Quote: "You don't have the resources to childproof the entire country." George Friedman, chairman of Stratfor, a consulting firm based in Austin, Texas, in USA Today
Figure of Speech: reductio ad absurdum, taking an argument to its extreme
To ridicule the notion that the nation can prepare for every disaster, Friedman uses reductio ad absurdum, which in Latin literally means "reducing to absurdity." This figure of thought pursues an opponent's argument to an illogical conclusion.
Snappy Answer: "No, but let's see if we can pass disaster pre-school."
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