--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is a campaign not for abundance but…" description: "\"It is a campaign not for abundance but for austerity. It is a campaign not for more freedom but for less. Strangest of all, it is a campaign not just a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/george-monbiot-2762_abundance_it-is-a-campaign-not-for-abundance-but-f_2090105.jpg" --- # It is a campaign not for abundance but for austerity. It… ![“It is a campaign not for abundance but for austerity. It is a campaign not for more freedom but for less. Strangest of all, it is a campaign not just against other people, but against ourselves.” quote by George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/george-monbiot-2762_abundance_it-is-a-campaign-not-for-abundance-but-f_2090105.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/george-monbiot-2762_abundance_it-is-a-campaign-not-for-abundance-but-f_2090105.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/george-monbiot-2762_abundance_it-is-a-campaign-not-for-abundance-but-f_2090105.jpg) > “It is a campaign not for abundance but for austerity. It is a campaign not for more freedom but for less. Strangest of all, it is a campaign not just against other people, but against ourselves.” [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author critiques campaigns that prioritize restriction over abundance, suggesting self‑imposed limits can be self‑defeating. **In simple terms:** Austerity campaigns may harm personal freedom. Key Takeaway Balance desire for freedom with responsible limits. Themes politics philosophy self‑control Mood critical thought‑provoking Type political philosophical When to use this quote - policy debate - personal budgeting - social activism Key Concepts Austerity freedom self‑reflection Questions to Reflect On - Is limiting yourself always beneficial? - How can we pursue freedom responsibly? A Different Perspective Extreme austerity can lead to resentment and reduced well‑being. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abundance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abundance/) [Abundance Austerity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abundance-austerity-4126726/) [Austerity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/austerity/) [Austerity Campaign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/austerity-campaign-4126725/) [Campaign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaign/) [Campaign Abundance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaign-abundance-4126727/) [Campaigns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaigns/) [Climate change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate-change/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Global warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global-warming/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [We are witnessing the death of abundance and the borning of austerity, for what may be a long, long time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gross/we-are-witnessing-the-death-of-abundance-and-the-borning-of-austerity/) [Bill Gross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gross/) > [Nobody ever rioted for austerity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/nobody-ever-rioted-for-austerity/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The emphasis so far on fiscal austerity, while to a degree necessary for the countries facing market funding difficulties, is excessive when carried out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dallara/the-emphasis-so-far-on-fiscal-austerity-while-to-a-degree-necessary/) [Charles Dallara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dallara/) > [We used to be one of the richest countries in the world, but we are now on a path towards under-development. This austerity that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marine-le-pen/we-used-to-be-one-of-the-richest-countries-in-the-world-but-we-are/) [Marine Le Pen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marine-le-pen/) > [The world has conducted a massive macro-economic experiment since the cataclysm of 2008. In Europe, the fans of austerity have had their chance, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eliot-spitzer/the-world-has-conducted-a-massive-macro-economic-experiment-since-the/) [Eliot Spitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eliot-spitzer/) > [“If the surprise outcome of the recent UK referendum - on whether to leave or remain in the European Union - teaches us anything,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-morritt/if-the-surprise-outcome-of-the-recent-uk-referendum-on-whether-to/) [Alex Morritt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-morritt/) > [When people are running up more and more debt for housing, they call that "real wealth." It exposes what's wrong in the mainstream economics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hudson/when-people-are-running-up-more-and-more-debt-for-housing-they-call/) [Michael Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hudson/) > [It is opposition to economic orthodoxy that leads us into austerity and cuts. But it is also a thirst for something more communal, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-corbyn/it-is-opposition-to-economic-orthodoxy-that-leads-us-into-austerity/) [Jeremy Corbyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-corbyn/) > [You can be creative only when there is abandonment-which means, really, there is no sense of compulsion, no fear of not being, of not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/you-can-be-creative-only-when-there-is-abandonment-which-means-really/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [The flaw in, say, austerity, is that its success is predicated on the relative exactitude of math rather than the shifting, liquid imperfection of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-weber/the-flaw-in-say-austerity-is-that-its-success-is-predicated-on-the/) [Steven Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-weber/) > [Too many politicians seem to reach for 'infrastructure' as the default answer to investment, as if roads and bridges were the answer to everything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-mazzucato/too-many-politicians-seem-to-reach-for-infrastructure-as-the-default/) [Mariana Mazzucato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-mazzucato/) > [“South of Larissa the landscape began to change. Jude watched an irrigation machine like a giant stick insect creeping over a field, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-alkazraji/south-of-larissa-the-landscape-began-to-change-jude-watched-an/) [Paul Alkazraji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-alkazraji/) > [I believe that if we are able to, obviously we need to ensure that we have a robust budget that's balanced, but there's no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jagmeet-singh/i-believe-that-if-we-are-able-to-obviously-we-need-to-ensure-that-we/) [Jagmeet Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jagmeet-singh/) > [“It was my good fortune to be linked with Mme. Curie through twenty years of sublime and unclouded friendship. I came to admire her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/it-was-my-good-fortune-to-be-linked-with-mme-curie-through-twenty/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Mainstream economic theories popular in the last several decades have tended to downplay the government's role in markets and to increase skepticism about even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-mazzucato/mainstream-economic-theories-popular-in-the-last-several-decades-have/) [Mariana Mazzucato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-mazzucato/) ## More by George Monbiot > [If we want to prevent both climate and ecological catastrophes, the key task is to minimise the amount of land we use to feed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/if-we-want-to-prevent-both-climate-and-ecological-catastrophes-the/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [“The wealth creators of neoliberal mythology are some of the most effective wealth destroyers the world has ever seen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-wealth-creators-of-neoliberal-mythology-are-some-of-the-most/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The schedules are crammed with shows urging us to travel further, drive faster, build bigger, buy more, yet none of them are deemed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-schedules-are-crammed-with-shows-urging-us-to-travel-further/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The ideology of consumption is so prevalent that it has become invisible: it is the plastic soup in which we swim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-ideology-of-consumption-is-so-prevalent-that-it-has-become/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [I might find myself standing, transfixed, by the roadside, watching a sparrowhawk hunting among the bushes, astonished that other people could ignore it. