A Quote by Harold Pinter
Many Americans, we know, are horrified by the posture of their government but seem to be helpless.
Related Quotes
Professor Galbraith is horrified by the number of Americans who have bought cars with tail fins on them, and I am horrified by the number of Americans who take seriously the proposals of Mr. Galbraith.
The Founding Fathers realized that "the power to tax is the power to destroy," which is why they did not give the Federal government the power to impose an income tax. Needless to say, the Founders would be horrified to know that Americans today give more than a third of their income to the Federal government.
Americans did not acquire their fear neurosis as the result of a traumatic experience - war devasting their country, pestilence sweeping the land, famine wiping out helpless millions. Americans had to be taught to hate and fear an unseen enemy. The teachers were men in official positions, in government, men whom Americans normally trust without question.
Look at the posture of prayer. It is the posture of slavery, of bowing before your master. We are a proudly rebellious country. We kicked out the master. Now here comes the government telling us to humbly bow again.
The government is keeping detailed records on how many Americans have carports. How many Americans have mold in their bathroom.
It is often said that the Japanese are extremely clean at home, or inside any house or office, but dirty and untidy outside. 'Go and look at a railway station,' I was told, 'and you'll be horrified.' I went and was horrified; horrified by the cleanliness of the place.
A lot of Muslims, a lot of Arab Americans, Muslim Americans were very attracted to the Republican Party - conservative social values and so on. But Trump has horrified them.
The thing that I think is so depressing, fundamentally, about Donald Trump, is that he doesn't appreciate what's happening right now. He doesn't seem to think it's an honor. He doesn't seem to understand why we're actually super blessed to have the government we have. I also don't ever get the sense that he loves Americans.
If you think of yourselves as helpless and ineffectual, it is certain that you will create a despotic government to be your master. The wise despot, therefore, maintains among his subjects a popular sense that they are helpless and ineffectual.
To be honest, I know that a lot of Asian parents are secretly shocked and horrified by many aspects of Western parenting.
It's my goal to show the world that Americans know how to help Americans without expecting the government to come riding in on a white horse and save the day.
Too many Americans mistrust their government. And unnecessary government secrecy feeds this mistrust.
I think, generally, the folks from mainland China have more positive feelings about the government here in many cases than the average Americans feel about their government.
One of the things that has changed my life - and this comes from someone who was highly self-critical and a type-A personality - is meditating. The simple act of making my brain shut off for 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes at night may not seem like much, but what ends up happening, besides creating space in your day, is your awake posture begins to replicate your meditative posture.
What is good about the United States is the sense that you can disagree with the government and not be seen as unpatriotic, although many in the government will try to make you seem unpatriotic.
We Americans think we enjoy self-government. We have all the trappings of self-government, like elections. But in reality, we have gradually lost many of our rights to govern ourselves. We have the form of self-government, but only some of the substance. We are, in a sense, a nation run by a handful of judges who often enforce, not the law, but their personal opinions.
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