"You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of pros

[Brn2bfree]

"You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.

What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.
The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is the beginning of the end of any nation.
You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."

Adrian Rogers, 1931

 

[caela]

"You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.

What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.
The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is the beginning of the end of any nation.
You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."

Adrian Rogers, 1931

Wonderful quote! Have to add that to my list of favorites.

 

[Oddball]

You can't help the poor by being one of them.

 

[oreo]

You cannot borrow & spend your way to prosperity. Right now the federal government is borrowing .50 cents on every dollar they're spending.

 

[Big Black Dog]

You cannot borrow & spend your way to prosperity. Right now the federal government is borrowing .50 cents on every dollar they're spending.

Who would be foolish enough to run their household like this? You couldn't do it for very long without going belly up. That's where the US is headed with this idiotic financial thing they have going on right now. You have to have money before you spend it.

 

[rjb1976]

You also won't multiply wealth and can end a nation by legislating it primarily to those at the very top at the expense of the majority. There's been no better time in America than right now to be extremely rich.

Warren Buffet is in a higher tax bracket than his secretary, but even he doesn't think it's right that he ends up paying a lower net tax (after write-offs and such) rate than she does. I hardly think making him pay a more equal percentage would put him out of wealth and her in to prosperity.

This kind of quote gives me pause because to me it implies that the poor are poor because they don't work hard...and that if you are living a prosperous life than you must have earned it. I think it's also misleading because it assumes that half of the population sit on their butts and are only there to take from the other half. This simply just isn't the case.

I can understand not wanting to give someone something for nothing, but for every impoverished person that takes advantage of the system there is another financially prosperous person on the other end of the spectrum that is just as worthless and is making little to no societal contribution. In either case, it's not 50/50...these are just the extremes.

Rather, I think that the vast majority of people fit in the middle. They get up to go do something with their lives each day and would feel terrible about their self worth if they were to just sit around all day and take, take, take from others.

Personally, the hardest I ever worked in my life was when I had to work minimum-wage and was living at or below the poverty line. It's such a difficult place to move up from because it's tremendously hard to catch a break, jobs at that pay-scale aren't usually as flexible (to allow time go take educational classes, do things to improve your skill-set, take your kids to their activities, etc), and you have to spend every waking minute of the day busting your butt just to survive.

I think having legislation in place to take care of those who need it is important to the health of a society. Switzerland is a great example of this. For example, the minimum wage equates to around $20/hr, maternity leave is 100% for 4 months, and you can get 80% of your salary if you become unemployed. There are still uber-rich wealthy people, but the bottom is lifted up which makes the middle class and society more resilient and very strong. Since all jobs pay more, people choose work more by whether or not they like it rather than how much it pays. Consequently, the general population is happier and less stressed...and health care costs and crime goes down because people are healthier and are assured of having basic needs met.

 

[Rozman]

I think having legislation in place to take care of those who need it is important to the health of a society. Switzerland is a great example of this. For example, the minimum wage equates to around $20/hr.

Just how big again is Switzerland's military,and their role in being a super power? Can you count on their armed forces to be ready in case some wacko with nuclear weapons gets a little crazy.You are wishing we had this utopia where we are all the same and the streets are paved with gold.I'm sorry you have to work hard in life,if your answer is more and bigger government how bout you and all your friends contact your representatives in government and ask them to cut back on spending for 5 minutes.

 

[FactFinder]

You can not have a prosperous society by letting the rich run roughshod over people through exploitation and oppression.

Was BP exploiting natural resources that belong to us all? You betcha.
Was Wall Street exploiting lax rules of credit to bundle securities in a way to hide worthless assets to collect commissions on junk? You betcha.

It is pretty simple about legislation. Behave yourself and be responsible to not only your company but your neighbors. You do not exist in a vacuum. If you heed that no new legislation will come.

 

[Rozman]

Was BP exploiting natural resources that belong to us all? You betcha.

I don't understand this statement?....Was BP going in under the cover of darkness when everyone was sleeping and taking oil and running back over to the UK.Didn't they pay for the oil rights to drill there. Isn't that oil in it's raw and natural state refined and made available for all to use.

Oh that's right these people are evil because they SELL what they drilled for those evil corporate types
how dare they have the nerve to charge us for the resources that are all around us.

 

[washamericom]

and then there is the lincolm qoute that our president tried to make his own (from washamericom)

if you're going to quote lincoln, try to get it right... in his greatest speech since the great depression, obama quoted abe lincoln at the coons rally in delaware... he said

"government should do for the people what they can't do for themselves" ....... not so much...

here's what the first republican president lincoln actually said:

"You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away men's initiative and independence.

