--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our mental environment is a…" description: "\"“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png" --- # Our mental environment is a common-property resource like… ![“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the same way we lobbied for nonsmoking areas ten years ago.” quote by Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png) > ““Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the same way we lobbied for nonsmoking areas ten years ago.”” [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mental space is a shared resource like air or water, requiring protection from intrusive influences similar to smoking bans. **In simple terms:** Protect mental space. Key Takeaway Guard mental environment. Themes mental health environment privacy public resource protection Mood concerned protective Type philosophical activist When to use this quote - digital media - public health - legislation Key Concepts cognitive well‑being social norms policy Questions to Reflect On - What constitutes mental intrusion? - How to create mental safe zones? A Different Perspective May be hard to enforce. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advertising](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advertising/) [Consumerism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumerism/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or-2/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [The commercial media are to the mental environment what factories are to the physical environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-commercial-media-are-to-the-mental-environment-what-factories-are/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [Indeed, the night sky is the part of our environment that's been common to all cultures throughout human history. All have gazed up at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/indeed-the-night-sky-is-the-part-of-our-environment-that-s-been/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [“A person writes similar to how a blind person uses brail. We grope along the palpable corridors of the mind’s organic texture to locate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/a-person-writes-similar-to-how-a-blind-person-uses-brail-we-grope/) [Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/) > [I believe it is important for people to create a healthy mental environment in which to accomplish daily tasks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-believe-it-is-important-for-people-to-create-a-healthy-mental/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [American culture is no longer created by the people... A free, authentic life is no longer possible in AmericaTM today. We are being manipulated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/american-culture-is-no-longer-created-by-the-people-a-free-authentic/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [“Do an overwhelming number of respected scientists believe that human actions are changing the Earth's climate? Yes. OK, that being the case, let's undermine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/do-an-overwhelming-number-of-respected-scientists-believe-that-human/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [Overconsumption is the mother of all environmental problems. For the first time in the history of capitalism, consumption itself has become controversial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/overconsumption-is-the-mother-of-all-environmental-problems-for-the/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [The fact that the apes exist and that we can study them is extremely important and makes us reflect on ourselves and our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/the-fact-that-the-apes-exist-and-that-we-can-study-them-is-extremely/) [Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/) > [“There will be a battle, and you will need to protect your heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-harmon/there-will-be-a-battle-and-you-will-need-to-protect-your-heart/) [Amy Harmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-harmon/) > [I'm not a lawyer, but I do know this: we need to protect our ability to tell controversial stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-redford/i-m-not-a-lawyer-but-i-do-know-this-we-need-to-protect-our-ability-to/) [Robert Redford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-redford/) > [“I have to take things slow with her, she is too precious. I suddenly feel a need to protect her. Protect her from predators…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-keith/i-have-to-take-things-slow-with-her-she-is-too-precious-i-suddenly/) [Megan Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-keith/) > [“And so we push them away because a twisted logic tells us that we need to protect them from us. And so we push…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaya-dlanga/and-so-we-push-them-away-because-a-twisted-logic-tells-us-that-we/) Khaya Dlanga > [We need to protect people with pre-existing conditions, and we need to make sure that we have a safety net for people that can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gianforte/we-need-to-protect-people-with-pre-existing-conditions-and-we-need-to/) [Greg Gianforte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gianforte/) > [We need to and must protect privacy. But I think that people will be willing and even eager to share medical information about themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-soon-shiong/we-need-to-and-must-protect-privacy-but-i-think-that-people-will-be/) [Patrick Soon-Shiong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-soon-shiong/) ## More by Kalle Lasn > [An increasing number of people are growing uncomfortable with the gulf between the world's rich and the poor. Ostentatiously splashing your money around simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/an-increasing-number-of-people-are-growing-uncomfortable-with-the/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [It's a measure of the depth of our consumer trance that the death of the planet is not sufficient to break it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/it-s-a-measure-of-the-depth-of-our-consumer-trance-that-the-death-of/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [The commercial media are to the mental environment what factories are to the physical environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-commercial-media-are-to-the-mental-environment-what-factories-are/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [All of us somehow felt that the next battleground was going to be culture. We all felt somehow that our culture had been stolen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/all-of-us-somehow-felt-that-the-next-battleground-was-going-to-be/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [The global economy is a doomsday machine that must be stopped and reprogrammed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-global-economy-is-a-doomsday-machine-that-must-be-stopped-and/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [“Corporations are not legal “persons” with constitutional rights and freedoms of their own, but legal fictions that we created and must therefore control.