--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is, of course, how they want us…" description: "\"“This is, of course, how they want us: panicked, weak, and separated. We are easier to kill that way.”\" — Lauren Oliver" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png" --- # This is, of course, how they want us: panicked, weak, and… ![“This is, of course, how they want us: panicked, weak, and separated. We are easier to kill that way.” quote by Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png) > ““This is, of course, how they want us: panicked, weak, and separated. We are easier to kill that way.”” [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Oppressive forces aim to keep people fearful, weak, and divided, making them easier to control. **In simple terms:** Fear and division weaken resistance. Key Takeaway Foster unity and resilience. Themes control fear division Mood hopeful determined Type social political When to use this quote - activism - community building - education campaigns Key Concepts social manipulation psychological warfare Questions to Reflect On - How can communities resist division? - What strategies build collective strength? A Different Perspective Overcoming fear requires collective action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [It's generally much easier to kill an organization than to change it substantially.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-kelly/it-s-generally-much-easier-to-kill-an-organization-than-to-change-it/) [Kevin Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-kelly/) > [In early times, it was easier to control a million people than to kill a million. Today, it is infinitely easier to to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-brzezinski/in-early-times-it-was-easier-to-control-a-million-people-than-to-kill/) [Zbigniew Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-brzezinski/) > [The more that you dehumanize somebody, the easier it is to kill them... deport them... do whatever you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheri-honkala/the-more-that-you-dehumanize-somebody-the-easier-it-is-to-kill-them/) Cheri Honkala > [Today it is infinitely easier to kill one million people than to control one million people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-brzezinski/today-it-is-infinitely-easier-to-kill-one-million-people-than-to/) [Zbigniew Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-brzezinski/) > [It's easier to tell a lie, than to tell the truth. It's easier to kill a fly, than it is to turn it loose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-harrison/it-s-easier-to-tell-a-lie-than-to-tell-the-truth-it-s-easier-to-kill/) [George Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-harrison/) > [It is easier to kill what we do not know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/it-is-easier-to-kill-what-we-do-not-know/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“It was easier to kill guilty men than sell innocent women”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-roberts/it-was-easier-to-kill-guilty-men-than-sell-innocent-women/) [C.J. Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-roberts/) > [It’s easier to kill people, when you’re dead yourself,” she told him. “I mean, it’s not such a big deal. You’re not so prejudiced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/it-s-easier-to-kill-people-when-you-re-dead-yourself-she-told-him-i/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Strange as it may seem—or perhaps it does not seem so strange—they all had the same thought: it was so much easier to kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/strange-as-it-may-seem-or-perhaps-it-does-not-seem-so-strange-they/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [It’s easier to kill people, when you’re dead yourself. I mean, it’s not such a big deal. You’re not so prejudiced any more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/it-s-easier-to-kill-people-when-you-re-dead-yourself-i-mean-it-s-not/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [It is easier to kill than to heal. It is easier to destroy than to preserve. It is easier to tear down than to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bishop/it-is-easier-to-kill-than-to-heal-it-is-easier-to-destroy-than-to/) [Anne Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bishop/) > [When one nation is at war with another nation, the political machine does everything it can to vilify the people of the other nation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-siddig/when-one-nation-is-at-war-with-another-nation-the-political-machine/) [Alexander Siddig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-siddig/) > [“It’s always easier to kill someone else’s darlings than it is to kill your own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/it-s-always-easier-to-kill-someone-else-s-darlings-than-it-is-to-kill/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [I'm just saying it's easier to kill a cat than dispose of a car.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dobbin/i-m-just-saying-it-s-easier-to-kill-a-cat-than-dispose-of-a-car/) [John Dobbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dobbin/) > [In 2011, I announced that I was going to retire, and my agent panicked. So she says: 'No, no, no. You have to write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/in-2011-i-announced-that-i-was-going-to-retire-and-my-agent-panicked/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) ## More by Lauren Oliver > [“My aunt Carol hasn’t heard her say a word in the whole six years and three months of Grace’s life—not a single syllable. Carol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/my-aunt-carol-hasn-t-heard-her-say-a-word-in-the-whole-six-years-and/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [This is what happens when you try to help people. You get screwed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-what-happens-when-you-try-to-help-people-you-get-screwed/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [We'll walk together holding hands, and kiss in broad daylight, and love each other as much as we want to, and no one will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/we-ll-walk-together-holding-hands-and-kiss-in-broad-daylight-and-love/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“It seem absurd to me that they don't know, haven't felt any change or tremor, even as my life has been completely turned upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-seem-absurd-to-me-that-they-don-t-know-haven-t-felt-any-change-or/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“At least when I'm sleeping I can dream myself back to Alex, can dream myself into a different world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/at-least-when-i-m-sleeping-i-can-dream-myself-back-to-alex-can-dream/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [People are like ants: Just a few of them give all the orders. And most of them spend their lives getting squashed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/people-are-like-ants-just-a-few-of-them-give-all-the-orders-and-most/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Summer