---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The mischievous idea that all public…"
description: "\"The mischievous idea that all public needs should be satisfied by compulsory organization and that all the means that individuals are willing to devote..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg"
---

#  The mischievous idea that all public needs should be…

![“The mischievous idea that all public needs should be satisfied by compulsory organization and that all the means that individuals are willing to devote to pubic purposes should be under the control of government, is wholly alien to the basic principles of a free society.” quote by Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg)

> “The mischievous idea that all public needs should be satisfied by compulsory organization and that all the means that individuals are willing to devote to pubic purposes should be under the control of government, is wholly alien to the basic principles of a free society.”

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

## About This Quote

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

A free society rejects compulsory organization of public needs and government control over individual contributions.

**In simple terms:** Freedom opposes forced central planning.

Key Takeaway

Guard personal autonomy against over‑regulation.

Themes

freedom government individual rights

Mood

analytical critical

Type

political philosophical

When to use this quote

- policy making
- civil society
- entrepreneurship

Key Concepts

liberalism economic theory

Questions to Reflect On

- When should government intervene for collective benefit?
- How to balance liberty with social responsibility?

A Different Perspective

Some public goods may need coordination; pure freedom can cause gaps.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Aliens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aliens/) [Basic principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basic-principles/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) [Free society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-society/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Integrity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/integrity/) [Organization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organization/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Principles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/principles/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/)

## Related quotes

> [There is nothing in the basic principles of liberalism to make it a stationary creed; there are no hard-and-fast rules fixed once and for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/there-is-nothing-in-the-basic-principles-of-liberalism-to-make-it-a/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [Here in the United States, the Zionists and their co-religionists have complete control of our government. For many reasons, too many and too complex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-h-freedman/here-in-the-united-states-the-zionists-and-their-co-religionists-have/)

Benjamin H. Freedman

> [The budget doesn't have much control over the government. Then again, the government doesn't have much control over the budget.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-budget-doesn-t-have-much-control-over-the-government-then-again/)

[P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/)

> [We...are not really free if we can't control our own government and its policies. And we will never do that if we remain ignorant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charley-reese/we-are-not-really-free-if-we-can-t-control-our-own-government-and-its/)

[Charley Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charley-reese/)

> [Money power means budget power and it is folly to imagine that the citizen can control government unless he can control its budget.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-c-riegel/money-power-means-budget-power-and-it-is-folly-to-imagine-that-the/)

[E.C. Riegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-c-riegel/)

> [“As long as government has the power to regulate business, business will control government by funding the candidate that legislates in their favor. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-j-ruwart/as-long-as-government-has-the-power-to-regulate-business-business/)

[Mary J. Ruwart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-j-ruwart/)

> [ \[D\]ecade after decade, through taxes and regulations, governments at all levels took ever-increasing control over people's lives, wealth, and property. The control grew exponentially,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-g-hornberger/d-ecade-after-decade-through-taxes-and-regulations-governments-at-all/)

[Jacob G. Hornberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-g-hornberger/)

> [ This \[2016\] is not simply another four-year election. This is a crossroads in the history of our civilization that will determine whether or not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/this-2016-is-not-simply-another-four-year-election-this-is-a/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [People everywhere face the threat of control by government and technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-craig-roberts/people-everywhere-face-the-threat-of-control-by-government-and/)

[Paul Craig Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-craig-roberts/)

> [it is the people who control the Government, not the Government the people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-the-people-who-control-the-government-not-the-government-the/)

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

> [As long as we cling to the superstition that we must look to government for money supply, instead of requiring it to look to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-c-riegel/as-long-as-we-cling-to-the-superstition-that-we-must-look-to/)

[E.C. Riegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-c-riegel/)

> [“If men were angels, no government would be necessary…In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-men-were-angels-no-government-would-be-necessary-in-framing-a/)

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

> [Let's say there are 500 sons and daughters like you in each state. Then we could control the government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-myung-moon/let-s-say-there-are-500-sons-and-daughters-like-you-in-each-state/)

[Sun Myung Moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-myung-moon/)

> [“It’s almost as if Congress has no idea that a giant occult power struggle for control of the US government is in progress … or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-stross/it-s-almost-as-if-congress-has-no-idea-that-a-giant-occult-power/)

[Charles Stross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-stross/)

> [The class which has the power to rob upon a large scale has also the power to control the government and legalize their robbery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-v-debs/the-class-which-has-the-power-to-rob-upon-a-large-scale-has-also-the/)

[Eugene V. Debs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-v-debs/)

