--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only kind of coercion I recommend is…" description: "\"The only kind of coercion I recommend is mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon by the majority of the people affected.\" — Garrett Hardin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg" --- # The only kind of coercion I recommend is mutual coercion… ![“The only kind of coercion I recommend is mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon by the majority of the people affected.” quote by Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg) > “The only kind of coercion I recommend is mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon by the majority of the people affected.” [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Coercion is acceptable only when mutually agreed upon by those it impacts, ensuring fairness. **In simple terms:** Mutual coercion is fair if everyone agrees. Key Takeaway Ensure consent in collective decisions. Themes ethics consensus governance Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical political When to use this quote - community planning - policy making - team projects Key Concepts political theory social contract Questions to Reflect On - How can groups reach true mutual agreement? - What safeguards prevent coercion abuse? A Different Perspective Consensus can be hard to achieve. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affected/) [Coercion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coercion/) [Coercion Mutually](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coercion-mutually-1929067/) [Coercion Recommend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coercion-recommend-1929069/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Kind Coercion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind-coercion-1929071/) [Majority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/majority/) [Mutual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mutual/) [Mutual Coercion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mutual-coercion-1929068/) [Mutually Agreed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mutually-agreed-1929070/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-borders-of-israel-and-palestine-should-be-based-on-the-1967-lines-2/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“our ability to enter into cooperative relations with one another is based upon the rational insight that we can all be better off if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heath/our-ability-to-enter-into-cooperative-relations-with-one-another-is/) [Joseph Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heath/) > [I'm convinced that, in the long term, a monetary union includes a joint debt policy under strict, mutually agreed upon conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-claude-juncker/i-m-convinced-that-in-the-long-term-a-monetary-union-includes-a-joint/) [Jean-Claude Juncker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-claude-juncker/) > [The social arrangements that produce responsibility are arrangements that create coercion, of some sort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-social-arrangements-that-produce-responsibility-are-arrangements/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [To say that we mutually agree to coercion is not to say that we are required to enjoy it, or even to pretend we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/to-say-that-we-mutually-agree-to-coercion-is-not-to-say-that-we-are/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The idea of painless, nonthreatening coercion is an illusion. Fear is the inseparable companion of coercion, and its inescapable consequence. If you think it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-holt/the-idea-of-painless-nonthreatening-coercion-is-an-illusion-fear-is/) [John Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-holt/) > [“If you require force to promote your ideal, there is something wrong with your ideal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jsb-morse/if-you-require-force-to-promote-your-ideal-there-is-something-wrong/) [JSB Morse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jsb-morse/) > [“Men are moral beings in their untrammelled nature. If constraint and coercion can once be removed they will be happy and if they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-unsworth/men-are-moral-beings-in-their-untrammelled-nature-if-constraint-and/) [Barry Unsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-unsworth/) > [Economic freedom is an essential requisite for political freedom. By enabling people to cooperate with one another without coercion or central direction, it reduces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-friedman/economic-freedom-is-an-essential-requisite-for-political-freedom-by/) [Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/) > [There’s one thing that’s been 'learned' maybe from Tunisia and Egypt that I think is a mistake. And that is that the existing ruler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-sharp/there-s-one-thing-that-s-been-learned-maybe-from-tunisia-and-egypt/) [Gene Sharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-sharp/) > [The First Amendment exists to protect our religious liberty--to ensure that all Americans are able to seek out worship God with all our hearts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/the-first-amendment-exists-to-protect-our-religious-liberty-to-ensure/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [“Therapy requires a collaborative working relationship in which both partners act on the basis of their implicit confidence in the value and efficacy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/therapy-requires-a-collaborative-working-relationship-in-which-both/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“Love is not coercion, and the state is only an agent of coercion. It has no other function and can work no other way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-mcdurmon/love-is-not-coercion-and-the-state-is-only-an-agent-of-coercion-it/) [Joel McDurmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-mcdurmon/) > [Coercion is the basis of every law in the universe,--human or divine. A law is not law without coercion behind it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/coercion-is-the-basis-of-every-law-in-the-universe-human-or-divine-a/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [People forget that there is a big difference between coercion and persuasion. The idea that evangelism is coercive is nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/people-forget-that-there-is-a-big-difference-between-coercion-and/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) ## More by Garrett Hardin > [Ecological differentiation is the necessary condition for coexistence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/ecological-differentiation-is-the-necessary-condition-for-coexistence/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Fundamentalists are panicked by the apparent disintegration of the family, the disappearance of certainty and the decay of morality. Fear leads them to ask,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/fundamentalists-are-panicked-by-the-apparent-disintegration-of-the/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Indeed, our particular concept of private property, which deters us from exhausting the positive resources of the earth, favors pollution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/indeed-our-particular-concept-of-private-property-which-deters-us/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [“Individualism is cherished because it produces freedom, but the gift is conditional.