You cannot help men permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves."



i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

 

[FactFinder]

Was BP exploiting natural resources that belong to us all? You betcha.

I don't understand this statement?....Was BP going in under the cover of darkness when everyone was sleeping and taking oil and running back over to the UK.Didn't they pay for the oil rights to drill there. Isn't that oil in it's raw and natural state refined and made available for all to use.

Oh that's right these people are evil because they SELL what they drilled for those evil corporate types
how dare they have the nerve to charge us for the resources that are all around us.

Sure they started out correctly then shortcutted the safety measures using their cronyism with the US Mineral Rights people. That is exploitation.

 

[jillian]

i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

well, no... but then again, Abe Lincoln wouldn't be a republican now.

but to the "point" of the thread... the middle class doesn't exist without protection and a society where businesses are unfettered looks like Dickens' England.

Or should we go back to the days of sweat shops so as not to somehow offend corporatists?

 

[iamwhatiseem]

i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

well, no... but then again, Abe Lincoln wouldn't be a republican now.

but to the "point" of the thread... the middle class doesn't exist without protection and a society where businesses are unfettered looks like Dickens' England.

Or should we go back to the days of sweat shops so as not to somehow offend corporatists?

Ummm...we have never left the "days of sweat shops".
Chances are right now what you are wearing was made by people making between $.50 - $1.00 an hour working usually 14 hours a day.

 

[washamericom]

i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

well, no... but then again, Abe Lincoln wouldn't be a republican now.

but to the "point" of the thread... the middle class doesn't exist without protection and a society where businesses are unfettered looks like Dickens' England.

Or should we go back to the days of sweat shops so as not to somehow offend corporatists?

annie you don't believe i'm 175 ?............ rats...
i have never, even onece heard the president speaker etc... mention poor people, why is that ?? what would papercan lincoln be today ?

 

[rjb1976]

Just how big again is Switzerland's military,and their role in being a super power? Can you count on their armed forces to be ready in case some wacko with nuclear weapons gets a little crazy.You are wishing we had this utopia where we are all the same and the streets are paved with gold.I'm sorry you have to work hard in life,if your answer is more and bigger government how bout you and all your friends contact your representatives in government and ask them to cut back on spending for 5 minutes.

Military budgets aren't really the topic of this thread, but if you want to talk spending cuts, then the US's military annual budget (which is more than all other countries combined) is a perfect place to start.

Thanks, but there's no need to apologize for me having to work hard. I made a conscious choice to pursue a career based on passion rather than one based on income. It made life challenging for a number of years, but now I'm fortunate enough to have worked myself in to a more comfortable position in life...and have actually ended up doing financially better than many of my friends who have more traditional jobs. So now I am perfectly happy to contribute my fair share back in to the system so that others who work hard and struggle can live a little easier and have the same opportunities that I had.

I also never mentioned anything about wishing for a utopia where we are all the same, having streets paved of gold, or saying that we needed more or bigger government. The current system heavily benefits mega corporations and the super rich at the expense of other hard working people. My comments were merely to give some perspective to the quote...and this is really just about needing some basic regulation to manage corruption, prevent future systemic danger, and bring about fairness, health, and prosperity.

 

[jillian]

i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

well, no... but then again, Abe Lincoln wouldn't be a republican now.

but to the "point" of the thread... the middle class doesn't exist without protection and a society where businesses are unfettered looks like Dickens' England.

Or should we go back to the days of sweat shops so as not to somehow offend corporatists?

annie you don't believe i'm 175 ?............ rats...
i have never, even onece heard the president speaker etc... mention poor people, why is that ?? what would papercan lincoln be today ?

i think you mean jillian. lol.. but no, i'm thinking you're not 175. but if you are, i'd like to know your secret for longevity. I didn't mention "poor people" either. I'm talking about the constant drumbeat of the corporatists that government should do nothing to protect society, in general, from unfettered corporate action.

i think lincoln would have rejected the republican's southern strategy. and do you really think he'd be part of a party that panders to members who hate centralized government and do the whole 'states' rights' rant?

what do you think he'd be today? he sure wouldn't be an i hate government type.

 

[washamericom]

well, no... but then again, Abe Lincoln wouldn't be a republican now.

but to the "point" of the thread... the middle class doesn't exist without protection and a society where businesses are unfettered looks like Dickens' England.

