--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Mexicans had fired the first shot…" description: "\"“The Mexicans had fired the first shot. But they had done what the American government wanted, according to Colonel Hitchcock, who wrote in his diary, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg" --- # The Mexicans had fired the first shot. But they had done… ![“The Mexicans had fired the first shot. But they had done what the American government wanted, according to Colonel Hitchcock, who wrote in his diary, even before those first incidents: I have said from the first that the United States are the aggressors. . . . We have not one particle of right to…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg) > ““The Mexicans had fired the first shot. But they had done what the American government wanted, according to Colonel Hitchcock, who wrote in his diary, even before those first incidents: I have said from the first that the United States are the aggressors. . . . We have not one particle of right to be here. . . . It looks as if the government sent a small force on purpose to bring on a war, so as to have a pretext for taking California and as much of this country as it chooses, for, whatever becomes of this army, there is no doubt of a war between the United States and Mexico. . . . My heart is not in this business . . . but, as a military man, I am bound to execute orders.”” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## 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 U.S. aggression in Mexico, suggesting war was pre‑planned for territorial gain. **In simple terms:** U.S. provoked war for expansion. Key Takeaway Question motives behind political actions. Themes imperialism war political manipulation Mood critical thought‑provoking Type historical political When to use this quote - policy debates - historical education - activism Key Concepts historical analysis ethical critique power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What evidence supports or refutes this view? - How do we hold leaders accountable? A Different Perspective The perspective may oversimplify complex causes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-government/) [Military man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military-man/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) ## Related quotes > [If there is no sufficient reason for war, the war party will make war on one pretext, then invent another... after the war is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-la-follette/if-there-is-no-sufficient-reason-for-war-the-war-party-will-make-war-2/) Robert M. La Follette > [We preferred our own way of living. We were no expense to the government. All we wanted was peace and to be left alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crazy-horse/we-preferred-our-own-way-of-living-we-were-no-expense-to-the/) [Crazy Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crazy-horse/) > [Everyone must have a shot at the American Dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-schultz/everyone-must-have-a-shot-at-the-american-dream/) [Howard Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-schultz/) > [Our constituents did not send us to Washington to shut down the government. They sent us here to make it more accountable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-womack/our-constituents-did-not-send-us-to-washington-to-shut-down-the/) [Steve Womack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-womack/) > [Every American deserves a shot at the American dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/every-american-deserves-a-shot-at-the-american-dream/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [This young man-whether he's my son or a stranger-repeatedly declares, "I didn't do it, I didn't do it." And he's shot down. That's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marguerite-oswald/this-young-man-whether-he-s-my-son-or-a-stranger-repeatedly-declares/) Marguerite Oswald > [“They looked at the world around them and saw that the government was a ball of wasteful red tape; that the taxi industry treated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-bilton/they-looked-at-the-world-around-them-and-saw-that-the-government-was/) [Nick Bilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-bilton/) > [The God of heaven sent some of His choicest spirits to lay the foundation of this government. And he has sent other choice spirits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/the-god-of-heaven-sent-some-of-his-choicest-spirits-to-lay-the/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [If this phrase of the 'balance of power' is to be always an argument for war, the pretext for war will never be wanting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bright/if-this-phrase-of-the-balance-of-power-is-to-be-always-an-argument/) [John Bright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bright/) > [“Since 9/11, the U.S. government has sent over $23 billion to states and cities in the name of homeland security. Almost none of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-ripley/since-9-11-the-u-s-government-has-sent-over-23-billion-to-states-and/) [Amanda Ripley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-ripley/) > [If there is no sufficient reason for war, the war party will make war on one pretext, then invent another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-la-follette-sr/if-there-is-no-sufficient-reason-for-war-the-war-party-will-make-war/) [Robert M. La Follette, Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-la-follette-sr/) > [I never knew a government yet that wanted to do anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/i-never-knew-a-government-yet-that-wanted-to-do-anything/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [“There’s nothing like a military man, even out of uniform.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/there-s-nothing-like-a-military-man-even-out-of-uniform/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [I'm a military man, I did what I did only because my country had to be saved from tribalism and feudalism. If I failed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mengistu-haile-mariam/i-m-a-military-man-i-did-what-i-did-only-because-my-country-had-to-be/) [Mengistu Haile Mariam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mengistu-haile-mariam/) > [“You are a military man and should know better. If there is one science into which man has probed continuously and successfully, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/you-are-a-military-man-and-should-know-better-if-there-is-one-science/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) ## More by Howard Zinn > [“A black man, Benjamin Banneker, who taught himself mathematics and astronomy, predicted accurately a solar eclipse, and was appointed to plan the new city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-black-man-benjamin-banneker-who-taught-himself-mathematics-and/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-no-flag-large-enough-to-cover-the-shame-of-killing-innocent/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The mountain of history books under which we all stand leans so heavily in the other direction-so tremblingly respectful of states and statesmen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mountain-of-history-books-under-which-we-all-stand-leans-so/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/let-s-face-a-historical-truth-we-have-never-had-a-free-market-we-have/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I can UNDERSTAND pessimism, but I don't BELIEVE in it. It's not simply a matter of faith, but of historical EVIDENCE. Not overwhelming evidence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/i-can-understand-pessimism-but-i-don-t-believe-in-it-it-s-not-simply/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it. It is a corrective to the sluggishness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/protest-beyond-the-law-is-not-a-departure-from-democracy-it-is/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Now