John Dewey: “We cannot expect the causes of a disease to combine effectually to…”

On the record

We cannot expect the causes of a disease to combine effectually to cure the disease they create.

Said by

John Dewey

Source

Dewey uses a metaphor to illustrate the ineffectiveness of addressing the root causes of societal problems with the same forces that created them.

More from John Dewey

In this distinction we find the germ of the distinction between the private and the public.

Is the public much more than what a cynical diplomat once called Italy: a geographical expression?

In other words, every officer of the public, whether he represents it as a voter or as a stated official, has a dual capacity.

Extensive, enduring, intricate and serious indirect consequences of the conjoint activity of a comparatively few persons traverse the globe.

John Dewey: “We cannot expect the causes of a disease to combine effectually to cure the disease they create.”