--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Everything that makes a society run is…" description: "\"Everything that makes a society run is broken in Iraq. The only real structure is the people's own sense of themselves as Iraqis, which was very strong..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/509/bruce-cockburn-9323_broken_everything-that-makes-a-society-run-is-b_2643992.jpg" --- # Everything that makes a society run is broken in Iraq. The… ![“Everything that makes a society run is broken in Iraq. The only real structure is the people's own sense of themselves as Iraqis, which was very strong. They're a proud people, and they trace their historic roots way, way back.” quote by Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/509/bruce-cockburn-9323_broken_everything-that-makes-a-society-run-is-b_2643992.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/509/bruce-cockburn-9323_broken_everything-that-makes-a-society-run-is-b_2643992.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/509/bruce-cockburn-9323_broken_everything-that-makes-a-society-run-is-b_2643992.jpg) > “Everything that makes a society run is broken in Iraq. The only real structure is the people's own sense of themselves as Iraqis, which was very strong. They're a proud people, and they trace their historic roots way, way back.” [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Iraq's societal structure is broken, yet its people retain strong identity and pride. **In simple terms:** People remain proud despite broken society. Key Takeaway Recognize resilience in adversity. Themes society identity resilience Mood hopeful somber Type song political commentary When to use this quote - conflict zones - humanitarian work - education Key Concepts political science culture studies Questions to Reflect On - How does identity survive collapse? - What can support rebuilding? A Different Perspective Resilience may not solve systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Iraq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/iraq/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Proud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proud/) [Roots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roots/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/structure/) ## Related quotes > [Almost all the military personnel were wearing sunglasses. No Iraqis wear sunglasses. They really want to see your eyes. So immediately they can't trust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/almost-all-the-military-personnel-were-wearing-sunglasses-no-iraqis/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > [Life, individual or collective, personal or historic, is the one entity in the universe whose substance is compact of danger, of adventure. It is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/life-individual-or-collective-personal-or-historic-is-the-one-entity/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [I am told that the majority of Iraqis wanted Saddam removed from power, but they were unwilling and were incapable of doing the job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-coble/i-am-told-that-the-majority-of-iraqis-wanted-saddam-removed-from/) [Howard Coble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-coble/) > [Unlike the Afghans and Iraqis, the South Korean people solidly supported the American military presence, which was part of a United Nations operation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eisenhower/unlike-the-afghans-and-iraqis-the-south-korean-people-solidly/) [John Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eisenhower/) > [I woke up and all I could see was Iraqis standing all around me, looking down upon me. 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This is what makes this whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/keep-in-mind-that-the-iraqis-are-not-telling-us-anything-we-don-t/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [But as we move from this period of what many Iraqis regard as perceived occupation, we need to move towards one of partnership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-abizaid/but-as-we-move-from-this-period-of-what-many-iraqis-regard-as/) [John Abizaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-abizaid/) ## More by Bruce Cockburn > [It sounds strange to say it, but you can be in a war zone and have a lot of fun. Even though war is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/it-sounds-strange-to-say-it-but-you-can-be-in-a-war-zone-and-have-a/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > [I'd always loved poetry and I'd always loved writing music and composing music, but I hadn't thought of putting the two together until around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/i-d-always-loved-poetry-and-i-d-always-loved-writing-music-and/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > [My models for graceful aging are guys like John Lee Hooker and Mississippi John Hurt, who never stopped working till they dropped, as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/my-models-for-graceful-aging-are-guys-like-john-lee-hooker-and/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > ['Gifts' was just a short little one-verse song that I used to close shows in the '60s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/gifts-was-just-a-short-little-one-verse-song-that-i-used-to-close/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > [Music itself isn't enough to completely wear down my stash of anger. 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