--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is impossible, except for theologians…" description: "\"It is impossible, except for theologians, to conceive of a world-wide scandal or a universe-wide scandal; the proof of this is the way people have sett..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg" --- # It is impossible, except for theologians, to conceive of a… ![“It is impossible, except for theologians, to conceive of a world-wide scandal or a universe-wide scandal; the proof of this is the way people have settled down to living with nuclear fission, radiation poisoning, hydrogen bombs, satellites, and space rockets.” quote by Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg) > “It is impossible, except for theologians, to conceive of a world-wide scandal or a universe-wide scandal; the proof of this is the way people have settled down to living with nuclear fission, radiation poisoning, hydrogen bombs, satellites, and space rockets.” [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She argues that humanity normalizes catastrophic technologies, treating them as ordinary despite their massive risks. **In simple terms:** People accept dangerous tech as normal. Key Takeaway Question the complacency toward existential threats. Themes technology normalization existential risk Mood concerned critical Type cautionary analytical When to use this quote - political debate - environmental policy - public health - education - media coverage Key Concepts cognitive dissonance risk perception Questions to Reflect On - How do we become aware of hidden risks? - What actions can reduce complacency? A Different Perspective Denial and economic interests can mask true dangers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bombs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/) [Fission](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fission/) [Hydrogen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hydrogen/) [Hydrogen bomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hydrogen-bomb/) [Nuclear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear/) [Nuclear fission](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear-fission/) [Nuclear power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear-power/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Rockets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rockets/) [Satellites](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/satellites/) [Scandal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scandal/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Theologian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theologian/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Certainly science, because of its ability to increase our capacities to do things, raises terrible risks for us all. If it were possible to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-weinberg/certainly-science-because-of-its-ability-to-increase-our-capacities/) [Steven Weinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-weinberg/) > [When all thermonuclear sources of energy are exhausted a sufficiently heavy star will collapse. Unless fission due to rotation, the radiation of mass, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-robert-oppenheimer/when-all-thermonuclear-sources-of-energy-are-exhausted-a-sufficiently/) [J. Robert Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-robert-oppenheimer/) > [Most of us do not understand nuclear fission, but we accept it. I don't understand television, but I accept it. I don't understand radio,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/most-of-us-do-not-understand-nuclear-fission-but-we-accept-it-i-don-t/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [“I’m smart enough to know that you feel it, too. This isn’t just heat, it’s a goddamned conflagration. Not chemistry, but nuclear fission.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-kenner/i-m-smart-enough-to-know-that-you-feel-it-too-this-isn-t-just-heat-it/) [J. Kenner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-kenner/) > [Other paths would include making nuclear fission cheap enough and safe enough that people broadly embrace it, so that could be scaled up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/other-paths-would-include-making-nuclear-fission-cheap-enough-and/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Evolution is the fundamental idea in all of life science, in all of biology. The key to our being here now is time, 4.54…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/evolution-is-the-fundamental-idea-in-all-of-life-science-in-all-of/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [It was my responsibility that this world got itself an atom bomb, because there were only a handful of nuclear physicists in the thirties…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-ron-hubbard/it-was-my-responsibility-that-this-world-got-itself-an-atom-bomb/) [L. Ron Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-ron-hubbard/) > [I must furnish those, who would protect or save life, with an energy source, which produces energy so cheaply that nuclear fission will not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-schauberger/i-must-furnish-those-who-would-protect-or-save-life-with-an-energy/) [Viktor Schauberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-schauberger/) > [Don't get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It's just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there's an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mcdonough/don-t-get-me-wrong-i-love-nuclear-energy-it-s-just-that-i-prefer/) [William McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mcdonough/) > [ The technologists claim that if everything works \[in a nuclear fission reactor\] according to their blueprints, fission energy will be a safe and very… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannes-alfven/the-technologists-claim-that-if-everything-works-in-a-nuclear-fission/) [Hannes Alfven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannes-alfven/) > [(Man,) the glory and the scandal of the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/man-the-glory-and-the-scandal-of-the-universe/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“Some search for the North Pole. Others seek to split the atom. They are both perilous journeys. When it comes to the former, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-edelstein-18681939-the-1933-chancellor-s-lecture-university-of-vienna/some-search-for-the-north-pole-others-seek-to-split-the-atom-they-are/) Aaron Edelstein 18681939 The 1933 Chancellor s Lecture University of Vienna > [You can't conquer a free man; the most you can do is kill him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/you-can-t-conquer-a-free-man-the-most-you-can-do-is-kill-him/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Today, nothing is unusual about a scientific discovery's being followed soon after by a technical application: The discovery of electrons led to electronics; fission…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-teller/today-nothing-is-unusual-about-a-scientific-discovery-s-being/) [Edward Teller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-teller/) > [The pace of science forces the pace of technique. Theoretical physics forces atomic energy on us; the successful production of the fission bomb forces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-pace-of-science-forces-the-pace-of-technique-theoretical-physics/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) ## More by Mary McCarthy > [From what I have seen, I am driven to the conclusion that religion is only good for good people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/from-what-i-have-seen-i-am-driven-to-the-conclusion-that-religion-is/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [In morals as in politics anarchy is not for the weak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/in-morals-as-in-politics-anarchy-is-not-for-the-weak/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Yet friendship, I believe, is essential to intellectuals. It is probably the growth hormone the mind requires as it begins its activity of producing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/yet-friendship-i-believe-is-essential-to-intellectuals-it-is-probably/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Any sizeable Portuguese town looks like a superstitious bride's finery - something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/any-sizeable-portuguese-town-looks-like-a-superstitious-bride-s/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [The desire to believe the best of people is a prerequisite for intercourse with strangers; suspicion is reserved for friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/the-desire-to-believe-the-best-of-people-is-a-prerequisite-for/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [ “She considered \[her\] life, which had not been a life but only a sort of greeting, a Hello There.