It is only when they go wrong that machines remind you how powerful they are.

Clive James points to a modern paradox: we live surrounded by complex technologies whose power is largely invisible when everything runs smoothly. In normal operation, machines fade into the background and feel like extensions of our intentions. But when they malfunction—crash, break down, misfire, or produce unintended consequences—their autonomy and force become suddenly apparent. The line also hints at human complacency: we tend to underestimate systems we rely on until failure exposes their scale, complexity, and capacity to disrupt. It can be read broadly, applying not only to literal machines but to large technical systems (bureaucracies, networks, media) that seem benign until they fail.