--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think interventions tend to be wrong…" description: "\"I think interventions tend to be wrong. That doesn't mean to say that every intervention has been a disaster, but it does mean that generally they tend..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcf/kwasi-kwarteng-16738_disaster_i-think-interventions-tend-to-be-wrong-t_2683160.jpg" --- # I think interventions tend to be wrong. That doesn't mean… ![“I think interventions tend to be wrong. That doesn't mean to say that every intervention has been a disaster, but it does mean that generally they tend to screw up.” quote by Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcf/kwasi-kwarteng-16738_disaster_i-think-interventions-tend-to-be-wrong-t_2683160.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcf/kwasi-kwarteng-16738_disaster_i-think-interventions-tend-to-be-wrong-t_2683160.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dcf/kwasi-kwarteng-16738_disaster_i-think-interventions-tend-to-be-wrong-t_2683160.jpg) > “I think interventions tend to be wrong. That doesn't mean to say that every intervention has been a disaster, but it does mean that generally they tend to screw up.” [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Interventions often fail; not all are disasters, but many are flawed. **In simple terms:** Interventions tend to go wrong. Key Takeaway Critically evaluate interventions. Themes policy risk decision‑making Mood cautious analytical Type political economic When to use this quote - government reforms - business strategies - health initiatives Key Concepts systems thinking failure analysis Questions to Reflect On - When have you seen a successful intervention? - What factors make an intervention work? A Different Perspective Some interventions succeed; context matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Intervention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intervention/) ## Related quotes > [I'm super-obsessed with 'Intervention.' I wrote a song about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/i-m-super-obsessed-with-intervention-i-wrote-a-song-about-it/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [In 2013 I voted against military intervention in Syria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crispin-blunt/in-2013-i-voted-against-military-intervention-in-syria/) [Crispin Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crispin-blunt/) > [The acting thing is so beyond my control. Acting isn't mine. You're like a tiny piece in this big, corporate mechanism that needs chemistry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-bullock/the-acting-thing-is-so-beyond-my-control-acting-isn-t-mine-you-re/) [Sandra Bullock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-bullock/) > [This is not about abortion or the antics. This is about pro choice versus anti-choice and government intervention in a woman's personal decisions about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-turner/this-is-not-about-abortion-or-the-antics-this-is-about-pro-choice/) [Kathleen Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-turner/) > [When you've got a mother who's given birth to eight children, you know, often without any kind of medical intervention - just she gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/when-you-ve-got-a-mother-who-s-given-birth-to-eight-children-you-know/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [Every coercive monopoly was created by government intervention into the economy: by special privileges, such as franchises or subsidies, which closed the entry of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/every-coercive-monopoly-was-created-by-government-intervention-into/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Will capitalist economies operate at full employment in the absence of routine intervention? Certainly not. Are deviations from full employment a social problem? Obviously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-yellen/will-capitalist-economies-operate-at-full-employment-in-the-absence/) [Janet Yellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-yellen/) > [If you decide on having an alcoholic at your party, make sure it's a large gathering. This way, until the alcoholic begins removing their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/if-you-decide-on-having-an-alcoholic-at-your-party-make-sure-it-s-a/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [Candidate Trump held out his hand to Vladimir Putin. He rejected further U.S. intervention in Syria other than to smash ISIS.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/candidate-trump-held-out-his-hand-to-vladimir-putin-he-rejected/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [In 1953, the United States played a significant role in orchestrating the overthrow of Iran's popular prime minister, Mohammed Mossadegh. The Eisenhower administration believed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-albright/in-1953-the-united-states-played-a-significant-role-in-orchestrating/) [Madeleine Albright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-albright/) > [The United States can certainly defeat North Vietnam, but the United States cannot defeat a guerrilla war which is being raged from a sanctuary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-brzezinski/the-united-states-can-certainly-defeat-north-vietnam-but-the-united/) [Zbigniew Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-brzezinski/) > [Every second the Universe divides into possibilities and most of those possibilities never happen. It is not a uni-verse -- there is more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/every-second-the-universe-divides-into-possibilities-and-most-of/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [An excessive preponderance of an idealistic mood is harmful to society: it creates daydreaming, political Don Quixotism, hope for heavenly intervention. This is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henryk-sienkiewicz/an-excessive-preponderance-of-an-idealistic-mood-is-harmful-to/) [Henryk Sienkiewicz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henryk-sienkiewicz/) > [My motto is "Unite now, today if you can; fight if you must. But in every case avoid British intervention."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/my-motto-is-unite-now-today-if-you-can-fight-if-you-must-but-in-every/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [I mean, you can agree or disagree with Iraq or Afghanistan, but by the way, now the great campaigning cause out there is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-mean-you-can-agree-or-disagree-with-iraq-or-afghanistan-but-by-the/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) ## More by Kwasi Kwarteng > [I've always thought my main concern is to alleviate the burdens on people, who were earning less money, perhaps than £80,000.