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/corporations-are-not-legal-persons-with-constitutional-rights-and/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [Amming a coin into a monopoly newspaper box or liberating a billboard in the middle of the night can be a rather honest and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/amming-a-coin-into-a-monopoly-newspaper-box-or-liberating-a-billboard/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [In the Soviet Union you weren't allowed to speak out against the government. In the US you cannot speak out against sponsors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/in-the-soviet-union-you-weren-t-allowed-to-speak-out-against-the/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [Overconsumption is the mother of all environmental problems. For the first time in the history of capitalism, consumption itself has become controversial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/overconsumption-is-the-mother-of-all-environmental-problems-for-the/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [The most powerful narcotic in the world is the promise of belonging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/the-most-powerful-narcotic-in-the-world-is-the-promise-of-belonging/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [“Do an overwhelming number of respected scientists believe that human actions are changing the Earth's climate? Yes. OK, that being the case, let's undermine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/do-an-overwhelming-number-of-respected-scientists-believe-that-human/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [There is a profound injustice at the heart of the American economy. You look at the media and realize that these corporate-run commercial entities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/there-is-a-profound-injustice-at-the-heart-of-the-american-economy/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [American culture is no longer created by the people... A free, authentic life is no longer possible in AmericaTM today. We are being manipulated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/american-culture-is-no-longer-created-by-the-people-a-free-authentic/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [I believe that one of the most powerful things of all is aesthetics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/i-believe-that-one-of-the-most-powerful-things-of-all-is-aesthetics/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) > [There's some idea there, and the power of it comes from the fact that most of the time you'll never be able to answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/there-s-some-idea-there-and-the-power-of-it-comes-from-the-fact-that/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) [Explore all 26 Kalle Lasn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) ## More Advertising quotes > [I saw this anti-drug commercial that showed a kid smoking pot in his dad's room with his friend. This kid finds a gun, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/i-saw-this-anti-drug-commercial-that-showed-a-kid-smoking-pot-in-his/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [“Salesmanship is usually the art of making it the prospect’s problem, the salesperson’s need or desire to earn money.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/salesmanship-is-usually-the-art-of-making-it-the-prospect-s-problem/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [Advertising justifies its existence when used in the public interest-it is much too powerful a tool to use solely for commercial purposes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-gossage/advertising-justifies-its-existence-when-used-in-the-public-interest/) [Howard Gossage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-gossage/) > [“Don't wait, just sweat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/don-t-wait-just-sweat/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [We have the capital, the resources, and the technology that we need to build a mobile advertising platform across the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naveen-tewari/we-have-the-capital-the-resources-and-the-technology-that-we-need-to/) [Naveen Tewari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naveen-tewari/) > [“Never run advertising until the major publicity possibilities have been exploited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-ries/never-run-advertising-until-the-major-publicity-possibilities-have/) [Al Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-ries/) > [God never talks. But the devil keeps advertising, Father. The devil does a lot of commercials.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/god-never-talks-but-the-devil-keeps-advertising-father-the-devil-does/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [I like Valentine's Day. The trouble is the florists and the candy-makers and the card people are all advertising so much, you don't dare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/i-like-valentine-s-day-the-trouble-is-the-florists-and-the-candy/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > [I happened to be spotted by a modeling agent who offered me a part-time job at 16. Everything happened very quickly after that -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-happened-to-be-spotted-by-a-modeling-agent-who-offered-me-a-part/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [They say that Madison Avenue will only pay high dollars in advertising if they get the 18-35 age range.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gless/they-say-that-madison-avenue-will-only-pay-high-dollars-in/) [Sharon Gless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-gless/) > [“There's not a branch of publishing or broadcasting that doesn't depend in some way on advertising. It'd be like an aquarium without water. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I've driven people mad on films that I've made - I want more takes; I want to try new lines. Then I want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-grant/i-ve-driven-people-mad-on-films-that-i-ve-made-i-want-more-takes-i/) [Hugh Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-grant/) > [This hype word bothers me though It always sounds like an accusation, what does it mean, advertising, column inches in the press? Bands themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-johnson/this-hype-word-bothers-me-though-it-always-sounds-like-an-accusation/) [Holly Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-johnson/) > [I'm supposed to be taking time off. But I'm still writing and I have this Gap advert lined up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-stone/i-m-supposed-to-be-taking-time-off-but-i-m-still-writing-and-i-have/) [Joss Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-stone/) > [Any seeming deception in a statement is costly, not only in the expense of the advertising but in the detrimental effect produced upon the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wanamaker/any-seeming-deception-in-a-statement-is-costly-not-only-in-the/) [John Wanamaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wanamaker/) [Browse all 1,942 Advertising quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advertising/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves from unwanted incursions into it, much the same way we lobbied for nonsmoking areas ten years ago.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kalle Lasn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Advertising" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/kalle-lasn-22904_advertising_our-mental-environment-is-a-common-prope_136468.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Our mental environment is a common-property resource like the air or the water. We need to protect ourselves…” — Kalle Lasn", "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": "Kalle Lasn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Our mental environment is a common-property...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/our-mental-environment-is-a-common-property-resource-like-the-air-or/#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 } } ] } ```