---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The sponsors of war closely resemble the…"
description: "\"The sponsors of war closely resemble the weapons they create. And smart bombs, depleted uranium, land mines, rockets and tanks, rather than protect 'wi..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png"
---

#  The sponsors of war closely resemble the weapons they…

![“The sponsors of war closely resemble the weapons they create. And smart bombs, depleted uranium, land mines, rockets and tanks, rather than protect 'widows and orphans and strangers at the gate', are designed precisely to create 'widows and orphans', to transform strangers into enemies and enemies…” quote by Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png)

> “The sponsors of war closely resemble the weapons they create. And smart bombs, depleted uranium, land mines, rockets and tanks, rather than protect 'widows and orphans and strangers at the gate', are designed precisely to create 'widows and orphans', to transform strangers into enemies and enemies into corpses.”

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

## About This Quote

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

War technology creates suffering, turning civilians into victims and enemies into corpses.

**In simple terms:** War tools cause human loss.

Key Takeaway

Question the morality of weapons.

Themes

war technology human cost

Mood

somber critical

Type

activist poetic

When to use this quote

- military policy
- humanitarian aid
- peace protests

Key Concepts

ethics political activism

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we reduce civilian harm?
- What alternatives exist to current weapons?

A Different Perspective

Technological advances may also save lives.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bombs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/) [Disarmament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disarmament/) [Enemy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enemy/) [Orphan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/orphan/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Rockets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rockets/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Stranger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stranger/) [Tanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tanks/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Weapons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weapons/) [Widows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/widows/) [Widows and orphans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/widows-and-orphans/)

## Related quotes

> [I think unleashing 3,000 smart bombs against the city of Baghdad in the first several days of the war to me, if those were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-stark/i-think-unleashing-3-000-smart-bombs-against-the-city-of-baghdad-in/)

[Pete Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-stark/)

> [Religion by itself was not meant to be a divisive tool. All of our religious teachings have similar rules, such as a commitment to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leymah-gbowee/religion-by-itself-was-not-meant-to-be-a-divisive-tool-all-of-our/)

[Leymah Gbowee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leymah-gbowee/)

> [Care for him who shall have borne the battle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/care-for-him-who-shall-have-borne-the-battle/)

[Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/)

> [I borrow to pay my honest debts and not to squander foolishly. What's more, I confine my borrowing to those who can well afford…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-cuppy/i-borrow-to-pay-my-honest-debts-and-not-to-squander-foolishly-what-s/)

[Will Cuppy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-cuppy/)

> [There's no shortage of orphans in 19th-century literature, but it's hard to find a single happy, communicative, functional parental relationship in the whole of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/there-s-no-shortage-of-orphans-in-19th-century-literature-but-it-s/)

[David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/)

> [My profession brought me in contact with various minds. Earnest, serious discussion on the condition of woman enlivened my business room; failures of banks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriot-kezia-hunt/my-profession-brought-me-in-contact-with-various-minds-earnest/)

[Harriot Kezia Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriot-kezia-hunt/)

> [They call war an art, but it isn't. It largely consists in outwitting people, robbing widows and orphans, and inflicting suffering on the helpless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-roberts/they-call-war-an-art-but-it-isn-t-it-largely-consists-in-outwitting/)

[Kenneth Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-roberts/)

> [Where would the Rockefellers be today if old John D. had gone on selling short-weight kerosene ... to widows and orphans instead of wisely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-perelman/where-would-the-rockefellers-be-today-if-old-john-d-had-gone-on/)

[S. J. Perelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-perelman/)

> [When I went to Afghanistan in 2003, I walked into a war zone. Entire neighborhoods had been demolished. There were an overwhelming number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/when-i-went-to-afghanistan-in-2003-i-walked-into-a-war-zone-entire/)

[Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/)

> [I dont know about Brad Pitt leaving that beautiful woman to go hold orphans for Angelina. I mean how long is that going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-douglas/i-dont-know-about-brad-pitt-leaving-that-beautiful-woman-to-go-hold/)

[Michael Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-douglas/)

> [If one accepts the 24th and 104th Psalms as scriptural norms, then surface mining and other forms of earth destruction are perversions. If we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/if-one-accepts-the-24th-and-104th-psalms-as-scriptural-norms-then/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

> [Go back to the Bible, the Old Testament. I mean there were people who we would call intelectuals, there, they were called prophets, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/go-back-to-the-bible-the-old-testament-i-mean-there-were-people-who/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [It is now possible to live a "christian life" without doing the things that Jesus commanded us to do. We have hired people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-thomas/it-is-now-possible-to-live-a-christian-life-without-doing-the-things/)

[Cal Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-thomas/)

> [The thief who is in prison is not necessarily more dishonest than his fellows at large, but mostly one who, through ignorance or stupidity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-thief-who-is-in-prison-is-not-necessarily-more-dishonest-than-his/)

[George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/)

