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That's the standard technique of privatization: defund, make sure things don't work, people get angry, you hand it over to private capital.
Noam Chomsky
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote critiques the process of privatization, highlighting the method used to transition public services to private ownership.

Noam Chomsky's quote explains a strategic approach to privatization wherein a public service is deliberately underfunded and neglected to incite frustration among the public. This anger then paves the way for privatization, allowing private entities to take over services that were once publicly managed, often with the promise of efficiency or better management, but usually at the cost of accessibility and quality for ordinary people.

Themes

PrivatizationPublic ServicesDefundingCapitalismNoam Chomsky

In practice

Example use cases

In a political debate about the future of public services, one might quote Chomsky to highlight the dangers of privatization.

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