--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The greater the power, the more need…" description: "\"The greater the power, the more need there is for transparency, because if the power is abused, the result can be so enormous. On the other hand, those..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/977/julian-assange-1566_abuse_the-greater-the-power-the-more-need-ther_2919195.jpg" --- # The greater the power, the more need there is for… ![“The greater the power, the more need there is for transparency, because if the power is abused, the result can be so enormous. On the other hand, those people who do not have power, we mustn't reduce their power even more by making them yet more transparent.” quote by Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/977/julian-assange-1566_abuse_the-greater-the-power-the-more-need-ther_2919195.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/977/julian-assange-1566_abuse_the-greater-the-power-the-more-need-ther_2919195.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/977/julian-assange-1566_abuse_the-greater-the-power-the-more-need-ther_2919195.jpg) > “The greater the power, the more need there is for transparency, because if the power is abused, the result can be so enormous. On the other hand, those people who do not have power, we mustn't reduce their power even more by making them yet more transparent.” [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. More power demands greater transparency to prevent abuse, yet excessive transparency can further marginalize those already powerless. **In simple terms:** Power needs oversight; too much openness can harm the weak. Key Takeaway Balance openness with protection for vulnerable groups. Themes power transparency ethics Mood cautious analytical Type political ethical When to use this quote - government oversight - corporate governance - media reporting - activist campaigns Key Concepts accountability privacy social justice Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards protect the powerless when exposing power? - How to ensure transparency without causing harm? A Different Perspective Transparency can be weaponized against the disenfranchised. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse/) [Because](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because/) [Enormous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enormous/) [Even](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/even/) [Greater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greater/) [Greater power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greater-power/) [Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hand/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making/) [More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/more/) [Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need/) [Need Transparency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need-transparency-1861346/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Other](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/other/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Power Abused](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-abused-291130/) [Reduce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reduce/) [Result](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/result/) [Results](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/results/) [Them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/them/) [Those](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/those/) [Transparency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transparency/) [Transparency Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transparency-power-4244703/) [Transparent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transparent/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) ## Related quotes > [We need transparency in government spending. We need to put each government expenditure online so every Floridian can see where their tax money is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/we-need-transparency-in-government-spending-we-need-to-put-each/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [Our constitutional system is defined by a balance between the public's need for transparency and the government's need to have a zone of secrecy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-katyal/our-constitutional-system-is-defined-by-a-balance-between-the-public/) [Neal Katyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-katyal/) > [We need more transparency and accountability in government so that people know how their money is being spent. That means putting budgets online, putting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carly-fiorina/we-need-more-transparency-and-accountability-in-government-so-that/) [Carly Fiorina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carly-fiorina/) > [Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/nothing-discloses-real-character-like-the-use-of-power-it-is-easy-for/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Government power is always abused by seizing and perverting the law. And with few exceptions, government always determines what is law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-galt/government-power-is-always-abused-by-seizing-and-perverting-the-law/) [John Galt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-galt/) > [No government power can be abused long. Mankind will not bear it… There is a remedy in human nature against tyranny, that will keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-government-power-can-be-abused-long-mankind-will-not-bear-it-there/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“A leader without a clear vision and plans only abuses his power because visions, dreams and plans are the fulcrum along which the loads…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/a-leader-without-a-clear-vision-and-plans-only-abuses-his-power/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Nothing could be more irrational than to give the people power, and to withhold from them information without which power is abused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/nothing-could-be-more-irrational-than-to-give-the-people-power-and-to/) [James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/) > [Power which can be abused, will be abused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-warner/power-which-can-be-abused-will-be-abused/) [Jim Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-warner/) > [Power is something that is abused. I suppose use and abuse are in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/power-is-something-that-is-abused-i-suppose-use-and-abuse-are-in-the/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [When power is for sale, then government power should be severely limited. When power is abused, then the less power the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charley-reese/when-power-is-for-sale-then-government-power-should-be-severely/) [Charley Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charley-reese/) > [Those who suppress freedom always do so in the name of law and order." - John V. Lindsay "No government power can be abused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/those-who-suppress-freedom-always-do-so-in-the-name-of-law-and-order-2/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [No government power can be abused long. Mankind will not bear it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-government-power-can-be-abused-long-mankind-will-not-bear-it/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [When we don't pay close attention to the decisions made by our leaders, when we fail to educate ourselves about the major issues of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/when-we-don-t-pay-close-attention-to-the-decisions-made-by-our-2/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [And yet even among the friends of liberty, many people are deceived into believing that government can make them safe from all harm, provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/and-yet-even-among-the-friends-of-liberty-many-people-are-deceived/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) ## More by Julian Assange > [We released 400,000 classified documents, the most extraordinary history of a war to ever have been released in our civilization. Those documents cover 109,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-released-400-000-classified-documents-the-most-extraordinary/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [There's more than 1700 emails out of the thirty three thousand Hillary Clinton emails that we've published, just about Libya. It's not that