Garrett Hardin

“The tragedy of the commons develops in this way. Picture a pasture open to all.”

“You can't do just one thing.”

“No technical solution can rescue us from the misery of overpopulation.”

“Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in the freedom of the commons.”

“Every new enclosure of the commons involves the infringement of somebody's personal liberty.”

“The population problem has no technical solution; it requires a fundamental extension in morality.”

“A finite world can support only a finite population; therefore, population growth must eventually equal zero.”

“We can't cure a shortage by increasing the supply.”

“It is a mistake to think that we can control the breeding of mankind in the long run by an appeal to conscience.”

“The social arrangements that produce responsibility are arrangements that create coercion, of some sort.”

“Conscience is self-eliminating.”

“The argument for a melting pot can be valid only as long as the pot is not filled to overflowing.”

“In a crowded world of less than perfect human beings, mutual ruin is inevitable if there are no controls.”

“Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.”

“Mutual coercion, mutually agreed upon.”