“I’m just sick of the way things are. We’re in an age in which we can’t live without accepting the logic of the market. Contemporary politics is all about short-term pragmatism. We have abandoned religion and philosophy… What we have left is the automatisation of doing what the market tells us.”
- May 20, 1935 – May 13, 2025
- Uruguayan
- Politician, Former President of Uruguay, Former Guerrilla Fighter, Advocate for Simple Living
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Quote
“I’m just sick of the way things are. We’re in an age in which we can’t live without accepting the logic of the market. Contemporary politics is all about short-term pragmatism. We have abandoned religion and philosophy… What we have left is the automatisation of doing what the market tells us.”
Explanation
In this quote, José Mujica delivers a powerful critique of modern civilization, expressing deep frustration with a world increasingly governed by market logic and economic determinism. His statement begins with emotional honesty—“I’m just sick of the way things are”—setting the tone for a reflection on how society has lost its moral and philosophical compass, replacing it with the mechanized pursuit of profit and growth.
By highlighting how we’ve “abandoned religion and philosophy,” Mujica is not necessarily lamenting the loss of traditional faith, but rather the displacement of deeper thinking, ethical reflection, and purpose. In their place, we are left with “automatisation”—a robotic, unexamined submission to what the market dictates. The reference to “short-term pragmatism” in politics criticizes how leaders now chase immediate economic gain or popularity, ignoring broader visions of justice, sustainability, or human meaning.
This quote resonates in today’s global context, where economic metrics dominate political agendas, and where philosophical or ethical conversations are often marginalized. Mujica’s words are a call to reclaim a more humane and reflective way of living, where decisions are not merely efficient, but also guided by conscience, wisdom, and the question of what kind of world we wish to build.
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