---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [...] There is none that disperses its…"
description: "\"[...] There is none that disperses its control more complexly through the voting system, the work situation, the church, the family, the school, the ma..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg"
---

#  \[...\] There is none that disperses its control more…

![“&#91;...&#93; There is none that disperses its control more complexly through the voting system, the work situation, the church, the family, the school, the mass media - none more successful in mollifying opposition with reforms, isolating people from one another, creating patriotic loyalty.” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg)

> “\[...\] There is none that disperses its control more complexly through the voting system, the work situation, the church, the family, the school, the mass media - none more successful in mollifying opposition with reforms, isolating people from one another, creating patriotic loyalty.”

[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.

Power structures use institutions to fragment society and suppress dissent through incremental reforms that foster loyalty to the status quo.

**In simple terms:** Institutions keep people divided and obedient.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and challenge subtle control mechanisms.

Themes

power control institutionalism social cohesion political strategy

Mood

critical analytical concerned

Type

political social educational

When to use this quote

- political activism
- community organizing
- media literacy
- education reform

Key Concepts

hegemony cooptation social engineering

Questions to Reflect On

- How do everyday institutions shape your political views?
- What can you do to reconnect isolated communities?

A Different Perspective

Reforms can also improve conditions, not just pacify.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Complexly Voting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complexly-voting-4416665/) [Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creating/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Disperses Control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disperses-control-4416668/) [Loyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loyalty/) [Mass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass/) [Mass media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass-media/) [Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/media/) [Mollifying Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mollifying-opposition-4416667/) [Opposition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposition/) [Patriotic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotic/) [Patriotic Loyalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriotic-loyalty-3029071/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Reform](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reform/) [Reforms Isolating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reforms-isolating-4416666/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Situation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/situation/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Voting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voting/)

## Related quotes

> [This is the greatest country under the sun. But we must not let our love of country, our patriotic loyalty, cause us to abate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madam-c-j-walker/this-is-the-greatest-country-under-the-sun-but-we-must-not-let-our/)

[Madam C. J. Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madam-c-j-walker/)

> [“It is not that the historian can avoid emphasis of some facts and not of others. This is as natural to him as to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/it-is-not-that-the-historian-can-avoid-emphasis-of-some-facts-and-not/)

[Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/)

> [“The routine expression of hatred for others is so common in the Arab world that it barely draws comment other than from the region’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-marshall/the-routine-expression-of-hatred-for-others-is-so-common-in-the-arab/)

[Tim Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-marshall/)

> [“What happened to truth? Did it go out of style?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jackson/what-happened-to-truth-did-it-go-out-of-style/)

[Michael Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jackson/)

> [“The history of irregular media operations is complex and fractured; generalizations are difficult. Yet it is possible to isolate three large and overlapping historical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-hecker/the-history-of-irregular-media-operations-is-complex-and-fractured/)

[Marc Hecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-hecker/)

> [All of us who professionally use the mass media are the shapers of society. We can vulgarise that society. We can brutalise it. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/all-of-us-who-professionally-use-the-mass-media-are-the-shapers-of/)

[William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/)

> [Photographers find themselves directly in competition with mass media's misrepresentations of women. So the photographic terrain is particularly contested from a political point of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-r-lippard/photographers-find-themselves-directly-in-competition-with-mass-media/)

[Lucy R. Lippard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-r-lippard/)

> [There are thus two tasks for the Mass Media division of Unesco, the one general, the other special. The special one is to enlist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-huxley/there-are-thus-two-tasks-for-the-mass-media-division-of-unesco-the/)

[Julian Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-huxley/)

> [If mass media, social isolation in the suburbs, alienating workplaces and long car commutes create a bunker mentality, the Internet does the opposite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-steffen/if-mass-media-social-isolation-in-the-suburbs-alienating-workplaces/)

[Alex Steffen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-steffen/)

> [Appeal to all scholars of stupidity in the world. Come to Italy, this country has the highest rate of morons of the universe, especially…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-brown/appeal-to-all-scholars-of-stupidity-in-the-world-come-to-italy-this/)

[William C. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-brown/)

> [“Cultural criticism always attacks the mass media. I don't think that makes sense. We should look more closely at the work of deformation that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-sloterdijk/cultural-criticism-always-attacks-the-mass-media-i-don-t-think-that/)

[Peter Sloterdijk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-sloterdijk/)

> [Nowadays, truth is the greatest news. The mass media are the wholesalers, the peer groups, the retailers of the communications industry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-riesman/nowadays-truth-is-the-greatest-news-the-mass-media-are-the/)

[David Riesman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-riesman/)

> [What if it turns out there really are witches and vampires and werewolves living right here alongside us? After all, what better disguise could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-lukyanenko/what-if-it-turns-out-there-really-are-witches-and-vampires-and/)

[Sergei Lukyanenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-lukyanenko/)

> [“The representation of women in the society, especially through mass media has been the most delusional act ever done on the grounds of human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-representation-of-women-in-the-society-especially-through-mass/)

[Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/)

> [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

## 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 America quotes

> [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/)

[Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/)

> [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/)

[Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/)

> [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/)

[Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/)

> [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

> [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/)

[Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/)

> [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/)

[Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/)

> [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/)

[George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/)

> [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/)

[Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/)

> [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/)

[Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/)

> [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/)

[Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/)

> [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/)

[Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/)

[Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "[...] There is none that disperses its control more complexly through the voting system, the work situation, the church, the family, the school, the mass media - none more successful in mollifying opposition with reforms, isolating people from one another, creating patriotic loyalty.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Howard Zinn"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control-more-complexly-through-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "America"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control-more-complexly-through-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2c/howard-zinn-576_america_there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control_1323306.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“[...] There is none that disperses its control more complexly through the voting system, the work situation…” — 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": "[...] There is none that disperses...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control-more-complexly-through-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-none-that-disperses-its-control-more-complexly-through-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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