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/she-considered-her-life-which-had-not-been-a-life-but-only-a-sort-of/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [America is indeed a revelation, though not quite the one that was planned. Given a clean slate, man, it was hoped, would write the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/america-is-indeed-a-revelation-though-not-quite-the-one-that-was/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [The happy ending is our national belief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/the-happy-ending-is-our-national-belief/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Making love, we are all more alike than we are when we are talking or acting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/making-love-we-are-all-more-alike-than-we-are-when-we-are-talking-or/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [... in America ... children are instructed in the virtues of the system they live under, as though history had achieved a happy ending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/in-america-children-are-instructed-in-the-virtues-of-the-system-they/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [The only form of action open to a child is to break something or strike someone, its mother or another child; it cannot cause…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/the-only-form-of-action-open-to-a-child-is-to-break-something-or/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Combativeness was, I suppose, the dominant trait in my grandmother's nature. An aggressive churchgoer, she was quite without Christian feeling; the mercy of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/combativeness-was-i-suppose-the-dominant-trait-in-my-grandmother-s/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [I'm afraid I'm not sufficiently inhibited about the things that other women are inhibited about for me. They feel that you've given away trade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/i-m-afraid-i-m-not-sufficiently-inhibited-about-the-things-that-other/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Be truthful... and pay attention. I would also recommend the avoidance of credit cards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/be-truthful-and-pay-attention-i-would-also-recommend-the-avoidance-of/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [All ideas advanced to deal with the Florentine noise problem, the Florentine traffic problem, are Utopian, and nobody believes in them, just as nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/all-ideas-advanced-to-deal-with-the-florentine-noise-problem-the/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) [Explore all 154 Mary McCarthy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) ## More Bombs quotes > [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/) > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [ No wonder that Churchill described this effort \[the British codebreakers working at Bletchley Park\] as "Britian"s secret weapon," a weapon far more effective than… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hilton/no-wonder-that-churchill-described-this-effort-the-british/) [Peter Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hilton/) > [There is an idea that you can take the spiritual teachings of a religion outside of a religion and practice them; these ideas are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seyyed-hossein-nasr/there-is-an-idea-that-you-can-take-the-spiritual-teachings-of-a/) [Seyyed Hossein Nasr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seyyed-hossein-nasr/) > [In 2001, we were told that the war in Afghanistan was a feminist mission. The marines were liberating Afghan women from the Taliban. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arundhati-roy/in-2001-we-were-told-that-the-war-in-afghanistan-was-a-feminist/) [Arundhati Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arundhati-roy/) > [The pace of science forces the pace of technique. Theoretical physics forces atomic energy on us; the successful production of the fission bomb forces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-pace-of-science-forces-the-pace-of-technique-theoretical-physics/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [We're not going to cure terrorism and spread peace and goodwill in the Middle East by killing innocent people, or I'm not even saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-sheehan/we-re-not-going-to-cure-terrorism-and-spread-peace-and-goodwill-in/) [Cindy Sheehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-sheehan/) > [I call on the Iranian people: it is not too late to replace the corrupt regime and return to your glorious Persian heritage, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/i-call-on-the-iranian-people-it-is-not-too-late-to-replace-the/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [My God! The English language is a form of communication! Conversation isn't just crossfire where you shoot and get shot at! Where you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-roth/my-god-the-english-language-is-a-form-of-communication-conversation/) [Philip Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-roth/) > [I am not sure why, but I have been obsessed by the Atom Bomb ever since it first happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lanford-wilson/i-am-not-sure-why-but-i-have-been-obsessed-by-the-atom-bomb-ever/) [Lanford Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lanford-wilson/) > [Everybody I've ever met was destroyed by a member of the opposite sex early on and that damage you took into every relationship after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-titus/everybody-i-ve-ever-met-was-destroyed-by-a-member-of-the-opposite-sex/) [Christopher Titus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-titus/) > [I had a very well-respected writer ask me point blank to my face whether it actually mattered to me. Now, without wanting to reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-furyk/i-had-a-very-well-respected-writer-ask-me-point-blank-to-my-face/) [Jim Furyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-furyk/) > [If torture is going to be administered as a last resort in the ticking-bomb case, to save enormous numbers of lives, it ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/if-torture-is-going-to-be-administered-as-a-last-resort-in-the/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [There are cameras nowadays that have been developed to tell the difference between a squirrel and a bomb.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/there-are-cameras-nowadays-that-have-been-developed-to-tell-the/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [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/) [Browse all 1,253 Bombs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bombs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is impossible, except for theologians, to conceive of a world-wide scandal or a universe-wide scandal; the proof of this is the way people have settled down to living with nuclear fission, radiation poisoning, hydrogen bombs, satellites, and space rockets.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mary McCarthy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians-to-conceive-of-a-world-wide/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bombs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians-to-conceive-of-a-world-wide/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce1/mary-mccarthy-2691_bombs_it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians_401455.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is impossible, except for theologians, to conceive of a world-wide scandal or a universe-wide scandal…” — Mary McCarthy", "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": "Mary McCarthy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It is impossible, except for theologians,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians-to-conceive-of-a-world-wide/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/it-is-impossible-except-for-theologians-to-conceive-of-a-world-wide/#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 } } ] } ```