--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think the parallels of a giant power…" description: "\"I think the parallels of a giant power with overwhelming military superiority and might, with America and Rome, it seems obvious to me.\" — Kevin Macdonald" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg" --- # I think the parallels of a giant power with overwhelming… ![“I think the parallels of a giant power with overwhelming military superiority and might, with America and Rome, it seems obvious to me.” quote by Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg) > “I think the parallels of a giant power with overwhelming military superiority and might, with America and Rome, it seems obvious to me.” [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote draws a parallel between a dominant military power and the United States, suggesting a similarity in their global influence and potential for overreach. **In simple terms:** America is likened to a powerful empire. Key Takeaway Recognize the risks of unchecked power. Themes history politics power imperialism Mood cautious critical Type analytical historical When to use this quote - foreign policy analysis - educational lectures - strategic planning Key Concepts Geopolitics hegemony military dominance Questions to Reflect On - What are the limits of this analogy? - How does power affect moral responsibility? A Different Perspective The comparison may oversimplify complex differences between societies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Rome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rome/) ## Related quotes > [Disarmament should be conducive to the enhancement of every country's general security instead of becoming the instrument and means for a few countries to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sha-zukang/disarmament-should-be-conducive-to-the-enhancement-of-every-country-s/) Sha Zukang > [Our military superiority is so great - it's far greater than it was in the Gulf War, and the Gulf War was over in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/our-military-superiority-is-so-great-it-s-far-greater-than-it-was-in/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The lesson of all history warns us that we should negotiate only when our military superiority is so convincing that we can achieve our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-nixon/the-lesson-of-all-history-warns-us-that-we-should-negotiate-only-when/) [Richard M. Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-nixon/) > [And thus Bureaucracy, the giant power wielded by pygmies, came into the world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/and-thus-bureaucracy-the-giant-power-wielded-by-pygmies-came-into-the/) [Honore De Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [“It seemed to me then—and to be honest, sir, seems to me still—that America was engaged only in posturing. As a society, you were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/it-seemed-to-me-then-and-to-be-honest-sir-seems-to-me-still-that-2/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [To me, elitism means a love of excellence and superiority, but America has declared war on both and developed a sick love of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-king/to-me-elitism-means-a-love-of-excellence-and-superiority-but-america/) [Florence King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-king/) > [Nobody should have any illusion about the possibility of gaining military superiority over Russia. We will never allow this to happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/nobody-should-have-any-illusion-about-the-possibility-of-gaining/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [The military superiority of Europe to Asia is not an eternal law of nature, as we are tempted to think, and our superiority in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/the-military-superiority-of-europe-to-asia-is-not-an-eternal-law-of/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“But it requires no very profound knowledge of history to perceive that military superiority often exists distinct from social civilization, that literary cultivation affords…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-finlay/but-it-requires-no-very-profound-knowledge-of-history-to-perceive/) George Finlay > [Being six feet off the ground does give one a sense of superiority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-whalen-turner/being-six-feet-off-the-ground-does-give-one-a-sense-of-superiority/) [Megan Whalen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-whalen-turner/) > [There never will be a trust in excellence or a combination in superiority. As long as you can do a thing a little better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orison-swett-marden/there-never-will-be-a-trust-in-excellence-or-a-combination-in/) [Orison Swett Marden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orison-swett-marden/) > [“Love and respect a woman. Look to her not only for comfort, but for strength and inspiration and the doubling of your intellectual and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giuseppe-mazzini/love-and-respect-a-woman-look-to-her-not-only-for-comfort-but-for/) [Giuseppe Mazzini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giuseppe-mazzini/) > [Because I've never had any higher education of any sort, I've never held in awe those who have had it or have a sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-corbyn/because-i-ve-never-had-any-higher-education-of-any-sort-i-ve-never/) [Jeremy Corbyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-corbyn/) > [Even the most abject have a sense of superiority based on powerful though undefined merits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/even-the-most-abject-have-a-sense-of-superiority-based-on-powerful/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [I have no hesitation in saying that although the American woman never leaves her domestic sphere and is in some respects very dependent within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-have-no-hesitation-in-saying-that-although-the-american-woman-never/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) ## More by Kevin Macdonald > [It's so nice to be totally artistically free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/it-s-so-nice-to-be-totally-artistically-free/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [Young people read their news online; they expect to get their news for free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/young-people-read-their-news-online-they-expect-to-get-their-news-for/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [I've fallen out very badly with some of the subjects I've interviewed, because they see their lives a certain way; to step into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/i-ve-fallen-out-very-badly-with-some-of-the-subjects-i-ve-interviewed/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [I was a teenager in the '80s, and I was always a bit dismissive of Houston, as I think a lot of people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/i-was-a-teenager-in-the-80s-and-i-was-always-a-bit-dismissive-of/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [With fiction, I've grown to really love the challenge of lying, the challenge of telling a good tale that isn't truthful, and working with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/with-fiction-i-ve-grown-to-really-love-the-challenge-of-lying-the/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [When you're an outsider and going into a culture like America, it's easier to stay away from any cliches because you're not really aware…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/when-you-re-an-outsider-and-going-into-a-culture-like-america-it-s/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [Although 'The Anderson Platoon' was what we would now call an 'embedded film' - with all the ambiguities that term implies - somehow Schoendoerffer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/although-the-anderson-platoon-was-what-we-would-now-call-an-embedded/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [The relationship between director and subject can become very intense. It's a bit like therapy, with lots of transferences going on. It's easy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/the-relationship-between-director-and-subject-can-become-very-intense/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [When we made 'Life in a Day,' we asked people around the globe to record their lives on a single ordinary day. When we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/when-we-made-life-in-a-day-we-asked-people-around-the-globe-to-record/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [There were many times during the filming of 'Touching the Void' when I wondered why I had ever thought I wanted to make this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/there-were-many-times-during-the-filming-of-touching-the-void-when-i/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [Coming from documentaries, my biggest challenge was to understand actors' psychologies. American actors take it all very seriously; British actors don't enter into all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/coming-from-documentaries-my-biggest-challenge-was-to-understand/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [You can go to places in Africa and Asia and find Marley graffiti. In the slums of Nairobi, you see his lyrics painted on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/you-can-go-to-places-in-africa-and-asia-and-find-marley-graffiti-in/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [The interesting thing to me is that somehow the future of movies will become a more social thing... I think that people will see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/the-interesting-thing-to-me-is-that-somehow-the-future-of-movies-will/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [A publisher friend of mine suggested that I write a book about my grandfather, who had just died. I had nothing else to fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/a-publisher-friend-of-mine-suggested-that-i-write-a-book-about-my/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) > [Elvis Presley's estate is making 30 million a year, and they say that Marley shouldn't be, but he is from a much poorer part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/elvis-presley-s-estate-is-making-30-million-a-year-and-they-say-that/) [Kevin Macdonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) [Explore all 100 Kevin Macdonald quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/) ## 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": "I think the parallels of a giant power with overwhelming military superiority and might, with America and Rome, it seems obvious to me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kevin Macdonald" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-with-overwhelming-military/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-with-overwhelming-military/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/053/kevin-macdonald-5800_america_i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-w_912649.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think the parallels of a giant power with overwhelming military superiority and might, with America and…” — Kevin Macdonald", "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": "Kevin Macdonald", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-macdonald/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think the parallels of a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-with-overwhelming-military/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-macdonald/i-think-the-parallels-of-a-giant-power-with-overwhelming-military/#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 } } ] } ```