Politics hates a vacuum. If it isn't filled with hope, someone will fill it with fear.
Naomi KleinRead
If this really is true, then greed really isn't good, after all. It really isn't the way to maximize the best possible outcome. We really do need to come together and act collectively. Government isn't always the problem. It's sometimes the solution. And, so their whole intellectual scaffolding collapses. So, they'd rather deny the science.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote critiques greed and advocates for collective action as a solution.
Naomi Klein highlights the flaws in the belief that greed leads to optimal outcomes, arguing instead that working together as a society can bring about better results. She suggests that dismissing the role of government ignores its potential as a force for good and that a reliance on individualism undermines the pursuit of effective solutions to societal issues.
Themes
GreedCollective ActionGovernmentSocietySolution
In practice
Example use cases
During a community meeting about resource management, this quote can be cited to highlight the need for cooperative solutions.
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Everybody that's trying to get anything progressive done in this country knows that the biggest barrier is getting money out of politics.
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I think I would say that there is absolutely no way to reconcile an austerity agenda with climate action. Our political class needs to understand that the fight against austerity and the fight for climate action are the same fight.
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I think the fossil fuel industry is genuinely freaked out by the combination of the price collapse, the divestment movement, and that fact that renewable energy is getting so cheap so fast.
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