Question

Fiddle While Rome Burns do nothing or busy yourself with unimportant matters instead of taking action in an urgent situation

Accepted Answer

The governor fiddled while Rome burned, doing nothing about crime, poverty, and pollution. There's a famous legend that in a.d. 64 the emperor Nero stood on a high tower and played his lyre ("fiddle") while he watched Rome burn. The story may not be true, but it yielded this idiom that describes the behavior of anyone who, in a crisis, doesn't take action right away.

Idiom	Fiddle While Rome Burns
Example	The governor fiddled while Rome burned, doing nothing about crime, poverty, and pollution.
Meaning	do nothing or busy yourself with unimportant matters instead of taking action in an urgent situation
Origin	There's a famous legend that in a.d. 64 the emperor Nero stood on a high tower and played his lyre ("fiddle") while he watched Rome burn. The story may not be true, but it yielded this idiom that describes the behavior of anyone who, in a crisis, doesn't take action right away.

Rome Action Fiddle Burns Governor Fiddled Burned Crime