--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If mankind is naturally good, he is sure…" description: "\"If mankind is naturally good, he is sure going against his nature more and more of the time. It sounds like a bad joke: the paranoids are after us.\" — ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png" --- # If mankind is naturally good, he is sure going against his… ![“If mankind is naturally good, he is sure going against his nature more and more of the time. It sounds like a bad joke: the paranoids are after us.” quote by Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png) > “If mankind is naturally good, he is sure going against his nature more and more of the time. It sounds like a bad joke: the paranoids are after us.” [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human nature is inherently good, yet people increasingly act against it, leading to paranoia. **In simple terms:** People act against their natural goodness, causing paranoia. Key Takeaway Align actions with innate goodness. Themes human nature paranoia morality Mood analytical critical Type philosophical inquisitive When to use this quote - politics - social media - workplace dynamics - personal ethics Key Concepts cognitive dissonance self‑deception Questions to Reflect On - Why do we betray our nature? - How can society reduce paranoia? A Different Perspective Goodness can be suppressed by external pressures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bad jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-jokes/) [Human nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-nature/) [Jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jokes/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [If we live inside a bad joke, it is up to us to learn, at best and worst, to tell it well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-raban/if-we-live-inside-a-bad-joke-it-is-up-to-us-to-learn-at-best-and/) [Jonathan Raban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-raban/) > [Mankind naturally and generally love to be flatter'd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/mankind-naturally-and-generally-love-to-be-flatter-d/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [I used to think of it as a joke that all paranoids were right. That was a joke in the '60s, but now I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-belzer/i-used-to-think-of-it-as-a-joke-that-all-paranoids-were-right-that/) [Richard Belzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-belzer/) > [Sometimes even paranoids have enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delmore-schwartz/sometimes-even-paranoids-have-enemies/) [Delmore Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delmore-schwartz/) > [I envy paranoids; they actually feel people are paying attention to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/i-envy-paranoids-they-actually-feel-people-are-paying-attention-to/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [Some people think this is paranoia, but it isn't. Paranoids only think everyone is out to get them. Wizards know it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/some-people-think-this-is-paranoia-but-it-isn-t-paranoids-only-think/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Paranoids are not paranoid because they're paranoid, but because they keep putting themselves, fucking idiots, deliberately into paranoid situations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/paranoids-are-not-paranoid-because-they-re-paranoid-but-because-they/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [Even paranoids have real enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/delmore-schwartz/even-paranoids-have-real-enemies/) [Delmore Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/delmore-schwartz/) > [Sometimes paranoids have enemies, and conspiracies are only laughable when they fail to materialize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-meacham/sometimes-paranoids-have-enemies-and-conspiracies-are-only-laughable/) [Jon Meacham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-meacham/) > [“But paranoids might have real enemies and obsessives might obsess about really important stuff.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-goff/but-paranoids-might-have-real-enemies-and-obsessives-might-obsess/) [Stan Goff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-goff/) > [You can only have a war with another country. You can't have a war with bad temper or a war against paranoids.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/you-can-only-have-a-war-with-another-country-you-can-t-have-a-war/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“Even paranoids have enemies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-mcdonald/even-paranoids-have-enemies/) [Gregory McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-mcdonald/) > [“Cryptographers are professional paranoids”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fagone/cryptographers-are-professional-paranoids/) [Jason Fagone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-fagone/) > [Paranoids are the only ones who notice things anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-broyard/paranoids-are-the-only-ones-who-notice-things-anymore/) [Anatole Broyard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-broyard/) > [Fate likes to tease paranoids.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/fate-likes-to-tease-paranoids/) [Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/) ## More by Herbert Gold > [To construct a proper privacy, making it a privilege rather than a burden, we first need to construct a community-love, family, politics, art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/to-construct-a-proper-privacy-making-it-a-privilege-rather-than-a/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [He carried his childhood like a hurt warm bird held to his middle-aged breast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/he-carried-his-childhood-like-a-hurt-warm-bird-held-to-his-middle/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Sometimes he advertises himself assiduously, writing a few words and then rushing to the talk show to wave his flag.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/sometimes-he-advertises-himself-assiduously-writing-a-few-words-and/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Literature boils with the madcap careers of writers brought to the edge by the demands of living on their nerves, wringing out their memories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/literature-boils-with-the-madcap-careers-of-writers-brought-to-the/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Conformity is inevitable when folks huddle together in rebellion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/conformity-is-inevitable-when-folks-huddle-together-in-rebellion/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [With short stories, the story-teller must have a story to tell, not merely some sweet prose to take out for a walk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/with-short-stories-the-story-teller-must-have-a-story-to-tell-not/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Old age is wasted on the elderly: the young know what to do with it-insist on something different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/old-age-is-wasted-on-the-elderly-the-young-know-what-to-do-with-it/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [The fact that all of us die anyway (the rumor turns out to be true) is a mere detail in the celestial glow of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/the-fact-that-all-of-us-die-anyway-the-rumor-turns-out-to-be-true-is/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [The magic will which makes us see the other side of our