The people who cast the votes don't decide an election, the people who count the votes do.
Joseph StalinRead
If any foreign minister begins to defend to the death a 'peace conference,' you can be sure his government has already placed its orders for new battleships and airplanes.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the irony of diplomatic talks often being a cover for military preparations.
Stalin's quote suggests that when a government is overtly committed to peaceful negotiations, it may actually be preparing for war. The statement reflects a cynical view of political maneuvers, indicating that behind the facade of diplomacy often lies a readiness for conflict, revealing deeper truths about power dynamics in international relations.
Themes
DiplomacyWarPeacePoliticsIrony
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion on the nature of international relations at a political science seminar.
More from Joseph Stalin
All quotes βI consider it completely unimportant who in the party will vote, or how; but what is extraordinarily important is this - who will count the votes, and how.
Joseph StalinRead
The death of one man is a tragedy. The death of millions is a statistic.
Joseph StalinRead
Print is the sharpest and the strongest weapon of our party.
Joseph StalinRead
You cannot make a revolution with silk gloves.
Joseph StalinRead
It takes a brave man to be a coward in the Red Army.
Joseph StalinRead
Similar quotes
We have tried to define precisely what it means to be a force for good - always do the right, ethical thing. Ultimately, 'Don't be evil' seems the easiest way to summarize it.
Sergey BrinRead
Put light against light - you have nothing. Put dark against dark - you have nothing. It's the contrast of light and dark that each give the other one meaning.
Bob RossRead
What is true stillness? Stillness in movement.
Bruce LeeRead
I do not believe that God has created us under this dire necessity to toil, like beasts, to sustain life. I believe it is his will that we should hold absolute mastery over time, so as to devote it mainly to intellectual and moral improvement, domestic enjoyment, and social intercourse.
William Lloyd GarrisonRead
Religious faith depends on a host of social, psychological and emotional factors that have little or nothing to do with probabilities, evidence and logic.
Michael ShermerRead
To a longer and worse life, a shorter and better is by all means to be preferred.
EpictetusRead