Never in the history of human credit has so much been owed.
Margaret ThatcherRead
When will Labour learn that you cannot build Jerusalem in Brussels.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Margaret Thatcher asserts that one cannot achieve lofty ideals in a bureaucratic setting.
This quote by Margaret Thatcher emphasizes the tension between local aspirations and the constraints imposed by larger bureaucratic structures. The reference to 'building Jerusalem' symbolizes the pursuit of a grand vision or ideal, while 'Brussels' represents the European Union's regulatory environment, suggesting that such aspirations may be compromised or unfavorably altered in a complex political system.
Themes
PoliticsBureaucracyAspirationIdealismRegulation
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about the effectiveness of government policies, one might reference this quote to argue against the feasibility of ambitious projects in a bureaucratic context.
More from Margaret Thatcher
All quotes βThe battle for women's rights has been largely won.
Margaret ThatcherRead
Ought we not to ask the media to agree among themselves a voluntary code of conduct, under which they would not say or show anything which could assist the terrorists' morale or their cause while the hijack lasted.
Margaret ThatcherRead
Israel must never be expected to jeopardize her security: if she was ever foolish enough to do so, and then suffered for it, the backlash against both honest brokers and Palestinians would be immense - 'land for peace' must also bring peace.
Margaret ThatcherRead
If it's me against 48, I feel sorry for the 48.
Margaret ThatcherRead
Left-wing zealots have often been prepared to ride roughshod over due process and basic considerations of fairness when they think they can get away with it. For them the ends always seems to justify the means. That is precisely how their predecessors came to create the gulag.
Margaret ThatcherRead
Similar quotes
The U.S. should never get involved where we have no clear national interest. We should not intervene militarily in a country like Syria, where we canβt separate friend from foe and might end up arming the very people who hate us the most.
Rand PaulRead
It has been the political career of this man to begin with hypocrisy, proceed with arrogance, and finish with contempt
Thomas PaineRead
People talk about smart sanctions and crippling sanctions. I've never seen smart sanctions, and crippling sanctions cripple everyone, including innocent civilians, and make the government more popular.
Mohamed ElbaradeiRead
Laws are like sausages, it is better not to see them being made.
Otto Von BismarckRead
Elections are an enduring spectacle of free India, and have provided foreign journalists with the opportunity to remind the world that India remains the world's largest democracy.
Shashi TharoorRead
You might be tempted to think that China has a Streisand-effect problem, in which trying to censor an event creates even more publicity. But that assumes the Chinese government doesn't understand the Streisand effect, and that can't be right, because if one government understands attention dynamics online, it's China's.
Zeynep TufekciRead