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/i-ve-always-thought-my-main-concern-is-to-alleviate-the-burdens-on/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [In Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Angola and Cameroon maize is a staple, yet the earliest mention of maize in west Africa comes from a Portuguese…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/in-ghana-nigeria-togo-angola-and-cameroon-maize-is-a-staple-yet-the/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [I don't see how a lowering of VAT helps much, in terms of stimulus. VAT is a form of sales tax. It gets paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/i-don-t-see-how-a-lowering-of-vat-helps-much-in-terms-of-stimulus-vat/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [The British in South Africa always portrayed themselves as more enlightened and tolerant than the 'narrow-minded', 'intolerant' Boers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/the-british-in-south-africa-always-portrayed-themselves-as-more/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [History is of all subjects the one which is most engaged with people's perceptions of themselves, identity, politics, all those things which shape the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/history-is-of-all-subjects-the-one-which-is-most-engaged-with-people/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [In fact, the fast-changing, dynamic character of London makes perpetual Labour domination unlikely. Things are so fast-moving it would be impossible to say what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/in-fact-the-fast-changing-dynamic-character-of-london-makes-perpetual/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [Using food as a way of understanding empire is highly effective. Food knows no barriers of race, gender or even time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/using-food-as-a-way-of-understanding-empire-is-highly-effective-food/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [Frontrunners always attract envy, and a desperate campaign to stop them in their tracks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/frontrunners-always-attract-envy-and-a-desperate-campaign-to-stop/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [I remember being told after the 1992 general election that Labour could never win a majority in Britain ever again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/i-remember-being-told-after-the-1992-general-election-that-labour/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [Margaret Thatcher was Britain's most controversial modern politician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/margaret-thatcher-was-britain-s-most-controversial-modern-politician/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [Conservatives should never be shy in promoting a strong case for individual enterprise. We should acknowledge where the system doesn't work, and seek to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/conservatives-should-never-be-shy-in-promoting-a-strong-case-for/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [In our media-driven age, the mere fact of having name recognition is a big advantage. When the leadership election was confined only to Conservative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/in-our-media-driven-age-the-mere-fact-of-having-name-recognition-is-a/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [The bull market, rising prices, earning lots of money, make it seem as if the good days will never end. When prices are falling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/the-bull-market-rising-prices-earning-lots-of-money-make-it-seem-as/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [Cutting VAT is a classic case of shutting the stable door, when the horse has already galloped a couple of furlongs down the road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/cutting-vat-is-a-classic-case-of-shutting-the-stable-door-when-the/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) > [The idea that historians aren't affected by what goes on around them I think is slightly fanciful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwasi-kwarteng/the-idea-that-historians-aren-t-affected-by-what-goes-on-around-them/) [Kwasi Kwarteng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) [Explore all 39 Kwasi Kwarteng quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwasi-kwarteng/) ## More Disaster quotes > [Public infrastructure around the world is facing unprecedented stress, with hurricanes, cyclones, floods and forest fires all increasing in frequency and intensity. It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [One of the undervalued contributors to Trump's stunning 2016 victory was the masterful performance Pence had in his debate against Hillary Clinton running mate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mollie-hemingway/one-of-the-undervalued-contributors-to-trump-s-stunning-2016-victory/) [Mollie Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mollie-hemingway/) > [You know, we can't beat ISIS. We can't do anything. We can't take care of our vets. We can't have good health care. "Obama…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/you-know-we-can-t-beat-isis-we-can-t-do-anything-we-can-t-take-care/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [My mind shrank from the menace sweeping down on us, as children's do from belief in death and misfortune, vainly clinging to the fancy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-pankhurst/my-mind-shrank-from-the-menace-sweeping-down-on-us-as-children-s-do/) [Sylvia Pankhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-pankhurst/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-compensations-of-calamity-are-made-apparent-to-the-understanding/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [You can't have people making decisions about the future of the world who are scientifically illiterate. That's a recipe for disaster. And I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/you-can-t-have-people-making-decisions-about-the-future-of-the-world/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“She was—of course—perfectly normal— quiet and polite and reasonably intelligent and...normal and self destructive and lonely and terrified of every thing And she loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tah-the-trickster/she-was-of-course-perfectly-normal-quiet-and-polite-and-reasonably/) Tah the Trickster > [Obviously, it's my goal to be the top scorer in the Bundesliga, but it wouldn't be a disaster if I didn't achieve that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-gomez/obviously-it-s-my-goal-to-be-the-top-scorer-in-the-bundesliga-but-it/) [Mario Gomez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-gomez/) > [Yes, life in Chechnya so far looks more like a life after a natural disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/yes-life-in-chechnya-so-far-looks-more-like-a-life-after-a-natural/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Even disasters -- there are always disasters when you travel -- can be turned into adventures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-french/even-disasters-there-are-always-disasters-when-you-travel-can-be/) [Marilyn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-french/) > [We are always just one successful terrorist attack away from a nuclear disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-thompson/we-are-always-just-one-successful-terrorist-attack-away-from-a/) [Fred Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-thompson/) > [WHANGDEPOOTENAWAH, n. In the Ojibwa tongue, disaster; an unexpected affliction that strikes hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/whangdepootenawah-n-in-the-ojibwa-tongue-disaster-an-unexpected/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Architects mostly work for privileged people, people who have money and power, Power and money are invisible, so people hire us to visualize their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shigeru-ban/architects-mostly-work-for-privileged-people-people-who-have-money/) [Shigeru Ban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shigeru-ban/) > [The only aspect of our travels that is interesting to others is disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-gellmanmartha-gellman/the-only-aspect-of-our-travels-that-is-interesting-to-others-is/) Martha GellmanMartha Gellman [Browse all 2,239 Disaster quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think interventions tend to be wrong. 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