## More by Daniel Berrigan

> [And their conviction is that if it is done with that kind of purity it will go somewhere. I believe that with all my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/and-their-conviction-is-that-if-it-is-done-with-that-kind-of-purity/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [Start with the impossible. Proceed calmly towards the improbable. No worry, there are at least five exits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/start-with-the-impossible-proceed-calmly-towards-the-improbable-no/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [One is called to live nonviolently, even if the change one works for seems impossible. It may or may not be possible to turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/one-is-called-to-live-nonviolently-even-if-the-change-one-works-for/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [A revolution is interesting insofar as it avoids like the plague the plague it promised to heal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/a-revolution-is-interesting-insofar-as-it-avoids-like-the-plague-the/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [Of course, let us have peace, we cry, "but at the same time let us have normalcy, let us lose nothing, let our lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/of-course-let-us-have-peace-we-cry-but-at-the-same-time-let-us-have/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [There is no peace because the making of peace is at least as costly as the making of war - at least as exigent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/there-is-no-peace-because-the-making-of-peace-is-at-least-as-costly/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [No principle is worth the sacrifice of a single human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/no-principle-is-worth-the-sacrifice-of-a-single-human-being/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [Faith is rarely where your head is at. Nor is it where your heart is at. Faith is where your ass is at!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/faith-is-rarely-where-your-head-is-at-nor-is-it-where-your-heart-is/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [The arms race is worse than it ever was, the dumping of creation down a military rat hole is worse than it ever was,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/the-arms-race-is-worse-than-it-ever-was-the-dumping-of-creation-down/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [I don't have to prove my life. I just have to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/i-don-t-have-to-prove-my-life-i-just-have-to-live/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [I'd like to die with my boots on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/i-d-like-to-die-with-my-boots-on/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [The death of a single human being is too heavy a price for the vindication of any principle, however sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/the-death-of-a-single-human-being-is-too-heavy-a-price-for-the/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [I think of my brother just out of prison again. He will have spent ten years of the last 30 in prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/i-think-of-my-brother-just-out-of-prison-again-he-will-have-spent-ten/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [You just have to do what you know is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/you-just-have-to-do-what-you-know-is-right/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

> [Because we want the peace with half a heart and half a life and will, the war, of course, continues, because the waging of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/because-we-want-the-peace-with-half-a-heart-and-half-a-life-and-will/)

[Daniel Berrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

[Explore all 46 Daniel Berrigan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/)

## More Bombs quotes

> [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/)

[Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/)

> [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/)

[Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/)

> [ No wonder that Churchill described this effort \[the British codebreakers working at Bletchley Park\] as "Britian"s secret weapon," a weapon far more effective than… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hilton/no-wonder-that-churchill-described-this-effort-the-british/)

[Peter Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hilton/)

> [There is an idea that you can take the spiritual teachings of a religion outside of a religion and practice them; these ideas are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seyyed-hossein-nasr/there-is-an-idea-that-you-can-take-the-spiritual-teachings-of-a/)

[Seyyed Hossein Nasr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seyyed-hossein-nasr/)

> [In 2001, we were told that the war in Afghanistan was a feminist mission. The marines were liberating Afghan women from the Taliban. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/in-2001-we-were-told-that-the-war-in-afghanistan-was-a-feminist/)

[Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/)

> [The pace of science forces the pace of technique. Theoretical physics forces atomic energy on us; the successful production of the fission bomb forces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-pace-of-science-forces-the-pace-of-technique-theoretical-physics/)

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

> [We're not going to cure terrorism and spread peace and goodwill in the Middle East by killing innocent people, or I'm not even saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-sheehan/we-re-not-going-to-cure-terrorism-and-spread-peace-and-goodwill-in/)

[Cindy Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-sheehan/)

> [I call on the Iranian people: it is not too late to replace the corrupt regime and return to your glorious Persian heritage, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/i-call-on-the-iranian-people-it-is-not-too-late-to-replace-the/)

[Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/)

> [My God! The English language is a form of communication! Conversation isn't just crossfire where you shoot and get shot at! Where you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/my-god-the-english-language-is-a-form-of-communication-conversation/)

[Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/)

> [I am not sure why, but I have been obsessed by the Atom Bomb ever since it first happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lanford-wilson/i-am-not-sure-why-but-i-have-been-obsessed-by-the-atom-bomb-ever/)

[Lanford Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lanford-wilson/)

> [Everybody I've ever met was destroyed by a member of the opposite sex early on and that damage you took into every relationship after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-titus/everybody-i-ve-ever-met-was-destroyed-by-a-member-of-the-opposite-sex/)

[Christopher Titus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-titus/)

> [I had a very well-respected writer ask me point blank to my face whether it actually mattered to me. Now, without wanting to reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-furyk/i-had-a-very-well-respected-writer-ask-me-point-blank-to-my-face/)

[Jim Furyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-furyk/)

> [If torture is going to be administered as a last resort in the ticking-bomb case, to save enormous numbers of lives, it ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/if-torture-is-going-to-be-administered-as-a-last-resort-in-the/)

[Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/)

> [There are cameras nowadays that have been developed to tell the difference between a squirrel and a bomb.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/there-are-cameras-nowadays-that-have-been-developed-to-tell-the/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [Our military superiority is so great - it's far greater than it was in the Gulf War, and the Gulf War was over in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/our-military-superiority-is-so-great-it-s-far-greater-than-it-was-in/)

[William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/)

[Browse all 1,253 Bombs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The sponsors of war closely resemble the weapons they create. And smart bombs, depleted uranium, land mines, rockets and tanks, rather than protect 'widows and orphans and strangers at the gate', are designed precisely to create 'widows and orphans', to transform strangers into enemies and enemies into corpses.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Daniel Berrigan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the-weapons-they-create-and/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bombs"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the-weapons-they-create-and/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/daniel-berrigan-14445_bombs_the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the_2985875.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The sponsors of war closely resemble the weapons they create. And smart bombs, depleted uranium, land mines…” — Daniel Berrigan",
                "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": "Daniel Berrigan",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-berrigan/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The sponsors of war closely resemble...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the-weapons-they-create-and/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-berrigan/the-sponsors-of-war-closely-resemble-the-weapons-they-create-and/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
