--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All power rests on hierarchy: An army is…" description: "\"All power rests on hierarchy: An army is nothing but a well-organized lynch mob.\" — Edward Abbey" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/edward-abbey-254_army_all-power-rests-on-hierarchy-an-army-is_2555302.png" --- # All power rests on hierarchy: An army is nothing but a… ![“All power rests on hierarchy: An army is nothing but a well-organized lynch mob.” quote by Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/edward-abbey-254_army_all-power-rests-on-hierarchy-an-army-is_2555302.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/edward-abbey-254_army_all-power-rests-on-hierarchy-an-army-is_2555302.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/edward-abbey-254_army_all-power-rests-on-hierarchy-an-army-is_2555302.png) > “All power rests on hierarchy: An army is nothing but a well-organized lynch mob.” [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Power structures rely on hierarchy; an army resembles a coordinated mob, highlighting potential abuse. **In simple terms:** Hierarchies can become oppressive mobs. Key Takeaway Question authority and its organization. Themes power hierarchy authority Mood critical provocative Type political philosophical When to use this quote - activism - policy analysis - community organizing Key Concepts political theory social critique Questions to Reflect On - When does hierarchy protect versus oppress? - How can power be balanced? A Different Perspective Not all hierarchies are negative; some provide order. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Army](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/) [Army Organized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army-organized-941873/) [Hierarchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hierarchy/) [Hierarchy Army](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hierarchy-army-1557583/) [Lynch Mob](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lynch-mob-362374/) [Organized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized/) [Organized Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized-lynch-1557584/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [We should have an army so organized and so officered as to be capable in time of emergency, in cooperation with the National Militia,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-howard-taft/we-should-have-an-army-so-organized-and-so-officered-as-to-be-capable/) [William Howard Taft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-howard-taft/) > [“He explained to Atro that he now understood why the army was organized as it was. 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The messages had been deleted, but it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susie-boniface/and-in-december-of-that-year-five-months-later-the-guardian-reported/) [Susie Boniface](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susie-boniface/) > [There's a whiff of the lynch mob or the lemming migration about any overlarge concentration of like-thinking individuals, no matter how virtuous their cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/there-s-a-whiff-of-the-lynch-mob-or-the-lemming-migration-about-any/) [P. J. 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Someone else notices. 3. The second person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susie-boniface/you-need-to-know-the-life-cycle-of-a-lynch-mob-1-someone-says/) [Susie Boniface](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susie-boniface/) > [“Home is where you hang your hat, but it's no place for a lynch mob.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-balara/home-is-where-you-hang-your-hat-but-it-s-no-place-for-a-lynch-mob/) [Frank Balara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-balara/) > [...the great movement of apostasy being organized in every country for the establishment of a One-World Church which shall have neither dogmas, nor hierarchy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-x/the-great-movement-of-apostasy-being-organized-in-every-country-for/) [Pope Pius X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-x/) > [There are two kinds of people I cannot abide: bigots and any well-organized ethnic group.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-i-cannot-abide-bigots-and-any-well/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [In the hierarchy of the family, I'm just above the dog. But I like it that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jens-voigt/in-the-hierarchy-of-the-family-i-m-just-above-the-dog-but-i-like-it/) [Jens Voigt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jens-voigt/) > [Love is the supreme form of communication. In the hierarchy of needs, love stands as the supreme developing agent of the humanity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-montagu/love-is-the-supreme-form-of-communication-in-the-hierarchy-of-needs/) [Ashley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-montagu/) > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) ## More by Edward Abbey > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Apuleius married a rich widow, then wrote \_The Golden Ass\_.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/apuleius-married-a-rich-widow-then-wrote-the-golden-ass/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Except for the scale of the operation, there was nothing unusual about Hitler's massacre of the Jews. 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Why this cult of wilderness? Why the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/but-why-the-questioner-insists-why-do-people-like-you-pretend-to-love/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Civilization is a youth with a molotov cocktail in his hand. Culture is the Soviet tank or L.A. cop that guns him down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/civilization-is-a-youth-with-a-molotov-cocktail-in-his-hand-culture/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [All revolutions have failed? Perhaps. But rebellion for good cause is self- justifying -- a good in itself. Rebellion transforms slaves into human beings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/all-revolutions-have-failed-perhaps-but-rebellion-for-good-cause-is/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“Me, I'm living under a sword too, as Jack may have told you. 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Part Two: Say it well.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/what-is-the-essence-of-the-art-of-writing-part-one-have-something-to/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) [Explore all 807 Edward Abbey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) ## More Army quotes > [There are no more worlds to conquer!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/there-are-no-more-worlds-to-conquer/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) > [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [It is the rule in war, if our forces are ten to the enemy's one, to surround him; if five to one, to attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/it-is-the-rule-in-war-if-our-forces-are-ten-to-the-enemy-s-one-to/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [The surprise of an army is now next to an impossibility. ... 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