--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Men are fighting one another because they…" description: "\"Men are fighting one another because they are convinced that the extermination and liquidation of adversaries is the only means of promoting their own ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png" --- # Men are fighting one another because they are convinced… ![“Men are fighting one another because they are convinced that the extermination and liquidation of adversaries is the only means of promoting their own well-being.” quote by Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png) > “Men are fighting one another because they are convinced that the extermination and liquidation of adversaries is the only means of promoting their own well-being.” [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People justify violence by believing eliminating enemies is essential for their own prosperity. **In simple terms:** Violence is seen as a path to personal gain. Key Takeaway Question the belief that harm benefits self. Themes conflict ethics politics human nature Mood critical analytical Type political ethical When to use this quote - political debate - war planning - economic policy discussions Key Concepts rational choice moral hazard Questions to Reflect On - What alternatives exist to achieve well‑being without violence? - Can cooperation replace competition? A Different Perspective Assumes all actors are rational and self-interested. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adversaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversaries/) [Anti war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anti-war/) [Antiwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antiwar/) [Convinced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convinced/) [Convinced Extermination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convinced-extermination-3933176/) [Extermination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extermination/) [Extermination Liquidation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extermination-liquidation-5281277/) [Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting/) [Fighting Convinced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting-convinced-3933174/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-fighting-659227/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Promoting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promoting/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Well being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well-being/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [Men are fighting... because they are convinced that the extermination of adversaries is the only means of promoting their own well-being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/men-are-fighting-because-they-are-convinced-that-the-extermination-of/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [“We are men, fighting God's war. Do you think it strange?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raev-gray/we-are-men-fighting-god-s-war-do-you-think-it-strange/) [Raev Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raev-gray/) > [“Nothing but sunrise and sunsetting Men fighting the things that are- Birthgiving and bloodletting And a drunk god snoring afar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-levin/nothing-but-sunrise-and-sunsetting-men-fighting-the-things-that-are/) [Dan Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-levin/) > [“When men are fighting for their lives they are not often disposed to be complimentary to those who are trying to kill them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/when-men-are-fighting-for-their-lives-they-are-not-often-disposed-to/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“Sam Cleary reached the two old men fighting on the ground and used the fire extinguisher for the first time, bringing it down two-handed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/sam-cleary-reached-the-two-old-men-fighting-on-the-ground-and-used/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [And whereas women had to fight to find their way into the workforce, men are now fighting to reclaim their place in the family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-geldof/and-whereas-women-had-to-fight-to-find-their-way-into-the-workforce/) [Bob Geldof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-geldof/) > [“How come so many men are fighting over you? Don’t they know what a pain in the neck you are?” “It’s”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristi-abbott/how-come-so-many-men-are-fighting-over-you-don-t-they-know-what-a/) [Kristi Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristi-abbott/) > [I have watched them all day and they are the same men that we are. I believe that I could walk up to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/i-have-watched-them-all-day-and-they-are-the-same-men-that-we-are-i/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [The insignia meant a lot to the men who were fighting ... I had to do it ... I owed it to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/the-insignia-meant-a-lot-to-the-men-who-were-fighting-i-had-to-do-it/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gamaliel/leave-these-men-alone-let-them-go-for-if-their-purpose-or-activity-is/) [Gamaliel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gamaliel/) > [ \[T\]he essence of so-called war prosperity: it enriches some by what it takes from others. It is not rising wealth but a shifting of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/t-he-essence-of-so-called-war-prosperity-it-enriches-some-by-what-it/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [The root of the evil is not the construction of new, more dreadful weapons. It is the spirit of conquest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-root-of-the-evil-is-not-the-construction-of-new-more-dreadful/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Sovereignty must not be used for inflicting harm on anyone, whether citizen or foreigner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/sovereignty-must-not-be-used-for-inflicting-harm-on-anyone-whether/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [The worst evils which mankind has ever had to endure were inflicted by bad governments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-worst-evils-which-mankind-has-ever-had-to-endure-were-inflicted/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Whoever wants peace among nations must seek to limit the state and its influence most strictly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/whoever-wants-peace-among-nations-must-seek-to-limit-the-state-and/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) ## More by Ludwig von Mises > [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Changes in human conditions are brought about by the pioneering of the cleverest and most energetic men. They take the lead and the rest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/changes-in-human-conditions-are-brought-about-by-the-pioneering-of/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [During the 2300 years since Plato, very little opposition has been registered to his ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/during-the-2300-years-since-plato-very-little-opposition-has-been/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [“How little one is justified in speaking in this connection of "optimism" and "pessimism" and how much the characterization of liberalism as "optimistic" aims…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/how-little-one-is-justified-in-speaking-in-this-connection-of/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Every step by which an individual substitutes concerted action for isolated action results in an immediate and recognizable improvement in his conditions. 