--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A source of embarrassment for Libyans…" description: "\"A source of embarrassment for Libyans, Gadhafi has never been a joke: disappearances, a police state, zero freedom of expression, and poverty for at le..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg" --- # A source of embarrassment for Libyans, Gadhafi has never… ![“A source of embarrassment for Libyans, Gadhafi has never been a joke: disappearances, a police state, zero freedom of expression, and poverty for at least a third of the population of country tremendously wealthy thanks to oil.” quote by Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg) > “A source of embarrassment for Libyans, Gadhafi has never been a joke: disappearances, a police state, zero freedom of expression, and poverty for at least a third of the population of country tremendously wealthy thanks to oil.” [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) ## 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 highlights Libya's severe human rights abuses, repression, and economic disparity under Gaddafi despite oil wealth. **In simple terms:** Libya suffers oppression and poverty despite oil riches. Key Takeaway Recognize the gap between resource wealth and citizens' welfare. Themes human rights political repression economic inequality authoritarianism oil wealth Mood somber urgent critical Type political analytical When to use this quote - policy analysis - human rights advocacy - journalistic reporting Key Concepts State oppression resource curse social injustice Questions to Reflect On - How can international actors effectively support Libyan civilians? - What reforms could break the resource curse? A Different Perspective The situation is complex; external interventions may have unintended consequences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Embarrassment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embarrassment/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom of expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-of-expression/) [Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke/) [Police state](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police-state/) ## Related quotes > [Libyans have to work together for a new Libya. They should keep in place the sinews of security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-mitchell/libyans-have-to-work-together-for-a-new-libya-they-should-keep-in/) [Andrew Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-mitchell/) > [ We \[Libyans\] support the Palestinian resistance, and all the world supports this. We support their just cause, but we are against terrorism. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muammar-al-gaddafi/we-libyans-support-the-palestinian-resistance-and-all-the-world/) [Muammar al-Gaddafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muammar-al-gaddafi/) > [The Libyans gave us everything I asked for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curt-weldon/the-libyans-gave-us-everything-i-asked-for/) [Curt Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curt-weldon/) > [If middle-class Americans do not feel threatened by the slow encroachment of the police state or the Patriot Act, it is because they live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bageant/if-middle-class-americans-do-not-feel-threatened-by-the-slow/) [Joe Bageant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bageant/) > [There was no doubt that there was a vast organization which was making fools of all the liberals in Hollywood and taking their money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elia-kazan/there-was-no-doubt-that-there-was-a-vast-organization-which-was/) [Elia Kazan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elia-kazan/) > [“Should we wrap it all up and simply say that they arrested the innocent? But we omitted saying that the very concept of guilt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/should-we-wrap-it-all-up-and-simply-say-that-they-arrested-the/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [There's one overriding issue, namely, that we live in a police state so long as the police get to police themselves. And that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-simmons/there-s-one-overriding-issue-namely-that-we-live-in-a-police-state-so/) [Russell Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-simmons/) > [“The regime's policies, whether intentionally or unintentionally, had engendered a sharp divide between Muslims and Christians, in spite of the fact that generations of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wael-ghonim/the-regime-s-policies-whether-intentionally-or-unintentionally-had/) [Wael Ghonim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wael-ghonim/) > [“Life in a police state is pretty good—if you are the state police.” Though”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-cameron/life-in-a-police-state-is-pretty-good-if-you-are-the-state-police/) [Marc Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-cameron/) > [“Police not enforcing laws results in a high crime rate that is formally reported as a low crime rate in police statistics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/police-not-enforcing-laws-results-in-a-high-crime-rate-that-is/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [What must be addressed in the most immediate sense is the threat that the emerging police state in the United States poses not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/what-must-be-addressed-in-the-most-immediate-sense-is-the-threat-that/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [“Always Remember... Once You Give Up Your Rights, You Can Never Get Them Back. Once You Turn On That Police State, You Can