[Ads-l] Quote Origin: Growth for the Sake of Growth Is the Ideology of the Cancer Cell

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

The quotation in the subject line is listed in "The New Yale Book of
Quotations" with a January 1970 citation. I received a request to
trace the saying.

The earliest close match I found appeared in "LOOK" magazine in
November 1969 within an article titled "Land Lovers". This photo-essay
included quotations gathered from people who supported wilderness
protection. Edward Abbey's remarks included the following:

[ref] 1969 November 4, LOOK, Land Lovers, Produced by Daniel Chapman,
(Remarks by Edward Abbey), Start Page 54, Quote Page 59, (Statement
also appears as a pull quote on page 58), Cowles Communications, Des
Moines, Iowa. (Verified with scans; Internet Archive) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
"The real estate brokers, the engineers itching to build paved roads,
have their hearts set on transforming the desert into a replica of
greater Los Angeles. Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of
the cancer cell."
[End excerpt]

The concept that the growth of humanity on Earth is analogous to the
development of cancerous tissue can be traced further back in time. In
1955 the physician Alan Gregg published an article titled "A Medical
Aspect of the Population Problem" in the influential journal
"Science". Gregg’s phrasing was tentative:

[ref] 1955 May 13, Science, Volume 121, Number 3150, Section:
Population Problems, A Medical Aspect of the Population Problem by
Alan Gregg (Big Sur, California), Start Page 681, Quote Page 682,
Column 1, American Association for the Advancement of Science,
Washington D.C. (Verified with scans) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
In short, I suggest, as a way of looking at the population problem,
that there are some interesting analogies between the growth of the
human population of the world and the increase of cells observable in
neoplasms: To say that the world has cancer, and that the cancer cell
is man, has neither experimental proof nor the validation of
predictive accuracy; but I see no reason that instantly forbids such a
speculation.
[End excerpt]

In 1968 Edward Abbey published "Desert Solitaire: A Season in the
Wilderness". Abbey opposed water diversion projects that had been
proposed to support the growth of cities in the U.S. Southwest. He
used the word "cancerous" in the following excerpt:

[ref] 1968 Copyright, Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness by
Edward Abbey, Chapter: Water, Quote Page 127, McGraw-Hill Book
Company, New York. (Verified with scans) [/ref]

[Begin excerpt]
They cannot see that growth for the sake of growth is a cancerous
madness, that Phoenix and Albuquerque will not be better cities to
live in when their populations are doubled again and again.
[End excerpt]

https://quoteinvestigator.com/2024/11/20/growth-cancer/

Feedback and citations welcome
Garson O'Toole

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