--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The hatred Americans have for their own…" description: "\"The hatred Americans have for their own government is pathological, if understandable. At one level it is simply thwarted greed: since our religion is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/gore-vidal-466_bucks_the-hatred-americans-have-for-their-own_775873.jpg" --- # The hatred Americans have for their own government is… ![“The hatred Americans have for their own government is pathological, if understandable. At one level it is simply thwarted greed: since our religion is making a buck, giving a part of that buck to any government is an act against nature.” quote by Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/gore-vidal-466_bucks_the-hatred-americans-have-for-their-own_775873.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/gore-vidal-466_bucks_the-hatred-americans-have-for-their-own_775873.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/gore-vidal-466_bucks_the-hatred-americans-have-for-their-own_775873.jpg) > “The hatred Americans have for their own government is pathological, if understandable. At one level it is simply thwarted greed: since our religion is making a buck, giving a part of that buck to any government is an act against nature.” [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ## 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 argues that Americans' hatred for their government is both a rational response to greed and a pathological condition. **In simple terms:** Government hate is partly justified, partly unhealthy. Key Takeaway Recognize and address systemic greed. Themes politics psychology economics Mood critical reflective Type analytical provocative When to use this quote - public policy analysis - activism - civic education Key Concepts cynicism social critique Questions to Reflect On - How can we differentiate healthy skepticism from pathology? - What reforms could lessen governmental greed? A Different Perspective Not all distrust is pathological; reforms can reduce resentment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Americans Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americans-government-492570/) [Bucks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bucks/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Government Pathological](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government-pathological-3181526/) [Greed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greed/) [Greed Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greed-religion-3181525/) [Hatred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hatred/) [Hatred Americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hatred-americans-2606249/) [Insulting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insulting/) [Levels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/levels/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) ## Related quotes > [The hatred Americans have for their own government is pathological ... at one level it is simply thwarted greed: since our religion is making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-hatred-americans-have-for-their-own-government-is-pathological-at/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [You can't go by what the governments say or do. It's not the governments. It's on the street where there's more hatred of Americans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/you-can-t-go-by-what-the-governments-say-or-do-it-s-not-the/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [“The struggle between human bondage and universal freedom, the desire to destroy this government and dishonor her flag, the cruel hatred of Americans toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-pierce-alleman/the-struggle-between-human-bondage-and-universal-freedom-the-desire/) [Matilda Pierce Alleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-pierce-alleman/) > [I think Saudi Arabia often finances radical Islam and the teaching of hatred to the West and hatred of Americans. I think it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/i-think-saudi-arabia-often-finances-radical-islam-and-the-teaching-of/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) > [Richard Hofstadter, in his famous book which was written in the time of the McCarthy period in the 1950 and 1960s, Anti-intellectualism in American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-wallach-scott/richard-hofstadter-in-his-famous-book-which-was-written-in-the-time/) [Joan Wallach Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-wallach-scott/) > [America has granted every wish of black Americans. It has made government the head of the black family; it has integrated the schools and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lee-peterson/america-has-granted-every-wish-of-black-americans-it-has-made/) [Jesse Lee Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-lee-peterson/) > [Americans - not the government - must be in charge of deciding what the truth is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hagerty/americans-not-the-government-must-be-in-charge-of-deciding-what-the/) [Bill Hagerty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hagerty/) > [I also think that there is a huge failure in the American education system to educate Americans about where we, our system, our government,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-also-think-that-there-is-a-huge-failure-in-the-american-education/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [Why do Americans find government so baffling and irritating-even though many of us depend on public programs for a secure retirement, an affordable mortgage,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theda-skocpol/why-do-americans-find-government-so-baffling-and-irritating-even/) [Theda Skocpol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theda-skocpol/) > [Almost 60,000 average Americans had the courage to go out and charge those beaches on Normandy, to drop out of airplanes who knows where,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-santorum/almost-60-000-average-americans-had-the-courage-to-go-out-and-charge/) [Rick Santorum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-santorum/) > [I give money to Unicef because I like the 'bang for your buck' aspect. Here's $10, go and save 1,000 kids from blindness!