User Tag List

+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 3 of 3

Thread: P. J. O’Rourke on government and politicians

  1. #1
    Points: 665,303, Level: 100
    Level completed: 0%, Points required for next Level: 0
    Overall activity: 84.0%
    Achievements:
    SocialRecommendation Second ClassYour first GroupOverdrive50000 Experience PointsTagger First ClassVeteran
    Awards:
    Discussion Ender
    Chris's Avatar Senior Member
    Karma
    433316
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    197,554
    Points
    665,303
    Level
    100
    Thanks Given
    31,984
    Thanked 80,905x in 54,720 Posts
    Mentioned
    2011 Post(s)
    Tagged
    2 Thread(s)

    P. J. O’Rourke on government and politicians

    I've followed O'Rourke for a long time. He's libetarian and funny.

    P. J. O’Rourke on government and politicians

    ...On politicians: “A politician is anyone who asks individuals to surrender part of their liberty—their power and privilege—to State, Masses, Mankind, Planet Earth, or whatever. This state, those masses, that mankind, and the planet will then be run by . . . politicians.”

    On government power: “Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.”

    On Republicans and Democrats: “The Democrats are the party that says government will make you smarter, taller, richer, and remove the crabgrass on your lawn. Republicans are the party that says government doesn’t work, and then they get elected and prove it.”

    On the idea of government: “The whole idea of our government is this: If enough people get together and act in concert, they can take something and not pay for it.”

    On government subsidies: “Government subsidies can be critically analyzed according to a simple principle: You are smarter than the government, so when the government pays you to do something you wouldn’t do on your own, it is almost always paying you to do something stupid.”

    On the elitism of government: “When government does, occasionally, work, it works in an elitist fashion. That is, government is most easily manipulated by people who have money and power already. This is why government benefits usually go to people who don’t need benefits from government. Government may make some environmental improvements, but these will be improvements for rich bird-watchers. And no one in government will remember that when poor people go bird-watching they do it at Kentucky Fried Chicken.”
    Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire. ― Gustav Mahler

  2. The Following User Says Thank You to Chris For This Useful Post:

    Captdon (03-05-2019)

  3. #2
    Points: 264,399, Level: 100
    Level completed: 0%, Points required for next Level: 0
    Overall activity: 82.0%
    Achievements:
    50000 Experience PointsSocialVeteranTagger First ClassOverdrive
    Awards:
    Activity Award
    MisterVeritis's Avatar Senior Member
    Karma
    307877
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Northern Alabama
    Posts
    104,547
    Points
    264,399
    Level
    100
    Thanks Given
    94,662
    Thanked 39,251x in 27,872 Posts
    Mentioned
    385 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    And no one in government will remember that when poor people go bird-watching they do it at Kentucky Fried Chicken.
    Call your state legislators and insist they approve the Article V convention of States to propose amendments.


    I pledge allegiance to the Constitution as written and understood by this nation's founders, and to the Republic it created, an indivisible union of sovereign States, with liberty and justice for all.

  4. The Following User Says Thank You to MisterVeritis For This Useful Post:

    Captdon (03-05-2019)

  5. #3
    Points: 34,178, Level: 45
    Level completed: 16%, Points required for next Level: 1,272
    Overall activity: 0.1%
    Achievements:
    50000 Experience PointsVeteranYour first Group
    jimmyz's Avatar Senior Member
    Karma
    176619
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Posts
    11,597
    Points
    34,178
    Level
    45
    Thanks Given
    0
    Thanked 6,315x in 4,381 Posts
    Mentioned
    84 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I loved reading P.J. in Rollingstone when I subscribed many years ago. Thanks for the smile to go with my morning coffee Chris
    " I'm old-fashioned. I like two sexes! And another thing, all of a sudden I don't like being married to what is known as a 'new woman'. I want a wife, not a competitor. Competitor! Competitor!" - Spencer Tracy in 'Adam's Rib' (1949)

    Art thou every retard among us related to thine uncle or mistress by way of moral or illegitimate rendezvous? Thus, we are one side of the other's coin by luck or pluck. - Jimmyz

  6. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to jimmyz For This Useful Post:

    Captdon (03-05-2019),Chris (03-05-2019)

+ Reply to Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts