Autonomous Quote by H. L. Mencken
![“[Government] is apprehended, not as a committee of citizens chosen to carry on the communal business of the whole population, but as a separate and autonomous corporation, mainly devoted to exploiting the population for the benefit of its own members.” quote by H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0ec/h-l-mencken-245_autonomous_government-is-apprehended-not-as-a-commi_1115230.jpg)
“[Government] is apprehended, not as a committee of citizens chosen to carry on the communal business of the whole population, but as a separate and autonomous corporation, mainly devoted to exploiting the population for the benefit of its own members.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: "The American Language", 1912
Government acts as a self‑serving corporation exploiting citizens rather than a democratic body.
In simple terms: Government often serves its own interests.
Key Takeaway
Critique power structures.
Themes
government
corporatism
exploitation
democracy
Mood
skeptical
analytical
Type
political
critical
When to use this quote
- policy analysis
- activism
- civic education
Key Concepts
political theory
economics
social contract
Questions to Reflect On
- What mechanisms can curb governmental self‑interest?
- How can citizens hold institutions accountable?
A Different Perspective
May ignore beneficial governmental functions.
![“By profession a biologist, [Thomas Henry Huxley] covered in fact the whole field of the exact sciences, and then bulged through its four fences. Absolutely nothing was uninteresting to him. His curiosity ranged from music to theology and from philosophy to history. He didn't simply know something…” quote by H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f46/h-l-mencken-245_absolutely-nothing_by-profession-a-biologist-thomas-henry-h_5368.jpg)
