--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The federal government has sponsored…" description: "\"The federal government has sponsored research that has produced a tomato that is perfect in every respect, except that you can't eat it. We should make..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e5/andy-rooney-1253_disease_the-federal-government-has-sponsored-res_2675848.png" --- # The federal government has sponsored research that has… ![“The federal government has sponsored research that has produced a tomato that is perfect in every respect, except that you can't eat it. We should make every effort to make sure this disease, often referred to as 'progress', doesn't spread.” quote by Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e5/andy-rooney-1253_disease_the-federal-government-has-sponsored-res_2675848.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e5/andy-rooney-1253_disease_the-federal-government-has-sponsored-res_2675848.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e5/andy-rooney-1253_disease_the-federal-government-has-sponsored-res_2675848.png) > “The federal government has sponsored research that has produced a tomato that is perfect in every respect, except that you can't eat it. We should make every effort to make sure this disease, often referred to as 'progress', doesn't spread.” [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A supposedly perfect creation can have a fatal flaw, illustrating that progress can bring new problems. **In simple terms:** Progress may create new issues. Key Takeaway Critically assess innovations before adoption. Themes technology progress unintended consequences Mood skeptical thoughtful Type media commentary When to use this quote - product launches - policy making - scientific research - public health Key Concepts innovation critique risk assessment ethical design Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards can prevent harmful side effects? - How do we balance innovation with caution? A Different Perspective Blind optimism can overlook risks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Disease](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disease/) [Effort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effort/) [Federal government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/federal-government/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) ## Related quotes > [In Spain, we mainly use red plum tomatoes, but it is always fun to experiment. Try using a mix of colors or substitute green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-spain-we-mainly-use-red-plum-tomatoes-but-it-is-always-fun-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [His eyes were rolling in their sockets, and his face had taken on the colour and expression of a devout tomato. I could see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-2/his-eyes-were-rolling-in-their-sockets-and-his-face-had-taken-on-the/) [P. G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-2/) > [“I don't know how long I spent wandering about the supermarket creating meals in my mind. Hot roast chicken and mayonnaise sandwiches. Pizzas on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-tunnicliffe/i-don-t-know-how-long-i-spent-wandering-about-the-supermarket/) [Hannah Tunnicliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-tunnicliffe/) > [He says I'm beautiful as a red tomato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-duprau/he-says-i-m-beautiful-as-a-red-tomato/) [Jeanne DuPrau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-duprau/) > [“Ever since, two summers ago, Joe Marino had begun to come into her bed, a preposterous fecundity had overtaken the staked plans, out in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/ever-since-two-summers-ago-joe-marino-had-begun-to-come-into-her-bed/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The time will come when this luscious golden tomato, rich in nutrition, a delight to the eye, a joy to the palate whether fried,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-johnson/the-time-will-come-when-this-luscious-golden-tomato-rich-in-nutrition/) [Robert Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-johnson/) > [“The raw tomato, devoured in the garden when freshly picked, is a horn of abundance of simple sensations, a radiating rush in one's mouth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-barbery/the-raw-tomato-devoured-in-the-garden-when-freshly-picked-is-a-horn/) [Muriel Barbery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-barbery/) > [“Her smile was somehow a little too bright, but I watched as she showed me how she had scored the puff pastry and brushed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-tunnicliffe/her-smile-was-somehow-a-little-too-bright-but-i-watched-as-she-showed/) [Hannah Tunnicliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-tunnicliffe/) > [Many of the things the slow food people honor were innovations within historical times. Somebody had to be the first European to eat a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/many-of-the-things-the-slow-food-people-honor-were-innovations-within/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [Grilled cheese and tomato soup is the ultimate comfort meal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-garten/grilled-cheese-and-tomato-soup-is-the-ultimate-comfort-meal/) [Ina Garten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-garten/) > [Don't give me no rotten tomato, 'cause all I ever wanted was your sweet potato.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/don-t-give-me-no-rotten-tomato-cause-all-i-ever-wanted-was-your-sweet/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [When I eat a tomato I look at it the way anyone else would. But when I paint a tomato, then I see it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-matisse/when-i-eat-a-tomato-i-look-at-it-the-way-anyone-else-would-but-when-i/) [Henri Matisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-matisse/) > [Tomato and lettuce-especially lettuce-is an abomination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mimi-sheraton/tomato-and-lettuce-especially-lettuce-is-an-abomination/) [Mimi Sheraton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mimi-sheraton/) > [If you don't like tomato soup, you don't buy tomato soup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-parker/if-you-don-t-like-tomato-soup-you-don-t-buy-tomato-soup/) [Kathleen Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-parker/) > [“According to analyses conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 100 grams of fresh tomato today has 30 percent less vitamin C, 30 percent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-estabrook/according-to-analyses-conducted-by-the-u-s-department-of-agriculture/) Barry Estabrook ## More by Andy Rooney > [I like Valentine's Day. The trouble is the florists and the candy-makers and the card people are all advertising so much, you don't dare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/i-like-valentine-s-day-the-trouble-is-the-florists-and-the-candy/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [Almost all of us have an elevator or two in our lives somewhere. We wait for them, we ride on them. We're annoyed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/almost-all-of-us-have-an-elevator-or-two-in-our-lives-somewhere-we/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [Last night we had three small zucchini for dinner that were grown within fifty feet of our back