--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I read about the way in which…" description: "\"“When I read about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg" --- # When I read about the way in which library funds are being… ![“When I read about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found one more way to destroy itself.” quote by Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg) > ““When I read about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found one more way to destroy itself.”” [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cuts to library funding symbolize broader societal neglect of knowledge and culture, leading to self‑destruction. **In simple terms:** Library cuts harm society. Key Takeaway Protect library funding. Themes education public policy culture Mood concerned urgent Type political activist When to use this quote - advocacy - policy making - community organizing Key Concepts civic responsibility knowledge preservation Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens influence library budgets? - What values are lost when libraries close? A Different Perspective Funding cuts may be politically driven, not purely economic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-society/) [Closing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closing/) [Closing American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closing-american-314941/) [Door Closing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door-closing-314944/) [Funding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funding/) [Funds Cut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funds-cut-314942/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Library Funds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library-funds-314943/) [Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read/) [Self destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-destruction/) [United states](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/united-states/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Now, when I read constantly about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/now-when-i-read-constantly-about-the-way-in-which-library-funds-are/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [When I read about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that American society has found…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-library-funds-are-being-cut-and-2/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“I received the fundamentals of my education in school, but that was not enough. My real education, the superstructure, the details, the true architecture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/i-received-the-fundamentals-of-my-education-in-school-but-that-was/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [Once you walk out that door, I'm closing up my heart, there's no coming back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-you-walk-out-that-door-i-m-closing-up-my-heart-there-s-no-coming/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No is always a door-closing word; Yes is a door-opening word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-dreier/no-is-always-a-door-closing-word-yes-is-a-door-opening-word/) [Thomas Dreier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-dreier/) > [Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-graham-bell/sometimes-we-stare-so-long-at-a-door-that-is-closing-that-we-see-too/) [Alexander Graham Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-graham-bell/) > [The naive is what is or appears to be natural, individual, or classical to the point of irony or to the point of continuous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/the-naive-is-what-is-or-appears-to-be-natural-individual-or-classical/) [Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/) > [If The World Does Not Change Course, We Risk Self-Destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/if-the-world-does-not-change-course-we-risk-self-destruction/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [Anger, envy, greed, arrogance, ego & false pride inside a person makes them warehouse of self destruction.To win over these depends on how one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anger-envy-greed-arrogance-ego-false-pride-inside-a-person-makes-them/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Ready for the cheap escape On the brink of self destruction Widespread panic Broken glass inside my head Bleeding down these thoughts ~”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tanya-gambhir/ready-for-the-cheap-escape-on-the-brink-of-self-destruction/) [Tanya Gambhir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tanya-gambhir/) > [To strive to be perfect is going down the road of self-destruction. To strive to be yourself is going down the road of greatness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-harden-me/to-strive-to-be-perfect-is-going-down-the-road-of-self-destruction-to/) [Isaiah Harden (Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-harden-me/) > [In rock stardom there's an absolute economic upside to self-destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-love/in-rock-stardom-there-s-an-absolute-economic-upside-to-self/) [Courtney Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-love/) > [When you don't work together you can't emerge as a force. It becomes what some call a "lonely struggle" and individual self-destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haile-gerima/when-you-don-t-work-together-you-can-t-emerge-as-a-force-it-becomes/) [Haile Gerima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haile-gerima/) > [I feel a little more tired than usual, ... Ive had to recover from everything, my illnesses and things this summer. Its not perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/venus-williams/i-feel-a-little-more-tired-than-usual-ive-had-to-recover-from/) [Venus Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/venus-williams/) > [Some voluntary castaways there will always be, whom no fostering kindness and no parental care can preserve from self-destruction; but if any are lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-southey/some-voluntary-castaways-there-will-always-be-whom-no-fostering/) [Robert Southey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-southey/) ## More by Isaac Asimov > [The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/the-strain-of-anti-intellectualism-has-been-a-constant-thread-winding/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [Suppose that we are wise enough to learn and know-and yet not wise enough to control our learning and knowledge, so that we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/suppose-that-we-are-wise-enough-to-learn-and-know-and-yet-not-wise/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [Uncertainty that comes from knowledge (knowing what you don't know) is different from uncertainty coming from ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/uncertainty-that-comes-from-knowledge-knowing-what-you-don-t-know-is/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“Don't you see? It's Galaxy-wide. It's a worship of the past. It's a deterioration - a stagnation!