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Mankind is supposed to have evolved in the treetops. but i have examined my sense of balance, the prehensility of my various appendages, and my attitude toward standing on anything higher than, say, political principles, and i have concluded that, personally, i evolved in the backseat of a car.
-P. J. O'Rourke
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Mankind Is Supposed To Have Evolved In

P. J. O'Rourke
Mankind is supposed to have evolved in the treetops. but i have examined my sense of balance, the prehensility of my various appendages, and my attitude toward standing on anything higher than, say, political principles, and i have concluded that, personally, i evolved in the backseat of a car.
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Quote Context & Analysis

O'Rourke masterfully deploys self-deprecating humor to satirize humanity's modern detachment from primal existence, rejecting arboreal agility for cushioned comfort. His "backseat of a car" evolution signifies a life of passive observation and intellectual high ground (political principles), fundamentally distinct from the physical struggles of our supposed ancestors.
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Attitude Car Political

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There's a lot of debate on this subject - about what kind of car handles best. some say a a front-engined car, some say a rear-engined car. i say a rented car. nothing handles better than a rented car. you can go faster, turn corners sharper, and put the transmission into reverse while going forward at a higher rate of speed in a rented car than in any other kind.
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My position is that the rate should align with the level of economic development. because it is always about a balance, a balance of interests, and it should reflect this balance. a balance between those who sell something across the border and those who benefit from a low rate, as well as a balance between the interests of those who buy, who need the rate to be higher. a balance between national producers, for example, agricultural producers who are interested in it.
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I pulled into the grand union parking lot and drove to the end of the mall where the bank was located. i parked at a safe distance from other cars, exited the bmw, and set the alarm. you want me to stay with the car in case someone's riding around with a bomb in his backseat looking for a place to put it?" lula asked. not necessary. ranger says the car has sensors." ranger give you a car with bomb sensors? the head of the cia don't even have a car with bomb sensors. i hear they give him a stick with a mirror on the end of it.
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A sparrow lay dead on the backseat. she had found her way through a hole in the windscreen, tempted by some seat-sponge for her nest. she never found her way out. no one noticed her panicked car-window appeals. she died on the backseat, with her legs in the air. like a joke.
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I do not allow myself to suppose that either the convention or the league, have concluded to decide that i am either the greatest or the best man in america, but rather they have concluded it is not best to swap horses while crossing the river, and have further concluded that i am not so poor a horse that they might not make a botch of it in trying to swap.
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