--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Everything I’ve ever gotten in life is…" description: "\"Everything I’ve ever gotten in life is largely due to the fact that I was born in this country, America, at this time with these opportunities for its ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/thomas-friedman-1784_america_everything-i-ve-ever-gotten-in-life-is-l_3036404.jpg" --- # Everything I’ve ever gotten in life is largely due to the… ![“Everything I’ve ever gotten in life is largely due to the fact that I was born in this country, America, at this time with these opportunities for its citizens. It is the primary obligation of our generation to turn over a similar America to our kids.” quote by Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/thomas-friedman-1784_america_everything-i-ve-ever-gotten-in-life-is-l_3036404.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/thomas-friedman-1784_america_everything-i-ve-ever-gotten-in-life-is-l_3036404.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/898/thomas-friedman-1784_america_everything-i-ve-ever-gotten-in-life-is-l_3036404.jpg) > “Everything I’ve ever gotten in life is largely due to the fact that I was born in this country, America, at this time with these opportunities for its citizens. It is the primary obligation of our generation to turn over a similar America to our kids.” [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. America’s opportunities shape personal success; the current generation must preserve them for future kids. **In simple terms:** US opportunities drive success; duty to maintain them. Key Takeaway Advocate for equitable opportunity. Themes responsibility generational duty opportunity Mood hopeful determined Type political inspirational When to use this quote - policy advocacy - education reform - community building Key Concepts politics social justice Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure equal opportunity? - What actions preserve these chances? A Different Perspective Political disagreements may hinder consensus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [America Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-kids-3831859/) [Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born/) [Citizens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/citizens/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation/) [Generation Turn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation-turn-3387696/) [Generations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generations/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity/) [Our generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-generation/) [Similar America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/similar-america-1216473/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Turns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turns/) ## Related quotes > [“Serving my generation with excellence will mean my generation can in turn lead with excellence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/onyi-anyado/serving-my-generation-with-excellence-will-mean-my-generation-can-in/) [Onyi Anyado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/onyi-anyado/) > [New York is like the weirdest city in the United States, in a great way, and Los Angeles is probably more similar to most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-kemper/new-york-is-like-the-weirdest-city-in-the-united-states-in-a-great/) [Ellie Kemper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-kemper/) > [Here is a pragmatic and idealistic suggestion, White America! When you see my kids on the playground, on the street, can you remember to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-raboteau/here-is-a-pragmatic-and-idealistic-suggestion-white-america-when-you/) [Emily Raboteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-raboteau/) > [In America, kids would go to college and get out and buy a second-hand car and go across the country and discover America. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-klein/in-america-kids-would-go-to-college-and-get-out-and-buy-a-second-hand/) [William Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-klein/) > [Those who criticize our generation forget who raised it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/those-who-criticize-our-generation-forget-who-raised-it/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) > [It crosses my mind that our generation may leave problems that are simply too hard for human society in the generations that follow. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-garnaut/it-crosses-my-mind-that-our-generation-may-leave-problems-that-are/) [Ross Garnaut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-garnaut/) > [Like some kind of particularly tenacious vampire the short story refuses to die, and seems at this point in time to be a wonderful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/like-some-kind-of-particularly-tenacious-vampire-the-short-story/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“Almost every time I speak to teenagers, particularly young female students who want to talk to me about feminism, I find myself staggered by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-penny/almost-every-time-i-speak-to-teenagers-particularly-young-female/) [Laurie Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-penny/) > [History balances the frustration of 'how far we have to go' with the satisfaction of 'how far we have come.' It teaches us tolerance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-f-powell-jr/history-balances-the-frustration-of-how-far-we-have-to-go-with-the/) [Lewis F. Powell, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-f-powell-jr/) > [“We are here to witness the creation and abet it. We are here to notice each thing so each thing gets noticed. Together we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-are-here-to-witness-the-creation-and-abet-it-we-are-here-to-notice/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [You are great young people. I have said again and again, we have the finest generation of young people ever in the history of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/you-are-great-young-people-i-have-said-again-and-again-we-have-the/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [I'm sick and tired of our generation being called the TV generation. What do you expect? We watched Lee Harvey Oswald get his brains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-leary/i-m-sick-and-tired-of-our-generation-being-called-the-tv-generation/) [Denis Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-leary/) > [The challenge is either to build an economy that is sustainable or to stay with our unsustainable economy until it declines. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/the-challenge-is-either-to-build-an-economy-that-is-sustainable-or-to/) [Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/) > [God hath work to do in this world; and to desert it because of its difficulties and entanglements, is to cast off His authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-owen/god-hath-work-to-do-in-this-world-and-to-desert-it-because-of-its/) [John Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-owen/) > [Do not be caught up in materialism, one of the real plagues of our generation-that is, acquiring things, fast-paced living, and securing career success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/do-not-be-caught-up-in-materialism-one-of-the-real-plagues-of-our/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) ## More by Thomas Friedman > [I'm pretty much an open book. I am a fanatic golfer and golf nut. If I have three free hours any day, my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/i-m-pretty-much-an-open-book-i-am-a-fanatic-golfer-and-golf-nut-if-i/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [The financial crisis just made the hole deeper, which is why our stimulus needs to be both big and smart, both financially and educationally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/the-financial-crisis-just-made-the-hole-deeper-which-is-why-our/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Many jobs at Google require math, computing, and coding skills, so if your good grades truly reflect skills in those areas that you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/many-jobs-at-google-require-math-computing-and-coding-skills-so-if/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Never before in the history of the planet have so many people, on their own, had the ability to find so much information about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/never-before-in-the-history-of-the-planet-have-so-many-people-on/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [When I was growing up, my parents told me, 'Finish your dinner. People in China and India are starving.' I tell my daughters, 'Finish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/when-i-was-growing-up-my-parents-told-me-finish-your-dinner-people-in/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Hillary Clinton has decided to line up with John McCain in pushing to suspend the federal excise tax on gasoline, 18.4 cents a gallon,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/hillary-clinton-has-decided-to-line-up-with-john-mccain-in-pushing-to/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Two things are going on at the same time with the flattening of the world: The relentless quest for efficiency is squeezing some of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/two-things-are-going-on-at-the-same-time-with-the-flattening-of-the/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Our president's latest energy initiative was to go to Saudi Arabia and beg King Abdullah to give us a little relief on gasoline prices.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/our-president-s-latest-energy-initiative-was-to-go-to-saudi-arabia/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [I don't think the Arab Spring had much to do with energy. I think it was just the opposite, in fact. I think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/i-don-t-think-the-arab-spring-had-much-to-do-with-energy-i-think-it/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Until we fully understand what turned two brothers who allegedly perpetrated the Boston Marathon bombings into murderers, it is hard to make any policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/until-we-fully-understand-what-turned-two-brothers-who-allegedly/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Geopolitics is all about leverage. We cannot make ourselves safer abroad unless we change our behavior at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/geopolitics-is-all-about-leverage-we-cannot-make-ourselves-safer/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Big breakthroughs happen when what is suddenly possible meets what is desperately needed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/big-breakthroughs-happen-when-what-is-suddenly-possible-meets-what-is/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [That's right-the striking thing about greenhouse gases is the diversity of sources that emit them. A herd of cattle belching can be worse than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/that-s-right-the-striking-thing-about-greenhouse-gases-is-the/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [There is something more severe than the problem with Thomas Friedman, which can be generalized to represent someone causing action while being completely unaccountable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/there-is-something-more-severe-than-the-problem-with-thomas-friedman/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Pessimists are usually right and optimists are usually wrong but all the great changes have been accomplished by optimists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/pessimists-are-usually-right-and-optimists-are-usually-wrong-but-all/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) [Explore all 208 Thomas Friedman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [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/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Everything I’ve ever gotten in life is largely due to the fact that I was born in this country, America, at this time with these opportunities for its citizens. 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