Economic problems Quote by Noam Chomsky
““There are growing domestic social and economic problems, in fact, maybe catastrophes. Nobody in power has any intention of doing anything about them. If you look at the domestic programs of the administrations of the past ten years-I include here the Democratic opposition-there's really no serious proposal about what to do about the severe problems of health, education, homelessness, joblessness, crime, soaring criminal populations, jails, deterioration in the inner cities - the whole raft of problems... In such circumstances you've got to divert the bewildered herd, because if they start noticing this they may not like it, since they're the ones suffering from it. Just having them watch the Superbowl and the sitcoms may not be enough. You have to whip them up into fear of enemies. In the 1930s Hitler whipped them into fear of the Jews and gypsies. You had to crush them to defend yourselves. We have our ways, too. Over the last ten years, every year ot two, some major monster is constructed that we have to defend ourselves against.””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Critical Commentary on Media Manipulation, 2005
Leaders distract masses with fear, diverting attention from systemic issues.
In simple terms: Power uses fear to mask real problems.
Question narratives and seek factual solutions.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- elections
- public policy debates
- community organizing
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What evidence reveals the distraction?
- How can communities resist fear‑based narratives?
Fear tactics can backfire if exposed.