownership. Key Takeaway Cultivate playful, poetic attitudes for freedom. Themes politics liberty attitude playfulness poetry Mood critical philosophical Type essay reflective When to use this quote - activism - artistic expression - personal growth - social critique Key Concepts control ownership subjectivity self‑indulgence Questions to Reflect On - Can playfulness reshape political engagement? - What role does poetry have in societal change? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on control can stifle freedom. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Happy people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-people/) [Paying Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paying-attention/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Truly happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truly-happy/) [Unhappy person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy-person/) ## Related quotes > [“Reality is subjective, and there’s an unenlightened tendency in this culture to regard something as ‘important’ only if ‘tis sober and severe. 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Seeley > [Good and happy people who believe in God are the greatest living arguments for God's existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/good-and-happy-people-who-believe-in-god-are-the-greatest-living/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) [Browse all 446 Happy people quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-people/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“What is politics, after all, but the compulsion to preside over property and make other peoples' decisions for them? Liberty, the very opposite of ownership and control, cannot, then, result from political action, either at the polls or the barricades, but rather evolves out of attitude. If it results from anything, it may be levity. If civilization is ever going to be anything but a grandiose pratfall, anything more than a can of deodorizer in the sh*thouse of existence, the people are going to have to concern themselves with magic and poetry. Reality is subjective, and there's an unenlightened tendency in this culture to regard something as 'important' only if it's sober and severe. Your Cheerful Dumb are not so much happy as lobotomized. But your Gloomy Smart are just as ridiculous. When you're unhappy, you get to pay a lot of attention to yourself. And you get to take yourself oh so very seriously. Your truly happy people, which is to say, your people who truly LIKE themselves, they don't think about themselves very much. Your unhappy person resents it when you try to cheer him up, because that means he has to stop dwelling on himself and start paying attention to the universe. Unhappiness is the ultimate form of self-indulgence. 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