## More by Friedrich August von Hayek

> [The system of private property is the most important guaranty of freedom, not only for those who own property, but scarcely less for those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-system-of-private-property-is-the-most-important-guaranty-of/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [By the time any view becomes a majority view, it is no longer the best view: somebody will already have advanced beyond the point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/by-the-time-any-view-becomes-a-majority-view-it-is-no-longer-the-best/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [Freedom can be preserved only if it is treated as a supreme principle which must not be sacrificed for particular advantages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/freedom-can-be-preserved-only-if-it-is-treated-as-a-supreme-principle/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [Should our moral beliefs really prove to be dependent on factual assumptions shown to be incorrect, it would be hardly moral to defend them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/should-our-moral-beliefs-really-prove-to-be-dependent-on-factual/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [It is true that the virtues which are less esteemed and practiced now--independence, self-reliance, and the willingness to bear risks, the readiness to back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/it-is-true-that-the-virtues-which-are-less-esteemed-and-practiced-now/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [Unlike the rationalism of the French Revolution, true liberalism has no quarrel with religion, and I can only deplore the militant and essentially illiberal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/unlike-the-rationalism-of-the-french-revolution-true-liberalism-has/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [We must make the building of a free society once more an intellectual adventure, a deed of courage… Unless we can make the philosophic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-make-the-building-of-a-free-society-once-more-an-intellectual/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [The central problem of management is how spontaneous interaction of people within a firm, each possessing only bits of knowledge, can bring about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-central-problem-of-management-is-how-spontaneous-interaction-of/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [The discussions of every age are filled with the issues on which its leading schools of thought differ. But the general intellectual atmosphere of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-discussions-of-every-age-are-filled-with-the-issues-on-which-its/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [The Nobel Prize confers on an individual an authority which in economics no man ought to possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-nobel-prize-confers-on-an-individual-an-authority-which-in/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [ \[Socialistic\] economic planning, regulation, and intervention pave the way to totalitarianism by building a power structure that will inevitably be seized by the most… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/socialistic-economic-planning-regulation-and-intervention-pave-the/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [It is rather a problem of how to secure the best use of resources known to any of the members of society, for ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/it-is-rather-a-problem-of-how-to-secure-the-best-use-of-resources/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [The state itself becomes more and more identified with the interests of those who run things than with the interests of the people in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-state-itself-becomes-more-and-more-identified-with-the-interests/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [We must face the fact that the preservation of individual freedom is incompatible with a full satisfaction of our views of distributive justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-face-the-fact-that-the-preservation-of-individual-freedom-is/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

> [Human envy is certainly not one of the sources of discontent that a free society can eliminate. It is probably one of the essential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/human-envy-is-certainly-not-one-of-the-sources-of-discontent-that-a/)

[Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

[Explore all 244 Friedrich August von Hayek quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/)

## More Aliens quotes

> [My days – the blossom of my youth and the flower of my manhood – have been darkened by the dreariness of servitude. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-o-connell/my-days-the-blossom-of-my-youth-and-the-flower-of-my-manhood-have/)

[Daniel O'Connell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-o-connell/)

> [Ay-firmative,' Eve said, and tried for a smile. 'Sorry. An Aliens reference always makes me feel better at times like this. Exept I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine/ay-firmative-eve-said-and-tried-for-a-smile-sorry-an-aliens-reference/)

[Rachel Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-caine/)

> [You gonna take the case?" It's not a case. It's a missing person. Sort of." You're gonna have a devil of a time finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/you-gonna-take-the-case-it-s-not-a-case-it-s-a-missing-person-sort-of/)

[Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/)

> [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/)

[Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/)

> [Joel Lane documents a life we don’t quite live, in a city we can’t quite find: half glimpsed and half imagined, we know it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-brenchley/joel-lane-documents-a-life-we-don-t-quite-live-in-a-city-we-can-t/)

Chaz Brenchley

> [Emma was a shocking driver, simultaneously sloppy and petrified, and for the first fifty miles had been absent-mindedly driving with her spectacles on top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/emma-was-a-shocking-driver-simultaneously-sloppy-and-petrified-and/)

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

> [Humans suffer from self-centred notions as to the nature of life. Humans assume that alien life forms should conform to standards that match our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-perry/humans-suffer-from-self-centred-notions-as-to-the-nature-of-life/)

[Steve Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-perry/)

> [If you're going to immerse yourself in a project for three years, why not stake out a chunk of the world that is completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-powers/if-you-re-going-to-immerse-yourself-in-a-project-for-three-years-why/)

[Richard Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-powers/)

> [I'm not a fan of any genre but am a fan of movies that are intelligent and/or funny. That goes across all genres: a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-a-fan-of-any-genre-but-am-a-fan-of-movies-that-are/)

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

> [The respect for human rights, essential if we are to use technology wisely, is not something alien that must be grafted onto science. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-charles-polanyi/the-respect-for-human-rights-essential-if-we-are-to-use-technology/)

[John Charles Polanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-charles-polanyi/)

> [“Intellectualism is a poor master over passion”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twe-stephens/intellectualism-is-a-poor-master-over-passion/)

Twe Stephens

> [Robin Williams was an airman, a doctor, a genie, a nanny, a president, a professor, a bangarang Peter Pan, and everything in between. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/robin-williams-was-an-airman-a-doctor-a-genie-a-nanny-a-president-a/)

[Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/)

> [Evangelicals are distraught over the state of America because they have not been taught that we're aliens here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/evangelicals-are-distraught-over-the-state-of-america-because-they/)

[John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/)

> [Even the Supreme Court, back when it used to makes sense, the Supreme Court has never ruled that a baby born to illegal aliens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/even-the-supreme-court-back-when-it-used-to-makes-sense-the-supreme/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [Some pundits have proposed that the aliens have come here to breed with us. Apparently, too much bike riding or something similar has rendered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/some-pundits-have-proposed-that-the-aliens-have-come-here-to-breed/)

[Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/)

[Browse all 1,329 Aliens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aliens/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The mischievous idea that all public needs should be satisfied by compulsory organization and that all the means that individuals are willing to devote to pubic purposes should be under the control of government, is wholly alien to the basic principles of a free society.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Friedrich August von Hayek"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-needs-should-be-satisfied-by/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Aliens"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-needs-should-be-satisfied-by/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16c/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_aliens_the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-nee_957424.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The mischievous idea that all public needs should be satisfied by compulsory organization and that all the…” — Friedrich August von Hayek",
                "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": "Friedrich August von Hayek",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The mischievous idea that all public...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-needs-should-be-satisfied-by/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-mischievous-idea-that-all-public-needs-should-be-satisfied-by/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```