--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What you thought was freedom was just…" description: "\"What you thought was freedom was just greed.\" — U2" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg" --- # What you thought was freedom was just greed. ![“What you thought was freedom was just greed.” quote by U2](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg) > “What you thought was freedom was just greed.” U2 ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Perceived liberty can mask underlying greed and exploitation. **In simple terms:** Freedom may be a cover for greed. Key Takeaway Critically assess claims of freedom. Themes freedom greed illusion Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical musical When to use this quote - political movements - corporate behavior - consumer culture Key Concepts political philosophy social critique Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate true freedom from selfish motives? - What systems protect against greed disguised as liberty? A Different Perspective Freedom can also be genuine and empowering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Greed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greed/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) ## Related quotes > [If I give $1,000 dollars I deserve to get back $100,000 because I am just, that's not greed!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-duplantis/if-i-give-1-000-dollars-i-deserve-to-get-back-100-000-because-i-am/) [Jesse Duplantis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-duplantis/) > [ I think there's just too much greed in the world today \[and\] that's why we have problems. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/i-think-there-s-just-too-much-greed-in-the-world-today-and-that-s-why/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [We've got to temper anything we say with that. On the other hand, you've got to be serious about what you do. And you've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/we-ve-got-to-temper-anything-we-say-with-that-on-the-other-hand-you/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“I guard my treasures: my thought, my will, my freedom. And the greatest of these is freedom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/i-guard-my-treasures-my-thought-my-will-my-freedom-and-the-greatest/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Thought is not what inhabits a certain conduct and gives it its meaning; rather, it is what allows one to step back from this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/thought-is-not-what-inhabits-a-certain-conduct-and-gives-it-its/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [Freedom of thought and freedom of speech in our great institutions are absolutely necessary for the preservation of our country. The moment either is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-peter-altgeld/freedom-of-thought-and-freedom-of-speech-in-our-great-institutions/) [John Peter Altgeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-peter-altgeld/) > [The fortune my spirit is not to be blown into coins of brass and flung to the winds as alms for the poor of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/the-fortune-my-spirit-is-not-to-be-blown-into-coins-of-brass-and/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [You know, there are two good things in life, freedom of thought and freedom of action. In France you get freedom of action: you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-know-there-are-two-good-things-in-life-freedom-of-thought-and-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Prisoners have freedom of thought, but not freedom of action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/open-university/prisoners-have-freedom-of-thought-but-not-freedom-of-action/) [Open University](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/open-university/) > [There are two good things in life - freedom of thought and freedom of action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/there-are-two-good-things-in-life-freedom-of-thought-and-freedom-of/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“You know, there are two good things in life, freedom of thought and freedom of action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/somerset-maugham/you-know-there-are-two-good-things-in-life-freedom-of-thought-and/) [Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/somerset-maugham/) > [Man must be able to think freely and he must be able to express his thoughts freely! He who is against this is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/man-must-be-able-to-think-freely-and-he-must-be-able-to-express-his/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The regime had understood that one person leaving her house while asking herself: Are my trousers long enough? Is my veil in place? Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/the-regime-had-understood-that-one-person-leaving-her-house-while/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [But now, I, August Comte, have discovered the truth. Therefore, there is no longer any need for freedom of thought or freedom of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auguste-comte/but-now-i-august-comte-have-discovered-the-truth-therefore-there-is/) [Auguste Comte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/auguste-comte/) > [ \[T\]he tax code has been piling up, year after year, a symbol of everything gone wrong in America, of arrogant rulers and lost freedom,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-armey/t-he-tax-code-has-been-piling-up-year-after-year-a-symbol-of/) [Dick Armey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-armey/) ## More by U2 > [I'm here without a name, in the palace of my shame. Said love rescue me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/i-m-here-without-a-name-in-the-palace-of-my-shame-said-love-rescue-me/) U2 > [Raining in your heart, raining in your heart, to the sea. Oh great ocean, oh great sea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/raining-in-your-heart-raining-in-your-heart-to-the-sea-oh-great-ocean/) U2 > [Of science and the human heart, there is no limit. There is no failure here sweetheart, just when you quit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/of-science-and-the-human-heart-there-is-no-limit-there-is-no-failure/) U2 > [“No one is blinder than he who will not see.