--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I cannot believe we want our great nation…" description: "\"“I cannot believe we want our great nation to become a land where our personal privacy and our personal freedom are jeopardized by the abuse of power b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/anthony-summers-80084_abuse-of-power_i-cannot-believe-we-want-our-great-natio_2496699.jpg" --- # I cannot believe we want our great nation to become a land… ![“I cannot believe we want our great nation to become a land where our personal privacy and our personal freedom are jeopardized by the abuse of power by a police official who seems to believe he is a law unto himself ~ George McGovern” quote by Anthony Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/anthony-summers-80084_abuse-of-power_i-cannot-believe-we-want-our-great-natio_2496699.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/anthony-summers-80084_abuse-of-power_i-cannot-believe-we-want-our-great-natio_2496699.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8d/anthony-summers-80084_abuse-of-power_i-cannot-believe-we-want-our-great-natio_2496699.jpg) > ““I cannot believe we want our great nation to become a land where our personal privacy and our personal freedom are jeopardized by the abuse of power by a police official who seems to believe he is a law unto himself ~ George McGovern”” [Anthony Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-summers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Powerful authorities can threaten personal privacy and freedom, highlighting the need for vigilance. **In simple terms:** Authority can endanger freedom and privacy. Key Takeaway Guard against abuse of power. Themes politics civil liberties authority Mood concerned serious Type political informative When to use this quote - voting - activism - legal reform - privacy advocacy Key Concepts law ethics surveillance Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards protect privacy? - How can citizens hold officials accountable? A Different Perspective Balancing security and freedom is complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abuse of power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse-of-power/) [Abuse Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse-power/) [Cybersecurity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cybersecurity/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Jeopardized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-jeopardized-1020250/) [George Mcgovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/george-mcgovern-1020251/) [Personal freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-freedom/) [Personal privacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-privacy/) [Police Official](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police-official-1020252/) ## Related quotes > [At one time my only wish was to be a police official. It seemed to me to be an occupation for my sleepless intriguing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/at-one-time-my-only-wish-was-to-be-a-police-official-it-seemed-to-me/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [The day that the black man takes an uncompromising step and realizes that he's within his rights, when his own freedom is being jeopardized,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/the-day-that-the-black-man-takes-an-uncompromising-step-and-realizes/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [George McGovern - and I campaigned very hard for his election - was not, in the summer of 1971, a strong feminist ally. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-decrow/george-mcgovern-and-i-campaigned-very-hard-for-his-election-was-not/) [Karen DeCrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-decrow/) > [George McGovern and his supporters committed what, in a two-party system, are capital crimes: they did not compromise, they took hard ideological positions, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/george-mcgovern-and-his-supporters-committed-what-in-a-two-party/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) > [I don't listen to the news or read newspapers. I don't know what's going on in this world, or why I should vote for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cassidy/i-don-t-listen-to-the-news-or-read-newspapers-i-don-t-know-what-s/) [David Cassidy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cassidy/) > [Government is the reimplementation of the public good. - George McGovern ( On Charlie Rose, Jan 6, 2011 telecast Charlotte NC)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/government-is-the-reimplementation-of-the-public-good-george-mcgovern/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [Of all the men that have run for president in the twentieth century, only George McGovern truly understood what a monument America could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/of-all-the-men-that-have-run-for-president-in-the-twentieth-century/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [A Democrat who had been JFK's Secretary of the Navy, Connally believed that as many as 20 million Democrats would cross over to vote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-gallagher/a-democrat-who-had-been-jfk-s-secretary-of-the-navy-connally-believed/) [Mike Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-gallagher/) > [Reagan is both too fatalistic and too modest to be a crudaser. He doesn't have that darkness around the eyes of a George McGovern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-f-buckley-jr/reagan-is-both-too-fatalistic-and-too-modest-to-be-a-crudaser-he/) [William F. Buckley, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-f-buckley-jr/) > [George McGovern, for all his mistakes... understands what a fantastic monument to all the best instincts of the human race this country might have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/george-mcgovern-for-all-his-mistakes-understands-what-a-fantastic/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“One hundred years ago, everyone could have personal privacy. You and your friend could walk into an empty field, look around to see that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-schneier/one-hundred-years-ago-everyone-could-have-personal-privacy-you-and/) [Bruce Schneier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-schneier/) > [The American people must be willing to give up a degree of personal privacy in exchange for safety and security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-american-people-must-be-willing-to-give-up-a-degree-of-personal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The stakes in the encryption debate are high, with significant consequences for personal privacy, the U.S. private sector, and our national security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lieu/the-stakes-in-the-encryption-debate-are-high-with-significant/) [Ted Lieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lieu/) > [“So no one cares - and that protects your personal privacy. At least most of the time no one cares. I'm not making the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/so-no-one-cares-and-that-protects-your-personal-privacy-at-least-most/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [With existing technology, we can enforce airport security without sacrificing our personal privacy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-udall/with-existing-technology-we-can-enforce-airport-security-without/) [Tom Udall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-udall/) ## More by Anthony Summers > [“Honey, we all got to go sometime, reason or no reason. 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