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/don-t-you-see-it-s-galaxy-wide-it-s-a-worship-of-the-past-it-s-a/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [So the universe is not quite as you thought it was. You'd better rearrange your beliefs, then. Because you certainly can't rearrange the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/so-the-universe-is-not-quite-as-you-thought-it-was-you-d-better/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [It is in meeting the great tests that mankind can most successfully rise to great heights. Out of danger and restless insecurity comes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/it-is-in-meeting-the-great-tests-that-mankind-can-most-successfully/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“It might seem to you, Peter, that a truck driver, one step above an ape in your view, can't remember. But truck drivers can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/it-might-seem-to-you-peter-that-a-truck-driver-one-step-above-an-ape/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [When life is so harsh that a man loses all hope in himself, then he raises his eyes to a shining rock, worshipping it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/when-life-is-so-harsh-that-a-man-loses-all-hope-in-himself-then-he/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“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/) > [“temperatura constante de mais ou menos 21 graus”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/temperatura-constante-de-mais-ou-menos-21-graus/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“Human beings can tolerate an immortal robot, for it doesn't matter how long a machine lasts, but they cannot tolerate an immortal human being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/human-beings-can-tolerate-an-immortal-robot-for-it-doesn-t-matter-how/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“if people believe this, they would act on that belief. Many a prophecy, by the mere force of its being believed, is transmuted”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/if-people-believe-this-they-would-act-on-that-belief-many-a-prophecy/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [I do not use airplanes. They strike me as unsporting. You can have an automobile accident-and survive. You can be on a sinking ship-and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/i-do-not-use-airplanes-they-strike-me-as-unsporting-you-can-have-an/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [There are many aspects of the universe that still cannot be explained satisfactorily by science; but ignorance implies only ignorance that may someday be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/there-are-many-aspects-of-the-universe-that-still-cannot-be-explained/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. \[The Second Law…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/a-robot-must-obey-the-orders-given-it-by-human-beings-except-where/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) [Explore all 671 Isaac Asimov quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) ## More American society quotes > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't see much future for the Americans ... it's a decayed country. And they have their racial problem, and the problem of social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-don-t-see-much-future-for-the-americans-it-s-a-decayed-country-and/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [I have tried to defend what is most precious to our American society, a society that is now at war against the forces of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demian-bichir/i-have-tried-to-defend-what-is-most-precious-to-our-american-society/) [Demian Bichir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demian-bichir/) > [Cumulatively, American society is sliding toward a new form of 'authoritarian democracy'. Elections continue, free speech is generally protected, institutions operate in accordance with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-a-falk/cumulatively-american-society-is-sliding-toward-a-new-form-of/) [Richard A. Falk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-a-falk/) > [“As a culture, we had no heroes. Certainly not any politician--Barack Obama was then the most admired man in America (and likely still is),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance/as-a-culture-we-had-no-heroes-certainly-not-any-politician-barack/) [J.D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance/) > [ “The Sexual plight of these children \[those adolescents experimenting sexually\] is officially not mentioned. The revolutionary attack on hypocrisy by Ibsen, Freud, Ellis, Dreiser,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/the-sexual-plight-of-these-children-those-adolescents-experimenting/) [Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/) > [Hip-hop is contributing to American society's misogyny and racism, hyper-sexuality anti-Black representations. Hip-Hop isn't setting the standard for misogyny. No one reduces the presidency…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bakari-kitwana/hip-hop-is-contributing-to-american-society-s-misogyny-and-racism/) [Bakari Kitwana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bakari-kitwana/) > [I believe it is essential to have English as the official language of our National Government, for the English language is the tie that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-sensenbrenner/i-believe-it-is-essential-to-have-english-as-the-official-language-of/) [Jim Sensenbrenner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-sensenbrenner/) > [Black people cannot and will not become integrated into American society on any terms but those of self-determination and autonomy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerda-lerner/black-people-cannot-and-will-not-become-integrated-into-american/) [Gerda Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerda-lerner/) > [Black people in America have to, for their own protection, develop a defense mechanism, and I just grew terribly tired of it. When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/black-people-in-america-have-to-for-their-own-protection-develop-a/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Public image is extremely important in American society and I observed personally that the Presidency of John F. Kennedy did much in the public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rosovsky/public-image-is-extremely-important-in-american-society-and-i/) [Henry Rosovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rosovsky/) > [Sometimes, you know, the president is a father-like figure in American society, to most Americans, even today, no matter how cynical we've become. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alec-baldwin/sometimes-you-know-the-president-is-a-father-like-figure-in-american/) [Alec Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alec-baldwin/) > [The family has always been the cornerstone of American society. Our families nurture, preserve, and pass on to each succeeding generation the values we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-family-has-always-been-the-cornerstone-of-american-society-our/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [While President Barack Obama has, in one sense, tipped his hand by saying that he wants judges with "empathy" for certain groups, he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/while-president-barack-obama-has-in-one-sense-tipped-his-hand-by/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) [Browse all 315 American society quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-society/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When I read about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found one more way to destroy itself.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Isaac Asimov" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-library-funds-are-being-cut-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American society" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-library-funds-are-being-cut-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5a/isaac-asimov-309_american-society_when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-libra_2433871.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When I read about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is…” — Isaac Asimov", "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": "Isaac Asimov", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“When I read about the way...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-library-funds-are-being-cut-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/when-i-read-about-the-way-in-which-library-funds-are-being-cut-and/#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 } } ] } ```