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/no-one-is-blinder-than-he-who-will-not-see/) U2 > [You glorify the past when the future dries up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/you-glorify-the-past-when-the-future-dries-up/) U2 > [Love is blindness, I don't want to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/love-is-blindness-i-don-t-want-to-see/) U2 > [Grace makes beauty out of ugly things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/grace-makes-beauty-out-of-ugly-things/) U2 > [Waves of regret, waves of joy, I reached out for the me I tried to destroy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/waves-of-regret-waves-of-joy-i-reached-out-for-the-me-i-tried-to/) U2 > [“Heaven on Earth, we need it now I'm sick of all of this hanging around Sick of sorrow, sick of the pain I'm sick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/heaven-on-earth-we-need-it-now-i-m-sick-of-all-of-this-hanging-around/) U2 > [And you can dream, so dream out loud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/and-you-can-dream-so-dream-out-loud/) U2 > [Looking in the places where no flowers grow, looking to fill that God shaped hole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/looking-in-the-places-where-no-flowers-grow-looking-to-fill-that-god/) U2 > [Got diamond eyes, she sees the truth behind the lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/got-diamond-eyes-she-sees-the-truth-behind-the-lies/) U2 > [It's the blind leading the blond, it's the cops collecting for cons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/it-s-the-blind-leading-the-blond-it-s-the-cops-collecting-for-cons/) U2 > [Their lives are bigger than any big idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/their-lives-are-bigger-than-any-big-idea/) U2 > [“You can dream, so dream out loud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/you-can-dream-so-dream-out-loud/) U2 Explore all 45 U2 quotes ## More Freedom quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [If we gave up our freedom as the price of security, we would no longer be the great nation that we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-bader-ginsburg/if-we-gave-up-our-freedom-as-the-price-of-security-we-would-no-longer/) [Ruth Bader Ginsburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-bader-ginsburg/) > [We live in the greatest country in the world because of the veterans who have sacrificed their lives for our freedom and the security…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-husted/we-live-in-the-greatest-country-in-the-world-because-of-the-veterans/) [Jon Husted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-husted/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [“No one was more surprised than I to realize that my newfound freedom had been purchased by giving up on eternity and settling for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-jessop/no-one-was-more-surprised-than-i-to-realize-that-my-newfound-freedom/) [Carolyn Jessop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-jessop/) > [“In a world of fixed future, there can be no right or wrong. Right and wrong demand freedom of choice, but if each action…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lightman/in-a-world-of-fixed-future-there-can-be-no-right-or-wrong-right-and/) [Alan Lightman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lightman/) > [“In any case, white people, who had robbed black people of their liberty and who profited by this theft every hour that they lived,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/in-any-case-white-people-who-had-robbed-black-people-of-their-liberty/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“I have to blame myself for not finding any way of reaching him, but I can't feel that either Ruth or I had anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-have-to-blame-myself-for-not-finding-any-way-of-reaching-him-but-i/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [“It breaks my heart. Better than your words, your eye tells me all your peril. You are not yet free, you still search for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-breaks-my-heart-better-than-your-words-your-eye-tells-me-all-your/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [I don't want to be famous famous. I'm happy on the second tier, where I have autonomy on a professional level but I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-reece/i-don-t-want-to-be-famous-famous-i-m-happy-on-the-second-tier-where-i/) [Gabrielle Reece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-reece/) [Browse all 30,110 Freedom quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What you thought was freedom was just greed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "U2" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-greed/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Freedom" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-greed/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05d/u2-14686_freedom_what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-gr_1929292.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What you thought was freedom was just greed.” — U2", "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": "U2", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/u2/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What you thought was freedom was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-greed/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/u2/what-you-thought-was-freedom-was-just-greed/#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 } } ] } ```