Gained by Philosophy

I have gained this by philosophy: that I do without being commanded what others do only from fear of the law.

Aristotle

Great Men II

He who can give to this people better streets, better homes, better schools, better churches, more religion, more of happiness, more of God, he that can be a blessing to the comunity in which he lives tonight will be great anywhere,

Russell H. Conwell - "Acres of Diamonds" (Initially publish in 1890)

Great Men

Great men, I have said, are very simple men.  [There are just] as many great men here as are to be found anywhere.  The greatest error in judging great men is that we think that they will always hold an office.  The world knows nothing of its greatest men.  Who are the great men of the world?  The young man and young woman may well ask the question.  It is not necessary that they should hold an office, and yet that is the popular idea.  That is the idea we teach now in our high schools and common school, that the great men of the world are those who hold some high office, and unless we change that very soon and do away with that prejudice, we are going to change to an empire.

Russell H. Conwell - "Acres of Diamonds" (Initially publish in 1890)

Labor Unions

The labor union has two difficulties; the first one is that it began to make a labor scale for all classes on par, and they scale down a man that can earn five dollars a day to two and a half a day, in order to level up to him an imbecile that cannot earn fifty cents a day.   That is one of the most dangerous and discouraging things for a working man.

Russell H. Conwell - "Acres of Diamonds" (Initially publish in 1890)

Global Warming Hacked

It's no use pretending that this isn't a major blow. The emails extracted by a hacker from the climatic research unit at the University of East Anglia could scarcely be more damaging.

George Monbiot, a U.K. activist and journalist who previously called for dramatic action to deal with global warming, 11/24/2009

A Slavery is

A slave is one who waits for someone to come and free him.

Ezra Pound

Payment for ones Actions

As soon as men know that they can kill without fear of punishment or blame, they kill, or at least they encourage killers with approving smiles.

Simone Weil, Letter to George Bernanos c. 1938:

Charity

These Americans treat our children, and us, like animals in a zoo, throwing sweets to us, to make themselves feel good.

made by an Iraqi on seeing a GI (who undoubtedly thought he was being a good guy and making friends) passing out candy to the kids in the neighborhood (2008)

Initiation of Force

All initiation of force is a violation of someone else's rights, whether initiated by an individual or the state, for the benefit of an individual or group of individuals, even if it's supposed to be for the benefit of another individual or group of individuals.

Ron Paul

Gandhi and Gun Control

Among the many misdeeds of the British rule in India, history will look upon the act of depriving a whole nation of its arms as the blackest.

Mohandas Gandhi (1927)

State as a Mechanism

Government is an agency of force which can and must be employed against every deviationist. And this is only to say again that the government must oppose the individual. Therefore the "good" man in government is like a priest with a machine gun. The mechanism does the harm. The man who operates it merely pulls the trigger.

Robert LeFevre, The Nature of Man and His Government (1959)

Laplace on Expanding Knowledge

An educated man knows how little he knows.

Marquis Pierre Simone de Laplace (1749 - 1827)

On the Worry of Communism

We have nothing to worry about; the place is one big Department of Motor Vehicles.

Jim Bennett of George Mason University, after traveling through the Soviet Bloc (early 1980's)

Financial Oligarchy

...recovery will fail unless we break the financial oligarchy that is blocking essential reform.

Simon Johnson, former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund.

Ancients on the need for governing

[the world] does not need governing; in fact it should not be governed,

Zhuangzi (Chinese Philosopher living around 4th century BC)

Franklin and Borrowing

He who goes a-borrowing, goes a-sorrowing.

Ben Franklin

Moving forces in Politics

Ambition, love of power, civil emolument, and greed of gain have been the great moving forces in politics under all forms of government.

William Graham Sumner (1877)

A Question

…how does it happen that so many administrations of good men have been able to do so many evil and harmful things to their subjects?

Robert LeFevre, The Nature of Man and His Government (1959)

Swine Flu Attacks the Internet

Concerns exist that a more severe pandemic outbreak than 2009’s could cause large numbers of people staying home to increase their Internet use and overwhelm Internet providers’ network capacities.

GAO Report to Congressional Requesters, Page 2 of 77, October 2009

Fiat Counterfeit

But economists say Mr. Bernanke’s most important accomplishment was to create staggering amounts of money out of thin air.

New York Times (2009)