Or should we go back to the days of sweat shops so as not to somehow offend corporatists?

annie you don't believe i'm 175 ?............ rats...
i have never, even onece heard the president speaker etc... mention poor people, why is that ?? what would papercan lincoln be today ?

i think you mean jillian. lol.. but no, i'm thinking you're not 175. but if you are, i'd like to know your secret for longevity. I didn't mention "poor people" either. I'm talking about the constant drumbeat of the corporatists that government should do nothing to protect society, in general, from unfettered corporate action.

i think lincoln would have rejected the republican's southern strategy. and do you really think he'd be part of a party that panders to members who hate centralized government and do the whole 'states' rights' rant?what do you think he'd be today? he sure wouldn't be an i hate government type.

sorry j. crossthread... (more like a cushthread) it's true i'm not 175. the rest of your post is crap

if you are refering to #10 well yeah, he admired the constitution. we're not talking about hating government, only making it smaller and not the babysitter. obama really twisted linc's quote to serve his own socialistic agenda. i think that's disingenuous, that's all

 

[Bfgrn]

and then there is the lincolm qoute that our president tried to make his own (from washamericom)

if you're going to quote lincoln, try to get it right... in his greatest speech since the great depression, obama quoted abe lincoln at the coons rally in delaware... he said

"government should do for the people what they can't do for themselves" ....... not so much...

here's what the first republican president lincoln actually said:

"You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away men's initiative and independence.

You cannot help men permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves."



i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

You need to provide a link that Abe Lincoln said any of those things...I say it's right wing bullshit...


"The legitimate object of Government is to do for a community of people whatever they need to have done but cannot do at all, or cannot so well do, for themselves in their separate and individual capacities. But in all that people can individually do as well for themselves, Government ought not to interfere."
President Abraham Lincoln

 

[washamericom]

and then there is the lincolm qoute that our president tried to make his own (from washamericom)

if you're going to quote lincoln, try to get it right... in his greatest speech since the great depression, obama quoted abe lincoln at the coons rally in delaware... he said

"government should do for the people what they can't do for themselves" ....... not so much...

here's what the first republican president lincoln actually said:

"You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away men's initiative and independence.

You cannot help men permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves."



i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

You need to provide a link that Abe Lincoln said any of those things...I say it's right wing bullshit...

"The legitimate object of Government is to do for a community of people whatever they need to have done but cannot do at all, or cannot so well do, for themselves in their separate and individual capacities. But in all that people can individually do as well for themselves, Government ought not to interfere."
President Abraham Lincoln

You need to provide a link that Abe Lincoln said any of those things...I say it's right wing bullshit...[/




Abraham Lincoln quotes


like i said, i was there when he said it... back then i suppose it was right wing bs

 

[Bfgrn]

and then there is the lincolm qoute that our president tried to make his own (from washamericom)

if you're going to quote lincoln, try to get it right... in his greatest speech since the great depression, obama quoted abe lincoln at the coons rally in delaware... he said

"government should do for the people what they can't do for themselves" ....... not so much...

here's what the first republican president lincoln actually said:

"You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away men's initiative and independence.

You cannot help men permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves."



i knew abe lincoln ..... abe lincoln was a friend of mine, barrak obama, you are no abe lincoln...

You need to provide a link that Abe Lincoln said any of those things...I say it's right wing bullshit...

"The legitimate object of Government is to do for a community of people whatever they need to have done but cannot do at all, or cannot so well do, for themselves in their separate and individual capacities. But in all that people can individually do as well for themselves, Government ought not to interfere."
President Abraham Lincoln

You need to provide a link that Abe Lincoln said any of those things...I say it's right wing bullshit...[/




Abraham Lincoln quotes


like i said, i was there when he said it... back then i suppose it was right wing bs

A 'blog' where you can add your favorite quotes is not a source...

snopes.com: Abraham Lincoln on Prosperity

The Ten Cannots by William J. H. Boetcker

An outspoken political conservative, Rev. Boetcker is perhaps best remembered for his authorship of a pamphlet entitled The Ten Cannots. Originally published in 1916, it is often misattributed to Abraham Lincoln. The error apparently stems from a leaflet printed in 1942 by a conservative political organization called the Committee for Constitutional Government. The leaflet bore the title "Lincoln on Limitations" and contained some genuine Lincoln quotations on one side and the "Ten Cannots" on the other, with the attributions switched. The mistake of crediting Lincoln for having been the source of "The Ten Cannots" has been repeated many times since, most notably by Ronald Reagan in a speech he gave at the 1992 Republican convention in Houston.[1]

There are several minor variants of the pamphlet in circulation, but the most commonly-accepted version appears below:

* You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
* You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
* You cannot help little men by tearing down big men.
* You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
* You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
* You cannot establish sound security on borrowed money.
* You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
* You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.
* You cannot build character and courage by destroying men's initiative and independence.
* And you cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they can and should do for themselves.
William J. H. Boetcker - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia