---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At their extremes, capitalism and…"
description: "\"“At their extremes, capitalism and communism become equivalent: Endless toil motivated by lapidary ideals handed down by a revered and unquestioned lea..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg"
---

#  At their extremes, capitalism and communism become…

![“At their extremes, capitalism and communism become equivalent: Endless toil motivated by lapidary ideals handed down by a revered and unquestioned leader, and put into practice by a leadership caste selected for its adherence to aforementioned principles, and richly rewarded for its willingness to…” quote by Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg)

> ““At their extremes, capitalism and communism become equivalent: Endless toil motivated by lapidary ideals handed down by a revered and unquestioned leader, and put into practice by a leadership caste selected for its adherence to aforementioned principles, and richly rewarded for its willingness to grind whatever human grist the mill required? Same in both.””

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Capitalism and communism, when taken to extremes, can mirror each other in oppressive labor and blind devotion to doctrine.

**In simple terms:** Extreme systems can become similarly oppressive.

Key Takeaway

Beware dogmatic extremes.

Themes

politics economics ideology

Mood

critical analytical

Type

political philosophical

When to use this quote

- corporate cultures
- authoritarian regimes
- revolutionary movements
- social movements

Key Concepts

totalitarianism labor exploitation dogma

Questions to Reflect On

- What signs indicate a system is becoming extreme?
- How can individuals resist oppressive ideologies?

A Different Perspective

May oversimplify complex differences between systems.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Capitalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism/) [Capitalism Communism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism-communism-333571/) [Communism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communism/) [Communism Equivalent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communism-equivalent-3868738/) [Extremes Capitalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremes-capitalism-1209591/) [Ideals Handed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideals-handed-3868739/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/)

## Related quotes

> [Capitalism, communism ... it's all garbage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mstislav-rostropovich/capitalism-communism-it-s-all-garbage/)

[Mstislav Rostropovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mstislav-rostropovich/)

> [We wasted a lot of creative energy in that immediate post colonial era, when there was a struggle between, you know, the Cold War…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/we-wasted-a-lot-of-creative-energy-in-that-immediate-post-colonial/)

[Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/)

> ['Bernie versus Bernie,' for me, is these two extremes of capitalism. It's Bernie Sanders, the ultimate socialist, and Bernie Madoff, the ultimate capitalist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerby-jean-raymond/bernie-versus-bernie-for-me-is-these-two-extremes-of-capitalism-it-s/)

[Kerby Jean-Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerby-jean-raymond/)

> [Society is made up of groups, and as long as the smaller groups do not have the same rights and the same protection as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/society-is-made-up-of-groups-and-as-long-as-the-smaller-groups-do-not/)

[Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/)

> [You can talk about capitalism and communism and all that sort of thing, but the important thing is the struggle everybody is engaged in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-baruch/you-can-talk-about-capitalism-and-communism-and-all-that-sort-of/)

[Bernard Baruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-baruch/)

> [I think anytime that you go to the extreme of any mode of economics, be it capitalism or communism, you have these feedback mechanisms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serj-tankian/i-think-anytime-that-you-go-to-the-extreme-of-any-mode-of-economics/)

[Serj Tankian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serj-tankian/)

> [The drive of the Rockefellers and their allies is to create a one-world government combining super capitalism and Communism under the same tent, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-mcdonald/the-drive-of-the-rockefellers-and-their-allies-is-to-create-a-one/)

[Larry McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-mcdonald/)

> [A Jesuit once wrote a note to Father Arrupe, his superior general, asking him about the relative value of communism, socialism and capitalism. Father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-de-mello/a-jesuit-once-wrote-a-note-to-father-arrupe-his-superior-general/)

[Anthony de Mello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-de-mello/)

> [“I don't think Communism will work--in the long run--any better than Christianity has done, and I'm not the Crusader type. Capitalism or Communism? Perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/i-don-t-think-communism-will-work-in-the-long-run-any-better-than/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [But democracy is by no means a limit one may not overstep; it is only one of the stages in the course of development…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/but-democracy-is-by-no-means-a-limit-one-may-not-overstep-it-is-only/)

[Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/)

> [“Patriotism is just an idea, so is capitalism or communism. But ideas can make men forget their own interests. And the guys in charge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/min-jin-lee/patriotism-is-just-an-idea-so-is-capitalism-or-communism-but-ideas/)

[Min Jin Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/min-jin-lee/)

> [In the development of both capitalism and communism, as we visualize them in the next fifty or a hundred years, the processes that encourage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/in-the-development-of-both-capitalism-and-communism-as-we-visualize/)

[Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/)

> [“The question of socialism or communism or capitalism or between the left and right – I think the important question is between the industrial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winona-laduke/the-question-of-socialism-or-communism-or-capitalism-or-between-the/)

[Winona LaDuke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winona-laduke/)

> [“The true state will be oriented against both capitalism and communism. At its center will stand a principle of authority and a transcendent symbol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-evola/the-true-state-will-be-oriented-against-both-capitalism-and-communism/)

[Julius Evola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-evola/)

> [“Leaders of all systems (Capitalism, Communism, etc.) in History claimed to serve the people. All Systems would work if the leaders meant it!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-mont/leaders-of-all-systems-capitalism-communism-etc-in-history-claimed-to/)

[Francis Mont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-mont/)

## More by Antonio Garcia Martinez

> [If you're a small startup considering selling your company, there's definitely far worse places to work than Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/if-you-re-a-small-startup-considering-selling-your-company-there-s/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [Cubans can be as conversant as any Netflix-and-chill American about popular shows like 'House of Cards' or 'Black Mirror', and they drop allusions to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/cubans-can-be-as-conversant-as-any-netflix-and-chill-american-about/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“An empty pageant; a stage play; flocks of sheep, herds of cattle; a bone flung among a pack of dogs; a crumb tossed into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/an-empty-pageant-a-stage-play-flocks-of-sheep-herds-of-cattle-a-bone/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [You don't realise it, but we're in a race between technology and politics, and technologists are winning. They're way ahead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/you-don-t-realise-it-but-we-re-in-a-race-between-technology-and/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“All ambitious men want either to please their fathers or to punch them in the goddamned face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/all-ambitious-men-want-either-to-please-their-fathers-or-to-punch/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“Don’t work for the survivors or architects of massacres. You’ll live just long enough to regret it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/don-t-work-for-the-survivors-or-architects-of-massacres-you-ll-live/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“Cynicism is the last refuge of the shiftless. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/cynicism-is-the-last-refuge-of-the-shiftless-i/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“Incidentally, it helps to have enemies. While love is a beautiful emotion, far more empires have been built, books written, wrongs righted, fights won,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/incidentally-it-helps-to-have-enemies-while-love-is-a-beautiful/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“To make an analogy, a capped note is like having to seduce five women one after the other, while an equity round is having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/to-make-an-analogy-a-capped-note-is-like-having-to-seduce-five-women/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“In all my experience in both startups and large companies, including and especially at Facebook, I would always prefer - a hundred times prefer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/in-all-my-experience-in-both-startups-and-large-companies-including/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“Despite the fact that the entire continent was unable to itself produce even a single consumer Internet company of global scope, Europe did reserve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/despite-the-fact-that-the-entire-continent-was-unable-to-itself/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“As a Facebook product manager, you resembled an Afghan warlord or a pirate captain: fearsome in appearance to any outsiders, the scourge of entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/as-a-facebook-product-manager-you-resembled-an-afghan-warlord-or-a/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“Managing a combined deal between Facebook and Twitter was like trying to engineer simultaneous orgasm between a premature ejaculator and a frigid woman: nigh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/managing-a-combined-deal-between-facebook-and-twitter-was-like-trying/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [In the early days, a Georgia college kid named Chris Putnam created a virus that made your Facebook profile resemble MySpace, then the social-media…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/in-the-early-days-a-georgia-college-kid-named-chris-putnam-created-a/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

> [“Most managers are incompetent and maintain their jobs via inertia and politics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/most-managers-are-incompetent-and-maintain-their-jobs-via-inertia-and/)

[Antonio Garcia Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

[Explore all 61 Antonio Garcia Martinez quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/)

## More Capitalism quotes

> [Don't let's lose sight of what creates wealth. It is open markets, it is capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/don-t-let-s-lose-sight-of-what-creates-wealth-it-is-open-markets-it/)

[Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/)

> [Crony capitalism is essentially a condition in which... public officials are giving favours to people in the private sector in payment of political favours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/crony-capitalism-is-essentially-a-condition-in-which-public-officials/)

[Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/)

> [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/)

[Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/)

> [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/)

[Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/)

> [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/)

[Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/)

> [Corporations have nothing to do with values, and they know it, and sometimes say it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kierans/corporations-have-nothing-to-do-with-values-and-they-know-it-and/)

[Eric Kierans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kierans/)

> [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/)

[F. A. Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-a-harper/)

> [The free market is ugly and stupid, like going to the mall; the unfree market is just as ugly and just as stupid, except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-free-market-is-ugly-and-stupid-like-going-to-the-mall-the-unfree/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Capitalism, communism ... it's all garbage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mstislav-rostropovich/capitalism-communism-it-s-all-garbage/)

[Mstislav Rostropovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mstislav-rostropovich/)

> [There are no two countries with the same style of economic mechanism, with the same capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-chubais/there-are-no-two-countries-with-the-same-style-of-economic-mechanism/)

[Anatoly Chubais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-chubais/)

> [It is more than a little ironic that "capital accumulation" once a rather tendentious Marxian view of a supposed capitalist obsession, should have become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kuttner/it-is-more-than-a-little-ironic-that-capital-accumulation-once-a/)

[Robert Kuttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kuttner/)

> [Historically, usury was defined as any interest whatever on an unproductive loan.Our whole banking system I have ever abhorred, I continue to abhor, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/historically-usury-was-defined-as-any-interest-whatever-on-an/)

[John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/)

> [Socialism is humanity's second nature. All politicians do is turn human vice into votes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilana-mercer/socialism-is-humanity-s-second-nature-all-politicians-do-is-turn/)

[Ilana Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilana-mercer/)

> [“Scholars have long debated whether capital markets lead to appropriate levels of saving and investment for future generations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-l-weimer/scholars-have-long-debated-whether-capital-markets-lead-to/)

[David L. Weimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-l-weimer/)

> [“A car is one of the most interesting inventions, but driving is one of the most boring activities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/a-car-is-one-of-the-most-interesting-inventions-but-driving-is-one-of/)

[Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/)

[Browse all 3,832 Capitalism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“At their extremes, capitalism and communism become equivalent: Endless toil motivated by lapidary ideals handed down by a revered and unquestioned leader, and put into practice by a leadership caste selected for its adherence to aforementioned principles, and richly rewarded for its willingness to grind whatever human grist the mill required? Same in both.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Antonio Garcia Martinez"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communism-become-equivalent-endless/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Capitalism"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communism-become-equivalent-endless/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ad/antonio-garcia-martinez-11158_leadership_at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communi_2051606.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“At their extremes, capitalism and communism become equivalent: Endless toil motivated by lapidary ideals…” — Antonio Garcia Martinez",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Antonio Garcia Martinez",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-garcia-martinez/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“At their extremes, capitalism and communism...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communism-become-equivalent-endless/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-garcia-martinez/at-their-extremes-capitalism-and-communism-become-equivalent-endless/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
