--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One’s concern with the ethics of means…" description: "\"One’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s personal interest in the issue.\" — Saul Alinsky" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png" --- # One’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies… ![“One’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s personal interest in the issue.” quote by Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png) > “One’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s personal interest in the issue.” [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People care less about ethical means when they have a personal stake in the outcome. **In simple terms:** Self‑interest weakens ethical concern. Key Takeaway Recognize bias when evaluating ethics. Themes ethics self‑interest motivation Mood reflective critical Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - political activism - personal decision making - policy debates Key Concepts moral psychology conflict of interest Questions to Reflect On - How does personal gain affect your moral judgments? - Can you separate interest from principle? A Different Perspective Self‑interest can be rationalized, obscuring true moral stakes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ethics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ethics/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/issues/) [Personal interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal-interest/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Rules for radicals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rules-for-radicals/) ## Related quotes > [“one’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s distance from the scene of conflict.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-varies-inversely-with-2/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The third rule of ethics of means and ends is that in war the end justifies almost any means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-third-rule-of-ethics-of-means-and-ends-is-that-in-war-the-end/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The seventh rule of the ethics of means and ends is that generally success or failure is a mighty determinant of ethics. The judgment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-seventh-rule-of-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-is-that-generally/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The ninth rule of the ethics of means and ends is that any effective means is automatically judged by the opposition as being unethical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-ninth-rule-of-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-is-that-any-effective/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [I think we'll go through a period when there's a revival of concern about ethics. After Watergate, we got the Ethics in Government Act,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-painter/i-think-we-ll-go-through-a-period-when-there-s-a-revival-of-concern/) [Richard Painter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-painter/) > [“To put it plainly, having modern ethics means having "your ducks in a row" or having your act together. It means creating basic stability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-ippoliti/to-put-it-plainly-having-modern-ethics-means-having-your-ducks-in-a/) Amy Ippoliti > [The preferred world can be seen any evening on television in the succession of programs where the good always wins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-preferred-world-can-be-seen-any-evening-on-television-in-the/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Life is there ahead of you and either one tests oneself in its challenges or huddles in the valleys of a dreamless day-to-day existence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/life-is-there-ahead-of-you-and-either-one-tests-oneself-in-its/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [An organizer working in and for an open society is in an ideological dilemma to begin with, he does not have a fixed truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/an-organizer-working-in-and-for-an-open-society-is-in-an-ideological/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [In this world laws are written for the lofty aim of "the common good" and then acted out in life on the basis of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/in-this-world-laws-are-written-for-the-lofty-aim-of-the-common-good/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [A good tactic is one that your people enjoy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/a-good-tactic-is-one-that-your-people-enjoy/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [One acts decisively only in the conviction that all the angels are on one side and all the devils on the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-acts-decisively-only-in-the-conviction-that-all-the-angels-are-on/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The standards of judgment must be rooted in the whys and wherefores of life as it is lived, the world as it is, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-standards-of-judgment-must-be-rooted-in-the-whys-and-wherefores/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it. Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/pick-the-target-freeze-it-personalize-it-and-polarize-it-cut-off-the/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The very first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-very-first-radical-known-to-man-who-rebelled-against-the/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) ## More by Saul Alinsky > [The threat is usually more terrifying than the thing itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-threat-is-usually-more-terrifying-than-the-thing-itself/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The very first radical known to man who rebelled against the establishment and did it so effectively that he at least won his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-very-first-radical-known-to-man-who-rebelled-against-the/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [I've never joined any organization - not even the ones I've organized myself. I prize my own independence too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/i-ve-never-joined-any-organization-not-even-the-ones-i-ve-organized/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Everybody owned stock in the Capone mob; in a way, he was a public benefactor. I remember one time when he arrived at his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/everybody-owned-stock-in-the-capone-mob-in-a-way-he-was-a-public/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [First rule of change is controversy. You can't get away from it for the simple reason all issues are controversial. Change means movement, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/first-rule-of-change-is-controversy-you-can-t-get-away-from-it-for/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Radicals, on the other hand, want to advance from the jungle of laissez-faire capitalism to a world worthy of the name of human civilization.