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emo-philips/i-give-money-to-unicef-because-i-like-the-bang-for-your-buck-aspect/) [Emo Philips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emo-philips/) > [I want to break up the Wall Street banks. Hillary Clinton doesn't. I want to raise the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-want-to-break-up-the-wall-street-banks-hillary-clinton-doesn-t-i/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I bet a guy at a bar 50 bucks that I was more dysfunctional than he was. He raped me. So I tipped him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-a-guy-at-a-bar-50-bucks-that-i-was-more-dysfunctional-than-he/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm just a little old cartoonist, tryin' to make a buck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lantz/i-m-just-a-little-old-cartoonist-tryin-to-make-a-buck/) [Walter Lantz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lantz/) > [As a kid I had buck teeth and braces and acne. I hated what I saw. I'm still not comfortable, but that's why I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/as-a-kid-i-had-buck-teeth-and-braces-and-acne-i-hated-what-i-saw-i-m/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) ## More by Gore Vidal > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the Vietcong are correct in wanting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/many-people-in-the-united-states-happen-to-believe-that-united-states/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“It is curious how little interested we are in the sexual desires of those who do not attract us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-little-interested-we-are-in-the-sexual-desires-of/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/style-is-knowing-who-you-are-what-you-want-to-say-and-not-giving-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The oligarchs think that the people are both dangerous and stupid. Their point is moot. But we do know that the oligarchs are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-oligarchs-think-that-the-people-are-both-dangerous-and-stupid/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [It is curious how often one prefers his enemies to his friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-often-one-prefers-his-enemies-to-his-friends/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [As societies grow decadent, the language grows decadent, too. Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/as-societies-grow-decadent-the-language-grows-decadent-too-words-are/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Rome ... at its most decadent, had never thought of hiring an actor to go through the motions of being an emperor while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/rome-at-its-most-decadent-had-never-thought-of-hiring-an-actor-to-go/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [History is nothing but gossip about the past, with the hope that it might be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/history-is-nothing-but-gossip-about-the-past-with-the-hope-that-it/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The malady of civilized man is his knowledge of death. The good artist, like the wise man, addresses himself to life and invests with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-malady-of-civilized-man-is-his-knowledge-of-death-the-good-artist/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Sex is a continuum. You go through different phases along life's way... and if you don't, you've been sort of cheated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-different-phases-along-life-s-way/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [All I want is that Americans still be able to read the alphabet in a hundred years. I am not very ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/all-i-want-is-that-americans-still-be-able-to-read-the-alphabet-in-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I do not admire 'the people,' as such. No one really does. Their folk wisdom is usually false, their instincts predatory. Even their sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-do-not-admire-the-people-as-such-no-one-really-does-their-folk/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“One of the problems of a society as tightly controlled as ours is that we get so little information about what those of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/one-of-the-problems-of-a-society-as-tightly-controlled-as-ours-is/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Explore all 539 Gore Vidal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ## More Bucks quotes > [As a kid I had buck teeth and braces and acne. I hated what I saw. I'm still not comfortable, but that's why I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-manson/as-a-kid-i-had-buck-teeth-and-braces-and-acne-i-hated-what-i-saw-i-m/) [Marilyn Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-manson/) > [I'm just a little old cartoonist, tryin' to make a buck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lantz/i-m-just-a-little-old-cartoonist-tryin-to-make-a-buck/) [Walter Lantz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lantz/) > [I bet a guy at a bar 50 bucks that I was more dysfunctional than he was. He raped me. So I tipped him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-a-guy-at-a-bar-50-bucks-that-i-was-more-dysfunctional-than-he/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I want to break up the Wall Street banks. Hillary Clinton doesn't. I want to raise the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-want-to-break-up-the-wall-street-banks-hillary-clinton-doesn-t-i/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I give money to Unicef because I like the 'bang for your buck' aspect. Here's $10, go and save 1,000 kids from blindness!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emo-philips/i-give-money-to-unicef-because-i-like-the-bang-for-your-buck-aspect/) [Emo Philips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emo-philips/) > [The biggest thing is getting the kid in a kart - they have to buy it and that's the biggest thing. You can go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bubba-wallace/the-biggest-thing-is-getting-the-kid-in-a-kart-they-have-to-buy-it/) [Bubba Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bubba-wallace/) > [If I had a picture of two handcuffed criminals being booked, I would cut the picture in half and get five bucks for each.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/weegee/if-i-had-a-picture-of-two-handcuffed-criminals-being-booked-i-would/) [Weegee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/weegee/) > [Don't ever rob a bank. Enjoy life. Have fun. Choose to be happy now; don't wait until you're 'successful,' because honestly, I was as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-farrelly/don-t-ever-rob-a-bank-enjoy-life-have-fun-choose-to-be-happy-now-don/) [Peter Farrelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-farrelly/) > [It's not like being a professional basketball player where you're in a big house. 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The Jews believe that Barbra Streisand is worth $1,000 bucks a ticket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-giraldo/look-at-the-insane-things-the-jews-believe-the-jews-believe-that/) [Greg Giraldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-giraldo/) [Browse all 425 Bucks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bucks/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The hatred Americans have for their own government is pathological, if understandable. 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