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/individualism-is-cherished-because-it-produces-freedom-but-the-gift/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [But it is no good using the tongs of reason to pull the Fundamentalists' chestnuts out of the fire of contradiction. Their real troubles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/but-it-is-no-good-using-the-tongs-of-reason-to-pull-the/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [To say that we mutually agree to coercion is not to say that we are required to enjoy it, or even to pretend we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/to-say-that-we-mutually-agree-to-coercion-is-not-to-say-that-we-are/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The god who is reputed to have created fleas to keep dogs from moping over their situation must also have created fundamentalists to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-god-who-is-reputed-to-have-created-fleas-to-keep-dogs-from-moping/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [It takes five years for a willing person's mind to change. Have patience with yourself and others when treading in an area protected by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/it-takes-five-years-for-a-willing-person-s-mind-to-change-have/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Economists (and others) who are satisfied with nature-free equations develop a dangerous hubris about the potency of our species](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/economists-and-others-who-are-satisfied-with-nature-free-equations/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [No one should be able to enter a wilderness by mechanical means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/no-one-should-be-able-to-enter-a-wilderness-by-mechanical-means/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The morality of an act is a function of the state of the system at the time it is performed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-morality-of-an-act-is-a-function-of-the-state-of-the-system-at/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Value is a relative concept: the value of each action is determined by comparing it with other possible actions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/value-is-a-relative-concept-the-value-of-each-action-is-determined-by/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [The optimum population is, then, less than the maximum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-optimum-population-is-then-less-than-the-maximum/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [(Technology reliability) x (Human reliability) = (System reliability)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/technology-reliability-x-human-reliability-system-reliability/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [Numeracy: 1. The art of putting numbers to things, that is, assigning amounts to variables in order that practical decisions may be reach. 2.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/numeracy-1-the-art-of-putting-numbers-to-things-that-is-assigning/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) [Explore all 60 Garrett Hardin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) ## More Affected quotes > [To tell you the truth I am hard put to think of anyone who's career was affected significantly by making all those phone calls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dabney-coleman/to-tell-you-the-truth-i-am-hard-put-to-think-of-anyone-who-s-career/) [Dabney Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dabney-coleman/) > [First, climate change is the greatest long-term threat faced by humanity. It could cause more human and financial suffering than the two world wars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-miliband/first-climate-change-is-the-greatest-long-term-threat-faced-by/) [David Miliband](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-miliband/) > [Be a pattern to others, and then all will go well; for as a whole city is affected by the licentious passions and vices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/be-a-pattern-to-others-and-then-all-will-go-well-for-as-a-whole-city/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [At first I thought I would have to put on an English accent and try a sort of affected Shakespeare thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/at-first-i-thought-i-would-have-to-put-on-an-english-accent-and-try-a/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [Every culture, if its natural development is not too much affected by political restrictions, experiences a perpetual renewal of the formative urge, and out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-rocker/every-culture-if-its-natural-development-is-not-too-much-affected-by/) [Rudolf Rocker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-rocker/) > [Don't show them that you are affected.. Instead, show them that you are happy even without them.. To put a sad face on your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharlene05/don-t-show-them-that-you-are-affected-instead-show-them-that-you-are/) [Sharlene05](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharlene05/) > [I wish we could go back to the time when the private lives of our public figures were relevant only if they directly affected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-wish-we-could-go-back-to-the-time-when-the-private-lives-of-our/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [Don't be intimidated by people who seem to be experts. Hear their points of view and get their judgements. But at the end of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/don-t-be-intimidated-by-people-who-seem-to-be-experts-hear-their/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [Who what am I? My answer: I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/who-what-am-i-my-answer-i-am-the-sum-total-of-everything-that-went/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I have wondered why is it that some people are less affected and torn by the verities of life and death that others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-have-wondered-why-is-it-that-some-people-are-less-affected-and-torn/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Then, the other thing that affected my interest in choices growing up was the fact that I was going blind and that meant that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheena-iyengar/then-the-other-thing-that-affected-my-interest-in-choices-growing-up/) [Sheena Iyengar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheena-iyengar/) > [I don't think Wayne Rooney would be affected if you booed him, that's just how he is, but others go under. They really suffer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lampard/i-don-t-think-wayne-rooney-would-be-affected-if-you-booed-him-that-s/) [Frank Lampard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lampard/) > [I'm not good at standing on platforms and persuading people to my political point of view. Nor would I seek to. My gift is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hare/i-m-not-good-at-standing-on-platforms-and-persuading-people-to-my/) [David Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hare/) > [I was trying to hold up a mirror to this country, to reflect the past years or so, and the varying degrees in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/said-sayrafiezadeh/i-was-trying-to-hold-up-a-mirror-to-this-country-to-reflect-the-past/) [Said Sayrafiezadeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/said-sayrafiezadeh/) > [We know COVID-19 hasn't affected communities equally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-cooper/we-know-covid-19-hasn-t-affected-communities-equally/) [Roy Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-cooper/) [Browse all 1,050 Affected quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affected/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only kind of coercion I recommend is mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon by the majority of the people affected.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Garrett Hardin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is-mutual-coercion-mutually/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Affected" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is-mutual-coercion-mutually/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1e/garrett-hardin-11328_affected_the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is_2599083.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The only kind of coercion I recommend is mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon by the majority of the people…” — Garrett Hardin", "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": "Garrett Hardin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The only kind of coercion I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is-mutual-coercion-mutually/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/the-only-kind-of-coercion-i-recommend-is-mutual-coercion-mutually/#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 } } ] } ```