When we think in terms of systems, we see that a fundamental misconception is embedded in the popular term “side-effects.”… This phrase means roughly “effects which I hadn’t foreseen or don’t want to think about.”… Side-effects no more deserve the adjective “side” than does the “principal” effect. It is hard to think in terms of systems, and we eagerly warp our language to protect ourselves from the necessity of doing so. —Garrett Hardin,5 ecologist
