--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A funny thing happened on the way to…" description: "\"A funny thing happened on the way to utopia: We've turned into this surveillance society and become a race of spies, where we track our kids and we tra..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/dave-eggers-638_friendship_a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-way-to-uto_2807382.jpg" --- # A funny thing happened on the way to utopia: We've turned… ![“A funny thing happened on the way to utopia: We've turned into this surveillance society and become a race of spies, where we track our kids and we track our spouses and we track our friends. I think very soon there will be an obsolescence of trust, because it's much easier to access a person's…” quote by Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/dave-eggers-638_friendship_a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-way-to-uto_2807382.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/dave-eggers-638_friendship_a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-way-to-uto_2807382.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/dave-eggers-638_friendship_a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-way-to-uto_2807382.jpg) > “A funny thing happened on the way to utopia: We've turned into this surveillance society and become a race of spies, where we track our kids and we track our spouses and we track our friends. I think very soon there will be an obsolescence of trust, because it's much easier to access a person's location than it is to ask - or to trust.” [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society’s surveillance erodes trust, turning relationships into monitoring. **In simple terms:** Surveillance kills trust. Key Takeaway Guard privacy and trust. Themes surveillance trust privacy Mood cautious concerned Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - parenting - marriage - friendships Key Concepts social control technological impact Questions to Reflect On - How would you rebuild trust in a monitored world? - What boundaries protect personal freedom? A Different Perspective Balancing safety with privacy is complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Spies Track](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spies-track-3495201/) [Spouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spouse/) [Spy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spy/) [Surveillance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surveillance/) [Surveillance Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/surveillance-society-961660/) [Thing Happened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-happened/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Track](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/track/) [Track Spouses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/track-spouses-3495202/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) [Turned Surveillance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turned-surveillance-3495200/) [Utopia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/utopia/) ## Related quotes > [I think mass surveillance is a bad idea because a surveillance society is one in which people understand that they are constantly monitored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-paglen/i-think-mass-surveillance-is-a-bad-idea-because-a-surveillance/) [Trevor Paglen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-paglen/) > [What we have now in America is a surveillance society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/what-we-have-now-in-america-is-a-surveillance-society/) [Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/) > [Orwell wasn't right about where society was in 1984. We haven't turned into that sort of surveillance society. But that may be, at least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramez-naam/orwell-wasn-t-right-about-where-society-was-in-1984-we-haven-t-turned/) [Ramez Naam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramez-naam/) > [The worst thing happened in my life,is when I met the person that I love the most.. is the person who hurt me more...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misherie/the-worst-thing-happened-in-my-life-is-when-i-met-the-person-that-i/) [Misherie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misherie/) > [Balika Vadhu' is the best thing to have happened to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-shukla/balika-vadhu-is-the-best-thing-to-have-happened-to-me/) [Siddharth Shukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-shukla/) > [Becoming a father, that's the best thing that's ever happened to me and nothing will ever top that except maybe having more kids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikola-vucevic/becoming-a-father-that-s-the-best-thing-that-s-ever-happened-to-me/) [Nikola Vucevic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikola-vucevic/) > [Do you know, a horrible thing has happened to me. 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Damn, i was an idiot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-mcgarry/when-i-said-nothing-the-best-thing-that-happened-to-me-in-three-years/) [Katie McGarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-mcgarry/) > [“The most awesome thing happened to me today. My former high school English teacher has been editing my book for me. She told me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-thornton-k/the-most-awesome-thing-happened-to-me-today-my-former-high-school/) [Katie Thornton-K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-thornton-k/) > [“And then a strange thing happened. Out of the diseased and deteriorated pool os tired thoughts came life. A simple and poisoned life, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-mckean/and-then-a-strange-thing-happened-out-of-the-diseased-and/) [Dave McKean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-mckean/) > [“A strange thing happened to me in my dream. I was rapt into the Seventh Heaven. There sat all the gods assembled. As a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/a-strange-thing-happened-to-me-in-my-dream-i-was-rapt-into-the/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [You know Kim Jong Un, the evil dictator of North Korea? Apparently, a guy in his inner circle used his ashtray while smoking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/you-know-kim-jong-un-the-evil-dictator-of-north-korea-apparently-a/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [I think the basic thing that happened is we have lost our story. Humans think in stories, and we try to make sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-think-the-basic-thing-that-happened-is-we-have-lost-our-story/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## More by Dave Eggers > [“4. THE CRUMBLING WALL (Hamburger, prepared medium well, with bacon and barbecue sauce. Courtesy of that place on Solano, where, it should be mentioned,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/4-the-crumbling-wall-hamburger-prepared-medium-well-with-bacon-and/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“LOW-FLYING, QUICK-MOVING CLOUDS: I haven't long to live. TREETOPS, ROUNDED AND ROUGH: That's probably true. LOW-FLYING, QUICK-MOVING CLOUDS: I won't even make it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/low-flying-quick-moving-clouds-i-haven-t-long-to-live-treetops/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [But the grind has begun. The windows don’t open, and even the availability of near-constant jokes about Jews and Mormons fails to stem the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-the-grind-has-begun-the-windows-don-t-open-and-even-the/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“One button for the rest of your life online.