natures-dream and disaster, catastrophe and fulfillment-is the great permanent challenge of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/the-magic-will-which-makes-us-see-the-other-side-of-our-natures-dream/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Diverting the internal traffic between the Writer as Angel of Light and the Writer as Hustler is that scribbling child in a grown-up body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/diverting-the-internal-traffic-between-the-writer-as-angel-of-light/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [I always ask young writers, 'Are you certain you want to be a writer? If you're absolutely sure, then do it.' If you really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/i-always-ask-young-writers-are-you-certain-you-want-to-be-a-writer-if/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Isolation from power makes men look for a mob in which they can be strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/isolation-from-power-makes-men-look-for-a-mob-in-which-they-can-be/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [The would-bees take their honey from the flowers of creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/the-would-bees-take-their-honey-from-the-flowers-of-creation/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [Catastrophe and desire are linked in our lives as the moon is linked to that reflected light from the sun which enables the eye…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/catastrophe-and-desire-are-linked-in-our-lives-as-the-moon-is-linked/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) > [The steady pressure to consume, absorb, participate, receive, by eye, ear, mouth, and mail involves a cruelty to intestines, blood pressure, and psyche unparalleled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/the-steady-pressure-to-consume-absorb-participate-receive-by-eye-ear/) [Herbert Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) [Explore all 17 Herbert Gold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/) ## More Bad jokes quotes > [I wish I had never met you. There would be no need to impress you. No need to want you. No need for loving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-wish-i-had-never-met-you-there-would-be-no-need-to-impress-you-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you know me you know how uncool I am. I stutter, wear bad clothes, make bad jokes, make conversation uncomfortable, the list goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-wentz/if-you-know-me-you-know-how-uncool-i-am-i-stutter-wear-bad-clothes/) [Pete Wentz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-wentz/) > [The two-party system is a bad joke on the American people; when it comes to Republicans and Democrats remember they are two sides of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-russo/the-two-party-system-is-a-bad-joke-on-the-american-people-when-it/) [Aaron Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-russo/) > [“in this society, things you’d think could only be bad jokes actually happen all the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banana-yoshimoto/in-this-society-things-you-d-think-could-only-be-bad-jokes-actually/) [Banana Yoshimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banana-yoshimoto/) > [Bad jokes and gay marriage are destroying this country. But torture can save it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/bad-jokes-and-gay-marriage-are-destroying-this-country-but-torture/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [“here was a particular kind of energy in those early days, something I've only really found in startups. The regulars - the boring 9-to-5…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yudhanjaya-wijeratne/here-was-a-particular-kind-of-energy-in-those-early-days-something-i/) [Yudhanjaya Wijeratne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yudhanjaya-wijeratne/) > [No matter how funny the bad jokes are, the jokes they create wants to build the moment with you with their effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-matter-how-funny-the-bad-jokes-are-the-jokes-they-create-wants-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A girl can tell I like her when I blush or start telling bad jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zac-efron/a-girl-can-tell-i-like-her-when-i-blush-or-start-telling-bad-jokes/) [Zac Efron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zac-efron/) > [When your time is GOOD Then your mistakes are taken as jokes But when your time is BAD then even your jokes are noticed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheetal-soni/when-your-time-is-good-then-your-mistakes-are-taken-as-jokes-but-when/) Sheetal Soni > [So this is it. You are scored on my heart, Clark. You were from the first day you walked in, with your ridiculous clothes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jojo-moyes/so-this-is-it-you-are-scored-on-my-heart-clark-you-were-from-the/) [Jojo Moyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jojo-moyes/) > [When your time is good, your mistakes r taken as a joke. But When your time is bad, even your jokes r noticed as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-your-time-is-good-your-mistakes-r-taken-as-a-joke-but-when-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It was a strange feeling going into a church I did not know for a service that I did not really believe in, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-palin/it-was-a-strange-feeling-going-into-a-church-i-did-not-know-for-a/) [Michael Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-palin/) > [I don't consider myself a comic but a performer. A comic tells bad jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bernhard/i-don-t-consider-myself-a-comic-but-a-performer-a-comic-tells-bad/) [Sandra Bernhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bernhard/) > [Death meant little to me. It was the last joke in a series of bad jokes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/death-meant-little-to-me-it-was-the-last-joke-in-a-series-of-bad-jokes/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [My life is passed in making bad jokes and seeing them turn into true prophecies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-life-is-passed-in-making-bad-jokes-and-seeing-them-turn-into-true/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 43 Bad jokes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-jokes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If mankind is naturally good, he is sure going against his nature more and more of the time. It sounds like a bad joke: the paranoids are after us.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Herbert Gold" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure-going-against-his-nature-more/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bad jokes" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure-going-against-his-nature-more/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a96/herbert-gold-30296_bad-jokes_if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure_2823524.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If mankind is naturally good, he is sure going against his nature more and more of the time. It sounds like…” — Herbert Gold", "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": "Herbert Gold", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-gold/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If mankind is naturally good, he...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure-going-against-his-nature-more/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-gold/if-mankind-is-naturally-good-he-is-sure-going-against-his-nature-more/#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 } } ] } ```