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Witty One-Liners Quote by J. Carter Brown

"There are more ways of skinning a cat than rubbing its fur the wrong way"

About this Quote

A proverb strolls in wearing a familiar coat, then snaps it inside out. "There are more ways of skinning a cat" is already a dark little idiom about multiple solutions; J. Carter Brown splices on "than rubbing its fur the wrong way", swapping craftiness for social intelligence. The violence is still there in the metaphor, but the punchline redirects it: your options multiply the moment you stop antagonizing the thing you want to handle. It is pragmatism disguised as a joke about manners.

The line works because it smuggles a workplace lesson into a folksy one-liner. "Rubbing its fur the wrong way" is not just irritating someone; it's the kind of needless friction that turns a simple task into a power struggle. Brown's twist implies that many people pride themselves on "directness" when they're really just choosing the least effective method. The smartest route is often not the cleverest technique but the least stupid form of contact.

Contextually, Brown is likely playing with the language of persuasion: politics, boards, institutions, even family dynamics. The subtext is almost managerial: stop making enemies out of your materials. It's also a warning about performative contrarianism, the habit of pushing against grain just to feel decisive. By chaining two idioms, Brown turns a grim, old saying into a critique of self-sabotage. The wit lands because it flatters the listener's agency while quietly indicting their temperament.

Quote Details

TopicWitty One-Liners
SourceHelp us find the source
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Citation Formats

APA Style (7th ed.)
Brown, J. Carter. (2026, January 16). There are more ways of skinning a cat than rubbing its fur the wrong way. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/there-are-more-ways-of-skinning-a-cat-than-82941/

Chicago Style
Brown, J. Carter. "There are more ways of skinning a cat than rubbing its fur the wrong way." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/there-are-more-ways-of-skinning-a-cat-than-82941/.

MLA Style (9th ed.)
"There are more ways of skinning a cat than rubbing its fur the wrong way." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/there-are-more-ways-of-skinning-a-cat-than-82941/. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.

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About the Author

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J. Carter Brown (1934 - 2002) was a notable figure from USA.

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