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The Greening of America, 25th Anniversary Edition

Book by Charles A. Reich · 3 quotes · Greening Of America, Politics Of The United States, Political Observation

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The Greening of America, 25th Anniversary Edition Quotes

“Consciousness I could not grasp, or could not accept, the reality that the individual was no longer competing against the success of other individuals, but against a system...It could not understand the crucial point that collective action against corporate power would not have been a step toward collectivization, but an effort to preserve democracy in a society that had already been collectivized.”

“Not only would Americans have no understanding of the dangers of industrialism; no culture, tradition, social order, or inner knowledge of self by which to guide industrial values and choose among them...Divided up into individual units defined by self-interest, they had no way of thinking for the common good, or thinking ahead, and the anti-intellectual and sometimes childish tendency of Americans to not think at all allowed them to rest easy in this posture”

“One of the central aspects of Consciousness II is an acceptance of the priority of institutions, organizations, and society and a belief that the individual must tie his destiny to something of this sort, larger than himself, and subordinate his will to it...He sees his own life and career in terms of progress within a society and within an institution. An established hierarchy and settled procedures are seen as necessary and valuable. Achievements by character and hard work is translated into achievement in terms of meritocracy of education, technical knowledge, and position.”