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/i-might-find-myself-standing-transfixed-by-the-roadside-watching-a/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Economic growth is the aggregate effect of the quest to accumulate capital and extract profit. Capitalism collapses without growth, yet perpetual growth on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/economic-growth-is-the-aggregate-effect-of-the-quest-to-accumulate/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Even when political reporting is not reduced to personality, political photography is. An article might offer depth and complexity, but is illustrated with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/even-when-political-reporting-is-not-reduced-to-personality-political/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Progress is measured by the speed at which we destroy the conditions that sustain life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/progress-is-measured-by-the-speed-at-which-we-destroy-the-conditions/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [We are often told we are materialistic. It seems to me, we are not materialistic enough. We have a disrespect for materials. We use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/we-are-often-told-we-are-materialistic-it-seems-to-me-we-are-not/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [People believe Loose Change because it proposes a closed world: comprehensible, controllable, small. Despite the great evil which runs it, it is more companionable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/people-believe-loose-change-because-it-proposes-a-closed-world/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [David Cameron's government criminalised squatting in empty homes. This too was previously a civil matter. Thousands of homeless people found themselves on the wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/david-cameron-s-government-criminalised-squatting-in-empty-homes-this/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [If I could turn back the clock, magically deleting my prostate cancer, the surgery I needed and its complications, would I do so? It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/if-i-could-turn-back-the-clock-magically-deleting-my-prostate-cancer/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [The grim truth is that the rich are able to live as they do only because others are poor: there is neither the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/the-grim-truth-is-that-the-rich-are-able-to-live-as-they-do-only/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Technological change is essential, but to a natural historian it often feels cold and distancing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/technological-change-is-essential-but-to-a-natural-historian-it-often/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) > [Yes, the car is still useful - for a few people it's essential. It would make a good servant. But it has become our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-monbiot/yes-the-car-is-still-useful-for-a-few-people-it-s-essential-it-would/) [George Monbiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) [Explore all 151 George Monbiot quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-monbiot/) ## More Abundance quotes > [ When the fountains of government \[borrowing\] abundance began to dry up, when through lack of funds and the impossibility of negotiating fresh loans the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-t-flynn/when-the-fountains-of-government-borrowing-abundance-began-to-dry-up/) [John T. Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-t-flynn/) > [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. The Scripture says little to satisfy our curiosity; but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-newton/we-have-no-clear-ideas-of-the-agency-of-demonic-spirits-nor-is-it/) [John Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-newton/) > [Like the water of a deep stream, love is always too much. We did not make it. Though we drink till we burst, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/like-the-water-of-a-deep-stream-love-is-always-too-much-we-did-not/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“Life is open to us all. No one will ever see life exactly the same as another. Some folks will argue that one who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sereda-aleta-dailey/life-is-open-to-us-all-no-one-will-ever-see-life-exactly-the-same-as/) [Sereda Aleta Dailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sereda-aleta-dailey/) > [Our obsession with material things and lack of self-worth is evident in our need for an abundance of momentary luxuries and must-have amenities that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-i/our-obsession-with-material-things-and-lack-of-self-worth-is-evident/) [T.I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-i/) > [Like the sea itself, the unconscious yields an endless and self-replenishing abundance of creatures, a wealth beyond our fathoming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/like-the-sea-itself-the-unconscious-yields-an-endless-and-self/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [There are times when born hollandaise heads, as well as nouveaux turbot freaks and recherche escargotphiles alike crave the saignet abundance of a New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gael-greene/there-are-times-when-born-hollandaise-heads-as-well-as-nouveaux/) [Gael Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gael-greene/) > [I always tell Asian actors, especially Filipinos wanting to break into Hollywood, to study, study and study and show their best. I haven't stopped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reggie-lee/i-always-tell-asian-actors-especially-filipinos-wanting-to-break-into/) [Reggie Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reggie-lee/) > [“Without darkness, we may never know how bright the stars shine. Without battles, we could not know what victory feels like. Without adversity, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-anne/without-darkness-we-may-never-know-how-bright-the-stars-shine-without/) [Julie-Anne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-anne/) > [It is no small honour that God for our sake has so magnificently adorned the world, in order that we may not only be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/it-is-no-small-honour-that-god-for-our-sake-has-so-magnificently/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [frustration, complication and misery are available in abundance, but so is God's grace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/frustration-complication-and-misery-are-available-in-abundance-but-so/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [I dreamt a limitless book, A book unbound, Its leaves scattered in fantastic abundance On every line there was a new horizon drawn, New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-dreamt-a-limitless-book-a-book-unbound-its-leaves-scattered-in/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [I used to be a columnist for 'Golf Monthly' and have contributed articles for national newspapers based on the humour that is in abundance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-carrott/i-used-to-be-a-columnist-for-golf-monthly-and-have-contributed/) [Jasper Carrott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-carrott/) > [Remember, whatever you focus upon, increases...When you focus on the things you need, you'll find those needs increasing. If you concentrate your thoughts on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/remember-whatever-you-focus-upon-increases-when-you-focus-on-the/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) > [Don't measure the height of your Christmas tree. Measure the abundance of the love present in your heart! Have a Blessed Christmas!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-measure-the-height-of-your-christmas-tree-measure-the-abundance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 1,251 Abundance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abundance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is a campaign not for abundance but for austerity. It is a campaign not for more freedom but for less. 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