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Since under Socialism economic calculation is impossible, under Socialism there can be no economic activity in our sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/without-calculation-economic-activity-is-impossible-since-under/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [There is no kind of freedom and liberty other than the kind which the market economy brings about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/there-is-no-kind-of-freedom-and-liberty-other-than-the-kind-which-the/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Peace and not war is the father of all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/peace-and-not-war-is-the-father-of-all-things/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [What counts alone is the innovator, the dissenter, the harbinger of things unheard of, the man who rejects the traditional standards and aims at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/what-counts-alone-is-the-innovator-the-dissenter-the-harbinger-of/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [In reality no food is valued solely for its nutritive power and no garment or house solely for the protection it affords against cold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/in-reality-no-food-is-valued-solely-for-its-nutritive-power-and-no/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [All this talk: the state should do this or that, ultimately means: the police should force consumers to behave otherwise than they would behave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/all-this-talk-the-state-should-do-this-or-that-ultimately-means-the/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [The most successful businessmen were often uneducated when measured by the scholastic standards of the teaching profession. But they were equal to their social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-most-successful-businessmen-were-often-uneducated-when-measured/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Two hundred years ago, before the advent of capitalism, a man's social status was fixed from the beginning to the end of his life;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/two-hundred-years-ago-before-the-advent-of-capitalism-a-man-s-social/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) > [Facts per se can neither prove nor refute anything. Everything is decided by the interpretation and explanation of the facts, by the ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/facts-per-se-can-neither-prove-nor-refute-anything-everything-is/) [Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) [Explore all 637 Ludwig von Mises quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/) ## More Adversaries quotes > [In all matters of opinion, our adversaries are insane.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/in-all-matters-of-opinion-our-adversaries-are-insane/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Inanimate objects are sometimes parties to litigation. A ship has a legal personality, a fiction found useful for maritime purposes. The corporation sole -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/inanimate-objects-are-sometimes-parties-to-litigation-a-ship-has-a/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [There were various aspects of Sun Tzu's approach that appealed to Ho Chi Minh: a) to learn to understand both the enemy and yourself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-duiker/there-were-various-aspects-of-sun-tzu-s-approach-that-appealed-to-ho/) [William J. Duiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-duiker/) > [Marriage, in my view, should be a balanced stalemate between equal adversaries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/marriage-in-my-view-should-be-a-balanced-stalemate-between-equal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If an adversary didn't target our power plants but they did target the core routers, the backbones that tie our internet connections together, entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-an-adversary-didn-t-target-our-power-plants-but-they-did-target/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [It's like I'm married to the silencer, Until I file for divorce and release my ex-calibers. Do art with your arteries, place that for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pharoahe-monch/it-s-like-i-m-married-to-the-silencer-until-i-file-for-divorce-and/) [Pharoahe Monch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pharoahe-monch/) > [Educational exchange can turn nations into people, contributing as no other form of communication can to the humanizing of international relations. Man's capacity for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/educational-exchange-can-turn-nations-into-people-contributing-as-no/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [Obama is hardly the first president to seek rapprochement with our adversaries and reconciliation with our enemies, of course. But his determination to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-f-hayes/obama-is-hardly-the-first-president-to-seek-rapprochement-with-our/) [Stephen F. Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-f-hayes/) > [It is better to make friends than adversaries of a conquered race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-haydon/it-is-better-to-make-friends-than-adversaries-of-a-conquered-race/) [Benjamin Haydon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-haydon/) > [“The most courageous act in politics is to try to understand your opponent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-most-courageous-act-in-politics-is-to-try-to-understand-your/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [My adversary is the world of finance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-hollande/my-adversary-is-the-world-of-finance/) [Francois Hollande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-hollande/) > [Often GOP political strategy seems like the human wave theory of the Chinese military translated to politics. 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They can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallin-h-oaks/we-should-seek-after-spiritual-gifts-they-can-lead-us-to-god-they-can/) [Dallin H. Oaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallin-h-oaks/) [Browse all 446 Adversaries quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversaries/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Men are fighting one another because they are convinced that the extermination and liquidation of adversaries is the only means of promoting their own well-being.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ludwig von Mises" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/men-are-fighting-one-another-because-they-are-convinced-that-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adversaries" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/men-are-fighting-one-another-because-they-are-convinced-that-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/ludwig-von-mises-364_adversaries_men-are-fighting-one-another-because-the_2274002.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Men are fighting one another because they are convinced that the extermination and liquidation of…” — Ludwig von Mises", "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": "Ludwig von Mises", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Men are fighting one another because...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/men-are-fighting-one-another-because-they-are-convinced-that-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/men-are-fighting-one-another-because-they-are-convinced-that-the/#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 } } ] } ```