I have been studying very closely what happens every day in the courts in Boston, Massachusetts. You would be astounded--maybe you wouldn't, maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/now-i-have-been-studying-very-closely-what-happens-every-day-in-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Sexual purity was to be the special virtue of a woman. It was assumed that men, as a matter of biological nature, would sin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/sexual-purity-was-to-be-the-special-virtue-of-a-woman-it-was-assumed/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Middle-class Americans might be invited to join a new elite by attacks against the corruption of the established rich. The New Yorker Cadwallader Colden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/middle-class-americans-might-be-invited-to-join-a-new-elite-by/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-those-in-charge-of-our-society-politicians-corporate-executives/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-were-not-born-critical-of-existing-society-there-was-a-moment-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“George Washington had turned down the requests of blacks, seeking freedom, to fight in the Revolutionary army. So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More American government quotes > [“For the same reason , the American government has invented a completely new juridical category , that of 'illegal enemy combatants'. In general, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tzvetan-todorov/for-the-same-reason-the-american-government-has-invented-a-completely/) [Tzvetan Todorov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tzvetan-todorov/) > [“vividly revealed the arms industry’s ‘constant tendency towards bribery, and the playing off of one country against another to sell arms’. It also exposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-feinstein/vividly-revealed-the-arms-industry-s-constant-tendency-towards/) [Andrew Feinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-feinstein/) > [“Are they a secret part of the American government or a powerful private corporation? Is there a difference? To me, it doesn’t matter. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nnedi-okorafor/are-they-a-secret-part-of-the-american-government-or-a-powerful/) [Nnedi Okorafor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nnedi-okorafor/) > [“When we examine, not the language of the propaganda, but the witness of the combatants themselves, religion does not occupy the first place. Their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tzvetan-todorov/when-we-examine-not-the-language-of-the-propaganda-but-the-witness-of/) [Tzvetan Todorov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tzvetan-todorov/) > [I'm an American. Why would I not go with my government?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-hardy/i-m-an-american-why-would-i-not-go-with-my-government/) [Greg Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-hardy/) > [I am opposed to any form of tyranny over the mind of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-am-opposed-to-any-form-of-tyranny-over-the-mind-of-man/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [ With almost no time to decide, \[your loved ones\] gave the entire country an incalculable gift. They saved the Capitol from attack. They saved… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/with-almost-no-time-to-decide-your-loved-ones-gave-the-entire-country/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [To take a single step beyond the boundaries specially drawn around the powers of Congress is to take possession of a boundless field of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/to-take-a-single-step-beyond-the-boundaries-specially-drawn-around/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [No. But then the American Government--whatever branch--has never really grasped the concept of tribal identity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/no-but-then-the-american-government-whatever-branch-has-never-really/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [“Whatever his disappointments, Hamilton, forty, must have left Philadelphia with an immense feeling of accomplishment. The Whiskey Rebellion had been suppressed, the country's finances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/whatever-his-disappointments-hamilton-forty-must-have-left/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“American breweries preexisted American government; some of the breweries’ staunchest supporters were also the leaders of the new nation. In colonial America, the alehouse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marty-nachel/american-breweries-preexisted-american-government-some-of-the/) Marty Nachel > [I know these days it sounds a little odd, but American governments are very fearful of European reaction. They were afraid we would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scheuer/i-know-these-days-it-sounds-a-little-odd-but-american-governments-are/) [Michael Scheuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scheuer/) > [“In 1786, Jefferson, then the American ambassador to France, and Adams, then the American ambassador to Britain, met in London with Sidi Haji Abdul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walid-shoebat/in-1786-jefferson-then-the-american-ambassador-to-france-and-adams/) [Walid Shoebat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walid-shoebat/) > [“So we Europeans are shocked by the blind, uncomprehending hard-heartedness that certain American government policies imply. I am thinking of the terrible tariff walls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/knut-hamsun/so-we-europeans-are-shocked-by-the-blind-uncomprehending-hard/) [Knut Hamsun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/knut-hamsun/) > [“Those men who laid the foundation of this American government and signed the Declaration of Independence were the best spirits the God of heaven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilford-woodruff/those-men-who-laid-the-foundation-of-this-american-government-and/) [Wilford Woodruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilford-woodruff/) [Browse all 189 American government quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-government/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Mexicans had fired the first shot. But they had done what the American government wanted, according to Colonel Hitchcock, who wrote in his diary, even before those first incidents: I have said from the first that the United States are the aggressors. . . . We have not one particle of right to be here. . . . It looks as if the government sent a small force on purpose to bring on a war, so as to have a pretext for taking California and as much of this country as it chooses, for, whatever becomes of this army, there is no doubt of a war between the United States and Mexico. . . . My heart is not in this business . . . but, as a military man, I am bound to execute orders.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-but-they-had-done-what-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American government" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-but-they-had-done-what-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/db0/howard-zinn-576_american-government_the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-bu_952379.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Mexicans had fired the first shot. But they had done what the American government wanted, according to…” — Howard Zinn", "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": "Howard Zinn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The Mexicans had fired the first...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-but-they-had-done-what-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mexicans-had-fired-the-first-shot-but-they-had-done-what-the/#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 } } ] } ```