door. I estimate they cost somewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/last-night-we-had-three-small-zucchini-for-dinner-that-were-grown/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [Sooner or later the world will have to return to the good old days when we fought wars and killed people the old-fashioned way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/sooner-or-later-the-world-will-have-to-return-to-the-good-old-days/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [I've learned that no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/i-ve-learned-that-no-matter-how-serious-your-life-requires-you-to-be/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [Unfortunately, propaganda works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/unfortunately-propaganda-works/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [You're almost always better off keeping your mouth shut, but don't let that stop you from popping off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/you-re-almost-always-better-off-keeping-your-mouth-shut-but-don-t-let/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [The fastest thing computers do is go obsolete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/the-fastest-thing-computers-do-is-go-obsolete/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [Every one starts out being an atheist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/every-one-starts-out-being-an-atheist/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [If you don't enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/if-you-don-t-enjoy-getting-up-and-working-and-finishing-your-work-and/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [As an old reporter, we have a few secrets, and the first thing is we try the phone book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/as-an-old-reporter-we-have-a-few-secrets-and-the-first-thing-is-we/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [I've learned... That it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/i-ve-learned-that-it-s-those-small-daily-happenings-that-make-life-so/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [... all of us talk faster than we listen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/all-of-us-talk-faster-than-we-listen/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [You can't be a good writer without being a good thinker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/you-can-t-be-a-good-writer-without-being-a-good-thinker/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [A great many people do not have the right to their own opinion because they don't know what they are talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/a-great-many-people-do-not-have-the-right-to-their-own-opinion/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) [Explore all 264 Andy Rooney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) ## More Disease quotes > [Women still, when they have breast cancer, go to work; they still lead their lives. They have to. I just did what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-potter/women-still-when-they-have-breast-cancer-go-to-work-they-still-lead/) [Monica Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-potter/) > [The strains and stresses suffered by the individual in society are grounded in the normal functioning of that society (and of the individual!) rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-strains-and-stresses-suffered-by-the-individual-in-society-are/) [Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [If japa is maintained, no useless talk during work will be possible. The mind will always remain peaceful. Modern day diseases are mostly psychosomatic.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/if-japa-is-maintained-no-useless-talk-during-work-will-be-possible/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [The doctor who diagnosed me with ALS, or motor neuron disease, told me that it would kill me in two or three years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/the-doctor-who-diagnosed-me-with-als-or-motor-neuron-disease-told-me/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“As a special branch of general philosophy, pathogenesis had never been explored. In my opinion it had never been approached in a strictly scientific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-cendrars/as-a-special-branch-of-general-philosophy-pathogenesis-had-never-been/) [Blaise Cendrars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-cendrars/) > [Ask God for temp'rance. That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Ring out false pride in place and blood, The civic slander and the spite; Ring in the love of truth and right, Ring in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-the-great/ring-out-false-pride-in-place-and-blood-the-civic-slander-and-the/) [Alfred the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-the-great/) > [My identity shifted when I got into # recovery . That's who I am now, and it actually gives me greater pleasure to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-clapton/my-identity-shifted-when-i-got-into-recovery-that-s-who-i-am-now-and/) [Eric Clapton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-clapton/) > [If you are a white male, you don't deserve to live. You are a cancer, you're a disease, white males have never contributed anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-ignatiev/if-you-are-a-white-male-you-don-t-deserve-to-live-you-are-a-cancer/) [Noel Ignatiev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-ignatiev/) > [Jesus never met a disease he could not cure, a birth defect he could not reverse, a demon he could not exorcise. But he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/jesus-never-met-a-disease-he-could-not-cure-a-birth-defect-he-could/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [Religion is a disease. It is born of fear; it compensates through hate in the guise of authority, revelation. Religion, enthroned in a powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-amos-dorsey/religion-is-a-disease-it-is-born-of-fear-it-compensates-through-hate/) [George Amos Dorsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-amos-dorsey/) > [To some degree Satanism is purely a kind of disease of Christianity. You've got to really be Christian to believe in Satan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/to-some-degree-satanism-is-purely-a-kind-of-disease-of-christianity/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [People do not realize that Alzheimer's is not old age. It is a progressive and fatal disease, and staggering amounts of people develop Alzheimer's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melina-kanakaredes/people-do-not-realize-that-alzheimer-s-is-not-old-age-it-is-a/) [Melina Kanakaredes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melina-kanakaredes/) > [Religious work is one of the best ways to keep from facing your reality if you are Christian, if you are using it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-miller/religious-work-is-one-of-the-best-ways-to-keep-from-facing-your/) [Keith Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-miller/) [Browse all 3,549 Disease quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disease/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The federal government has sponsored research that has produced a tomato that is perfect in every respect, except that you can't eat it. 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