Never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/always-remember-once-you-give-up-your-rights-you-can-never-get-them/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [California always struck me as a police state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-russell/california-always-struck-me-as-a-police-state/) [Leon Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-russell/) > [I mean a real police state just to get a token recognition of a law. It take, it took, I think, 15,000 troops and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-mean-a-real-police-state-just-to-get-a-token-recognition-of-a-law/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [“This was laughable, of course, but that’s always the way with totalitarian regimes. Language gets turned on its head. Serfdom is freedom. Repression is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masaji-ishikawa/this-was-laughable-of-course-but-that-s-always-the-way-with/) [Masaji Ishikawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masaji-ishikawa/) ## More by Mona Eltahawy > [I defend a woman's right to cover her hair if she chooses, but the face is central to human interaction, and so the ideologues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/i-defend-a-woman-s-right-to-cover-her-hair-if-she-chooses-but-the/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [My birth at the end of July 1967 makes me a child of the naksa, or setback, as the Arab defeat during the June…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/my-birth-at-the-end-of-july-1967-makes-me-a-child-of-the-naksa-or/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [Saudi Arabia isn't just a conservative country with different values we shouldn't judge. It is a modern Gilead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/saudi-arabia-isn-t-just-a-conservative-country-with-different-values/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [I can write about my culture and religion because I am a product of both. Even when I'm accused of giving ammunition to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/i-can-write-about-my-culture-and-religion-because-i-am-a-product-of/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [“Why were women alone responsible for sheltering men from the sexual desires women supposedly elicited in men? Why could men not control themselves? Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/why-were-women-alone-responsible-for-sheltering-men-from-the-sexual/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [Saudi authorities must launch a campaign about the safety of female pilgrims and the determination of the authorities to ensure every woman's safety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/saudi-authorities-must-launch-a-campaign-about-the-safety-of-female/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [For years I looked at the Iranians with envy - not at the outcome of their 1979 revolution, but because it was a popular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/for-years-i-looked-at-the-iranians-with-envy-not-at-the-outcome-of/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [Bashar al-Assad's henchmen stomped on the hands of famed Syrian cartoonist Ali Farzat. Our dictators tailor wounds to suit their victims' occupations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/bashar-al-assad-s-henchmen-stomped-on-the-hands-of-famed-syrian/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [When Mubarak does die, he will be remembered as the most bland of those military men turned dictators: compare him with Gamal Abdel-Nasser and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/when-mubarak-does-die-he-will-be-remembered-as-the-most-bland-of/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [As a Muslim woman, I'm all too familiar with the media shorthand for 'Muslim' and 'woman' equaling Covered in Black Muslim Woman. She's seen,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/as-a-muslim-woman-i-m-all-too-familiar-with-the-media-shorthand-for/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [I am horrified by the moral amnesia that develops when a dictator dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/i-am-horrified-by-the-moral-amnesia-that-develops-when-a-dictator-dies/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [I left my husband a year after 9/11. Not because he was an American and I an Egyptian, nothing to do with culture or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/i-left-my-husband-a-year-after-9-11-not-because-he-was-an-american/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [I joke that one of the rare times Egyptians identify as African is when the national soccer squad is playing in the African Cup…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/i-joke-that-one-of-the-rare-times-egyptians-identify-as-african-is/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [I grew up in the U.K., and my parents are both doctors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/i-grew-up-in-the-u-k-and-my-parents-are-both-doctors/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) > [My own feminist revolution evolved slowly, and traveled the world with me. To this day I have no idea what dissident professor or librarian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/my-own-feminist-revolution-evolved-slowly-and-traveled-the-world-with/) [Mona Eltahawy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) [Explore all 107 Mona Eltahawy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/) ## More Embarrassment quotes > [Having no regrets is very unrealistic. Everyone has that awkward or embarrassing moment they wish they could take back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayden-hayes/having-no-regrets-is-very-unrealistic-everyone-has-that-awkward-or/) [Jayden Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayden-hayes/) > [So