QuoteProject
Back in the thirties we were told we must collectivize the nation because the people were so poor. Now we are told we must collectivize the nation because the people are so rich.
William F. Buckley, Jr.
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote critiques the shifting justifications for collectivism based on economic conditions, revealing a paradox in political rhetoric.

William F. Buckley, Jr.'s quote highlights the irony in the political discourse surrounding collectivism, where the necessity for collective action is argued differently based on societal wealth. In the 1930s, the call for collectivization stemmed from economic hardship, but in contemporary times, it is suggested that such measures are needed due to the affluence of the people, suggesting that the motivations for collectivization are less about addressing poverty and more about exerting control regardless of the economic context.

Themes

CollectivismPoliticsEconomicsIronyControl

In practice

Example use cases

In a debate about government intervention in the economy, this quote can illustrate the complexities and contradictions in policy rationale.

More from William F. Buckley, Jr.

A Conservative is a fellow who is standing athwart history yelling 'Stop!'
William F. Buckley, Jr.Read
Even if one takes every reefer madness allegation of the prohibitionists at face value, marijuana prohibition has done far more harm to far more people than marijuana ever could.
William F. Buckley, Jr.Read
I'd rather entrust the government of the United States to the first 400 people listed in the Boston telephone directory than to the faculty of Harvard University.
William F. Buckley, Jr.Read
One must bear in mind that the expansion of federal activity is a form of eating for politicians.
William F. Buckley, Jr.Read
I would like to take you seriously, but to do so would affront your intelligence.
William F. Buckley, Jr.Read
You cannot paint the Mona Lisa by assigning one dab each to a thousand painters.
William F. Buckley, Jr.Read

Similar quotes

All human sin seems so much worse in its consequences than in its intentions.
Reinhold NiebuhrRead
How can we be “free” as conscious agents if everything that we consciously intend is caused by events in our brain that we do not intend and of which we are entirely unaware? We can’t.
Sam HarrisRead
Fortunately analysis is not the only way to resolve inner conflicts. Life itself still remains a very effective therapist.
Karen HorneyRead
Being young, working class, and black, everything you do is policed. If someone hits you and you hit back, you are aggressive. If you cry, you are weak. You are kind of always pretending to be something.
Daniel KaluuyaRead
Human affairs inspire in noble hearts only two feelings-admiration or pity.
Anatole FranceRead
If it weren't for the message of mercy and pity in Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, I wouldn't want to be a human being. I would just as soon be a rattlesnake.
Kurt VonnegutRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.