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/one-button-for-the-rest-of-your-life-online/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [We feel that to reveal embarrassing or private things, we have given someone something, that, like a primitive person fearing that a photographer will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/we-feel-that-to-reveal-embarrassing-or-private-things-we-have-given/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I think I'm far too hopeful and trusting. That's something I got from my mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/i-think-i-m-far-too-hopeful-and-trusting-that-s-something-i-got-from/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“Overnight, all comment boards became civil, all posters held accountable. The trolls, who had more or less overtaken the internet, were driven back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/overnight-all-comment-boards-became-civil-all-posters-held/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“Have we wasted precious space dust on you?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/have-we-wasted-precious-space-dust-on-you/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“What can one do with one's hands when the camera is interested in other things?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/what-can-one-do-with-one-s-hands-when-the-camera-is-interested-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“The money that could have saved the Shuttle, and the money we send to random countries, that we use to remake unchangeable countries ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-money-that-could-have-saved-the-shuttle-and-the-money-we-send-to/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Write your goddamned book now. The world awaits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/write-your-goddamned-book-now-the-world-awaits/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [The only infallible truth of our lives is that everything we love in life will be taken from us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-only-infallible-truth-of-our-lives-is-that-everything-we-love-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“First of all: I am tired. I am true of heart! And Also: You are tired. You are true of heart!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/first-of-all-i-am-tired-i-am-true-of-heart-and-also-you-are-tired-you/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [And what we were trying to offer every day was one-on-one attention. The goal was to have a one-to-one ratio with every one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/and-what-we-were-trying-to-offer-every-day-was-one-on-one-attention/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Suffering is only suffering if it’s done in silence, in solitude. Pain experienced in public, in view of loving millions, was no longer pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/suffering-is-only-suffering-if-it-s-done-in-silence-in-solitude-pain/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) [Explore all 428 Dave Eggers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) ## More Friendship quotes > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I never believed in trying to do anything. Whatever I set out to do I found I had already accomplished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-never-believed-in-trying-to-do-anything-whatever-i-set-out-to-do-i/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“ever day Maureen is Selfish To her friend and Family One she get mad at her friend and family and She need to Grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-andeson/ever-day-maureen-is-selfish-to-her-friend-and-family-one-she-get-mad/) [Maureen Andeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-andeson/) > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Friends are like stars you can't always see them, but you know they're there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknwon/friends-are-like-stars-you-can-t-always-see-them-but-you-know-they-re/) [Unknwon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unknwon/) > [I've been writing songs since I was 10 years old and always had a penchant for rhyming. I started listening to hip hop through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoodie-allen/i-ve-been-writing-songs-since-i-was-10-years-old-and-always-had-a/) [Hoodie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoodie-allen/) > [If you love some one for who they are not for there body or how many friend so when you say I love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/if-you-love-some-one-for-who-they-are-not-for-there-body-or-how-many/) [Unknow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unknow/) > [“But my best friend from college was silent for a long time. She, of all of my friends, had seen the parade of sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/but-my-best-friend-from-college-was-silent-for-a-long-time-she-of-all/) [Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/) > [You smile upon your friend to-day, To-day his ills are over; You hearken to the lover's say, And happy is the lover. 'Tis late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-smile-upon-your-friend-to-day-to-day-his-ills-are-over-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“way. A true friend isn't the one that agrees with everything you say or do. A true friend is someone that has your back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shameek-speight/way-a-true-friend-isn-t-the-one-that-agrees-with-everything-you-say/) [Shameek Speight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shameek-speight/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Kings don’t move mountains as a favor to a friend,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/kings-don-t-move-mountains-as-a-favor-to-a-friend/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mace/i-have-friends-and-family-that-identify-as-lgbtq/) [Nancy Mace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mace/) > [“The real purpose of friendship was to discover and exploit weakness in others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-thompson/the-real-purpose-of-friendship-was-to-discover-and-exploit-weakness/) [Brian Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-thompson/) [Browse all 45,469 Friendship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A funny thing happened on the way to utopia: We've turned into this surveillance society and become a race of spies, where we track our kids and we track our spouses and we track our friends. 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