explodes into Portland. In early June the heat was there but not the color--the green were still pale and tentative, the morning had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/summer-explodes-into-portland-in-early-june-the-heat-was-there-but/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Mistake, mistake, mistake. A strange word: stinging, somehow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/mistake-mistake-mistake-a-strange-word-stinging-somehow/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [I wonder if it's ever really possible to know the truth about someone else, or if the best we can do is just stumble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/i-wonder-if-it-s-ever-really-possible-to-know-the-truth-about-someone/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“Julian is somewhere among those lights, in that blur of people and buildings. I wonder whether he's scared. I wonder whether he's thinking of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/julian-is-somewhere-among-those-lights-in-that-blur-of-people-and/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [A room full of words that are nearly the truth but not quite, each note fluttering off the steam of its rose like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/a-room-full-of-words-that-are-nearly-the-truth-but-not-quite-each/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“She’s the kind of person who makes you feel drunk just by being around her, like suddenly the world’s edges are dulled and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/she-s-the-kind-of-person-who-makes-you-feel-drunk-just-by-being/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“Stop!” His voice rings out sharply, hard as a slap. He releases me and I stumble backward. “Alex is dead, do you hear me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/stop-his-voice-rings-out-sharply-hard-as-a-slap-he-releases-me-and-i/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [..in that moment i realize how much i love the little everyday routines of my life..the details that are my life's special pattern, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/in-that-moment-i-realize-how-much-i-love-the-little-everyday-routines/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“You can't judge a book by its steel-toed combat boots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/you-can-t-judge-a-book-by-its-steel-toed-combat-boots/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) [Explore all 1,181 Lauren Oliver quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## More Easier quotes > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [I think hair gel was invented to make it easier to identify assholes from a distance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/i-think-hair-gel-was-invented-to-make-it-easier-to-identify-assholes/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) > [It is easier to say you're mad, rather than admitting you're hurt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-easier-to-say-you-re-mad-rather-than-admitting-you-re-hurt/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Nothing is easier than yesterday's solutions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-sperry/nothing-is-easier-than-yesterday-s-solutions/) Roger Sperry > [When you have a cavity in your tooth and you let it get worse, eventually you have to get a root canal. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/) [Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/) > [Generally, I like all islands. There, it is easier to rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/generally-i-like-all-islands-there-it-is-easier-to-rule/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [It's funny, everything is so much easier when you do it yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carine-roitfeld/it-s-funny-everything-is-so-much-easier-when-you-do-it-yourself/) [Carine Roitfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carine-roitfeld/) > [It is easier to perceive error than to find truth, for the former lies on the surface and is easily seen, while the latter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/it-is-easier-to-perceive-error-than-to-find-truth-for-the-former-lies/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I'm truly, 100% guided by the characters and my Muse. If one of the characters suddenly decided to do something very different, I'd just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-foster/i-m-truly-100-guided-by-the-characters-and-my-muse-if-one-of-the/) [Lori Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-foster/) > [The easier it is to quantify, the less it's worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-easier-it-is-to-quantify-the-less-it-s-worth/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [“it is easier to do a job right than to explain why you didnt”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-van-buren/it-is-easier-to-do-a-job-right-than-to-explain-why-you-didnt/) [Martin Van Buren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-van-buren/) > [“Often we find it easier to think our way around things rather than to feel our way through them:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/often-we-find-it-easier-to-think-our-way-around-things-rather-than-to/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [I know it is easier said than done, but you have to find a way to surround yourself with positivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michaela-deprince/i-know-it-is-easier-said-than-done-but-you-have-to-find-a-way-to/) [Michaela DePrince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michaela-deprince/) > [God puts you where God needs you. You are where you are supposed to be. The job you are doing may not be any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-kushner/god-puts-you-where-god-needs-you-you-are-where-you-are-supposed-to-be/) [Lawrence Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-kushner/) Browse all 5,480 Easier quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This is, of course, how they want us: panicked, weak, and separated. We are easier to kill that way.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lauren Oliver" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panicked-weak-and-separated-we-are/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Easier" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panicked-weak-and-separated-we-are/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc0/lauren-oliver-109_easier_this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panic_2730499.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is, of course, how they want us: panicked, weak, and separated. We are easier to kill that way.” — Lauren Oliver", "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": "Lauren Oliver", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“This is, of course, how they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panicked-weak-and-separated-we-are/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-of-course-how-they-want-us-panicked-weak-and-separated-we-are/#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 } } ] } ```