Libya…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/there-s-more-than-1700-emails-out-of-the-thirty-three-thousand/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [We always expect tremendous criticism. It is my role to be the lightning rod ... to attract the attacks against the organization for our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-always-expect-tremendous-criticism-it-is-my-role-to-be-the/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [“Well it's not possible to win this kind of thing. This is a continuous striving that people have done for a long time. Of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/well-it-s-not-possible-to-win-this-kind-of-thing-this-is-a-continuous/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [It is impossible to correct abuses unless we know that theyre going on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/it-is-impossible-to-correct-abuses-unless-we-know-that-theyre-going-on/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [WikiLeaks is a source protection organization. We are famous for never having exposed one of our sources over 10 years. That's why sources trust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/wikileaks-is-a-source-protection-organization-we-are-famous-for-never/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Everyone should understand that when they add their friends to Facebook, they are doing free work for United States intelligence agencies in building this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/everyone-should-understand-that-when-they-add-their-friends-to/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [And if Bradley Manning really did as he is accused, he is a hero, an example to us all and one of the world's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/and-if-bradley-manning-really-did-as-he-is-accused-he-is-a-hero-an/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [All over the world, the barriers between what is inside an organisation and outside an organisation are being smoothed out. In the military, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/all-over-the-world-the-barriers-between-what-is-inside-an/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Non-conformity is the only real passion worth being ruled by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/non-conformity-is-the-only-real-passion-worth-being-ruled-by/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Society develops a type of self-censorship, with the knowledge that surveillance exists - a self-censorship that is even expressed when people communicate with each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/society-develops-a-type-of-self-censorship-with-the-knowledge-that/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [During the period of house arrest, I had an electronic manacle around my leg for 24 hours a day, and for someone who has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/during-the-period-of-house-arrest-i-had-an-electronic-manacle-around/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [There's an early 2014 email from Hillary Clinton, not so long after she left the State Department, to her campaign manager John Podesta that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/there-s-an-early-2014-email-from-hillary-clinton-not-so-long-after/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [ The U.N. \[the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention\] has looked into this whole situation. They spent eighteen months in formal, adversarial litigation.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/the-u-n-the-united-nations-working-group-on-arbitrary-detention-has/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [I always believed that WikiLeaks as a concept would perform a global role, and to some degree it was clear that it was doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/i-always-believed-that-wikileaks-as-a-concept-would-perform-a-global/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) [Explore all 227 Julian Assange quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) ## More Abuse quotes > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/) [Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/) > [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) > [Being nice is okay,but don't allow anybody to abuse it...try to fight for your self when you know your on the right way...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-nice-is-okay-but-don-t-allow-anybody-to-abuse-it-try-to-fight/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Build a bridge over shame by teaching kids about sexual abuse. Give them a chance to run to us should they encounter it. Be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-byers-ruch/build-a-bridge-over-shame-by-teaching-kids-about-sexual-abuse-give/) [Carolyn Byers Ruch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-byers-ruch/) > [It is sure that those are most desirous of honour or glory who cry out loudest of its abuse and the vanity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baruch-spinoza/it-is-sure-that-those-are-most-desirous-of-honour-or-glory-who-cry/) [Baruch Spinoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baruch-spinoza/) > [“The sole reason I stand to open it up now is that lots of people who are in pain just like I was, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/the-sole-reason-i-stand-to-open-it-up-now-is-that-lots-of-people-who/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [Democracy must be built through open societies that share information. When there is information, there is enlightenment. When there is debate, there are solutions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atifete-jahjaga/democracy-must-be-built-through-open-societies-that-share-information/) [Atifete Jahjaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atifete-jahjaga/) > [I have a theory that all abuse, no matter what kind of abuse it is, is foremost an assault on the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-westover/i-have-a-theory-that-all-abuse-no-matter-what-kind-of-abuse-it-is-is/) [Tara Westover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-westover/) > [“Blaming therapy, social work and other caring professions for the confabulation of testimony of 'satanic ritual abuse' legitimated a programme of political and social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-salter/blaming-therapy-social-work-and-other-caring-professions-for-the/) [Michael Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-salter/) > [Finally, the scariest thing about abuse of any shape or form, is, in my opinion, not the abuse itself, but that if it continues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-cumming/finally-the-scariest-thing-about-abuse-of-any-shape-or-form-is-in-my/) [Alan Cumming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-cumming/) > [“Research on organised abuse emphasises the diversity of organised abuse cases, and the ways in which serious forms of child maltreatment cluster in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-salter/research-on-organised-abuse-emphasises-the-diversity-of-organised/) [Michael Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-salter/) > [“Stand up for yourself. Never give any one permission to abuse you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/stand-up-for-yourself-never-give-any-one-permission-to-abuse-you/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [All governments should be pressured to correct their abuses of human rights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-stallman/all-governments-should-be-pressured-to-correct-their-abuses-of-human/) [Richard Stallman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-stallman/) > [“Words are free. It does not mean you should abuse them. Be kind with them. They will mirror your actions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hadinet-tekie/words-are-free-it-does-not-mean-you-should-abuse-them-be-kind-with/) [Hadinet Tekie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hadinet-tekie/) > [My illness is one often characterized by dramatic overspending - in my case through frenzied shopping sprees, credit card abuse, excessive hoarding of unnecessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-behrman/my-illness-is-one-often-characterized-by-dramatic-overspending-in-my/) [Andy Behrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-behrman/) [Browse all 3,113 Abuse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The greater the power, the more need there is for transparency, because if the power is abused, the result can be so enormous. 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