I wonder how the foreign policies of the United States would look if we wiped out the national boundaries of the world, at least in our minds, and thought of all children everywhere as our own.
Howard ZinnRead
Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that intervention has been welcomed by the captains of finance and industry. They had no quarrel with "big government" when it served their needs.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the inherent connection between government intervention and market economics, challenging the idea of a purely free market.
Howard Zinn's quote critiques the notion of a completely free market by asserting that government intervention has always played a role in shaping economic outcomes. It suggests that those in power within finance and industry have often supported government actions that benefit them, highlighting a contradiction in the belief that markets can operate in isolation from governmental influence.
Themes
Free MarketGovernment InterventionEconomyFinancial PowerHistorical Truth
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about economic policies, one could use this quote to highlight the persistent role of government in market dynamics.
More from Howard Zinn
All quotes →History can come in handy. If you were born yesterday, with no knowledge of the past, you might easily accept whatever the government tells you. But knowing a bit of history--while it would not absolutely prove the government was lying in a given instance--might make you skeptical, lead you to ask questions, make it more likely that you would find out the truth.
Howard ZinnRead
Objectivity is impossible and it is also undesirable. That is, if it were possible it would be undesirable, because if you have any kind of a social aim, if you think history should serve society in some way; should serve the progress of the human race; should serve justice in some way, then it requires that you make your selection on the basis of what you think will advance causes of humanity.
Howard ZinnRead
The historian's distortion is more than technical, it is ideological; it is released into a world of contending interest, where any chosen emphasis supports some kind of interest, whether economic or political or racial, or national or sexual.
Howard ZinnRead
Americans have been taught that their nation is civilized and humane. But, too often, U.S. actions have been uncivilized and inhumane.
Howard ZinnRead
The challenge remains. On the other side are formidable forces: money, political power, the major media. On our side are the people of the world and a power greater than money or weapons: the truth.
Howard ZinnRead
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