As frightening as this may sound, what you see in the books is the way I see the world. And so far I haven't seen anything, either in Florida or elsewhere, to dissuade me from it.
Carl HiaasenRead
Obviously you have to make a profit to put out a newspaper. I'm not an idiot. But when the margins are in excess of 25 per cent you're talking about greed.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Profit is necessary for business, but excessive profits can indicate greed.
In this quote, Carl Hiaasen highlights the balance that must exist between making a profit and recognizing when profitability becomes greed. He suggests that while operating a business, such as a newspaper, requires financial viability, substantial profit margins can lead to unethical practices driven by greed rather than a commitment to quality information and service.
Themes
ProfitGreedBusinessEthicsJournalism
In practice
Example use cases
During a business ethics seminar to discuss corporate responsibility.
More from Carl Hiaasen
All quotes →To me, the newspaper business was a way to learn about life and how things worked in the real world and how people spoke. You learn all the skills - you learn to listen, you learn to take notes - everything you use later as a novelist was valuable training in the newspaper world. But I always wanted to write novels.
Carl HiaasenRead
Lots of people can write a good first page but to sustain it, that's my litmus test. If I flip to the middle of the book and there's a piece of dialogue that's just outstanding, or a description, then I'll flip back to the first page and start it.
Carl HiaasenRead
When you're given a newspaper column, you're not being paid to sit on a fence and scratch your chin and say 'On the one hand this' and 'On the other hand that.' You're getting paid for your opinion.
Carl HiaasenRead
The greatest sin for a writer is to be boring.
Carl HiaasenRead
The Florida in my novels is not as seedy as the real Florida. It's hard to stay ahead of the curve. Every time I write a scene that I think is the sickest thing I have ever dreamed up, it is surpassed by something that happens in real life.
Carl HiaasenRead
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