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/radicals-on-the-other-hand-want-to-advance-from-the-jungle-of-laissez/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it. Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/pick-the-target-freeze-it-personalize-it-and-polarize-it-cut-off-the/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The first step in community organization is community disorganization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-first-step-in-community-organization-is-community-disorganization/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Power just goes to two poles — to those who've got money, and those who've got people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/power-just-goes-to-two-poles-to-those-who-ve-got-money-and-those-who/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The establishment can accept being screwed, but not being laughed at](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-establishment-can-accept-being-screwed-but-not-being-laughed-at/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [To the organizer, compromise is a key and beautiful word. It is always present in the pragmatics of operation... If you start with nothing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/to-the-organizer-compromise-is-a-key-and-beautiful-word-it-is-always/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Power is not only what you have but what the enemy thinks you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/power-is-not-only-what-you-have-but-what-the-enemy-thinks-you-have/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [The standards of judgment must be rooted in the whys and wherefores of life as it is lived, the world as it is, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/the-standards-of-judgment-must-be-rooted-in-the-whys-and-wherefores/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [Organized business has assumed that greater profits would be pretty much of a cure-all, and it has to a major extent ignored the fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/organized-business-has-assumed-that-greater-profits-would-be-pretty/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) > [One acts decisively only in the conviction that all the angels are on one side and all the devils on the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-acts-decisively-only-in-the-conviction-that-all-the-angels-are-on/) [Saul Alinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) [Explore all 141 Saul Alinsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/) ## More Concern quotes > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [It is not my intention to explain Turkey, its culture and its problems. My literature has a universal concern: I want to bring people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/it-is-not-my-intention-to-explain-turkey-its-culture-and-its-problems/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I'm a vegetarian - I think there's a strong possibility, had I not become a vegetarian, I would not be working now. I became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-barker/i-m-a-vegetarian-i-think-there-s-a-strong-possibility-had-i-not/) [Bob Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-barker/) > [What really concerns me is for Christians to understand the fundamentals of evangelism in a way that is helpful in the contemporary scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/what-really-concerns-me-is-for-christians-to-understand-the/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I'm not interested in making a diagnostic novel or a concern. I'm 100 percent committed in fiction to the pleasure principle - that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-not-interested-in-making-a-diagnostic-novel-or-a-concern-i-m-100/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [I am sympathetic to developing countries’ concerns: because of our emissions it’s their crops that will disappear; because of our inaction, it’s their fields…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/i-am-sympathetic-to-developing-countries-concerns-because-of-our/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [It concerns me when people frame the conversation about equal pay about the entertainment business. I don't want the wage gap issue to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-arquette/it-concerns-me-when-people-frame-the-conversation-about-equal-pay/) [Patricia Arquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-arquette/) > [The Patriot Act is certainly a concern; all of those things are dangerous. I think more important than me preaching is that we as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/the-patriot-act-is-certainly-a-concern-all-of-those-things-are/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [More compassionate mind, more sense of concern for other's well-being, is source of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/more-compassionate-mind-more-sense-of-concern-for-other-s-well-being/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [When I was in my teens I had a series of intensely religious experiences. They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [ I just have to deal with it \[injuries\] if and when problems happen. It's obviously a concern and I've been very careful with my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-james/i-just-have-to-deal-with-it-injuries-if-and-when-problems-happen-it-s/) [Greg James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-james/) > [Much has been said and continues to be said of what little concern the Turks had for the Acropolis treasures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melina-mercouri/much-has-been-said-and-continues-to-be-said-of-what-little-concern/) [Melina Mercouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melina-mercouri/) Browse all 3,297 Concern quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s personal interest in the issue.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Saul Alinsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-varies-inversely-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Concern" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-varies-inversely-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/12c/saul-alinsky-3048_concern_one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-a_733415.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One’s concern with the ethics of means and ends varies inversely with one’s personal interest in the issue.” — Saul Alinsky", "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": "Saul Alinsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-alinsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "One’s concern with the ethics of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-varies-inversely-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-alinsky/one-s-concern-with-the-ethics-of-means-and-ends-varies-inversely-with/#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 } } ] } ```