many wonderful books to write, and not enough hours in the day. An embarrassment of riches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/so-many-wonderful-books-to-write-and-not-enough-hours-in-the-day-an/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [“George's hand lifted and fell away again. It seemed an insult to imply that anything so small as a touch could stop the raw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mette-ivie-harrison/george-s-hand-lifted-and-fell-away-again-it-seemed-an-insult-to-imply/) [Mette Ivie Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mette-ivie-harrison/) > [Charles Darwin viewed the fossil record more as an embarrassment than as an aid to his theory ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/charles-darwin-viewed-the-fossil-record-more-as-an-embarrassment-than/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [One day each scene that you spent in this life will flash before you, make sure you're not embarrassed watching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senora-roy/one-day-each-scene-that-you-spent-in-this-life-will-flash-before-you/) [Senora Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senora-roy/) > [“-I die. Before I die my body turns hair-side-in. People come from everywhere to see the insides of themselves. But the sight makes them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-haldeman/i-die-before-i-die-my-body-turns-hair-side-in-people-come-from/) [Joe Haldeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-haldeman/) > [I don't want to be the embarrassment of the galaxy to have had the power to deflect an asteroid, and then not and end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-don-t-want-to-be-the-embarrassment-of-the-galaxy-to-have-had-the/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [That awkward moment, when you're out in public and you hear someone call your name. Just to turn around and figure out that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-swenson/that-awkward-moment-when-you-re-out-in-public-and-you-hear-someone/) [Emma Swenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-swenson/) > [“I understand how families become estranged, not by design, but by embarrassment. You come to a point when so much time has passed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-richmond/i-understand-how-families-become-estranged-not-by-design-but-by/) [Michelle Richmond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-richmond/) > [A bird in the hand may be worth two in the bush, but remember also that a bird in the hand is a positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-ade/a-bird-in-the-hand-may-be-worth-two-in-the-bush-but-remember-also/) [George Ade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-ade/) > [“No one has ever died of embarrassment-never, not once in the whole history of time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/no-one-has-ever-died-of-embarrassment-never-not-once-in-the-whole/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [ \[Winning the White House was an achievement\], but as an African-American, \[Barack Obama\], I think the symbolism is in how he conducted himself. The… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/winning-the-white-house-was-an-achievement-but-as-an-african-american/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [The job of the media is not to protect the powerful from embarrassment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-jenkins/the-job-of-the-media-is-not-to-protect-the-powerful-from-embarrassment/) [Simon Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-jenkins/) > [I have no qualms: no shame, no guilt, no embarrassment. I tend to act out a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendon-urie/i-have-no-qualms-no-shame-no-guilt-no-embarrassment-i-tend-to-act-out/) [Brendon Urie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendon-urie/) > [The secret of the creative life is to feel at ease with your own embarrassment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-schrader/the-secret-of-the-creative-life-is-to-feel-at-ease-with-your-own/) [Paul Schrader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-schrader/) [Browse all 633 Embarrassment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embarrassment/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A source of embarrassment for Libyans, Gadhafi has never been a joke: disappearances, a police state, zero freedom of expression, and poverty for at least a third of the population of country tremendously wealthy thanks to oil.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mona Eltahawy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-gadhafi-has-never-been-a-joke/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Embarrassment" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-gadhafi-has-never-been-a-joke/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73e/mona-eltahawy-4721_embarrassment_a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-ga_2510050.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A source of embarrassment for Libyans, Gadhafi has never been a joke: disappearances, a police state, zero…” — Mona Eltahawy", "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": "Mona Eltahawy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mona-eltahawy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A source of embarrassment for Libyans,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-gadhafi-has-never-been-a-joke/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mona-eltahawy/a-source-of-embarrassment-for-libyans-gadhafi-has-never-been-a-joke/#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 } } ] } ```