A democracy is always temporary in nature...

[Scratchtown]

About the time our original thirteen states adopted their new constitution in 1787, Alexander Tytler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh, had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years earlier:

'A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government'

'A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury'

'From that moment on, the majority always vote for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship'

'The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years'

'During those 200 years, those nations always progressed through the following sequence:

1. From bondage to spiritual faith;

2. From spiritual faith to great courage;

3. From courage to liberty;

4. From liberty to abundance;

5. From abundance to complacency;

6. From complacency to apathy;

7. From apathy to dependence;

8. From dependence back into bondage'

 

Got this a while back but my buddy just found this little excerpt again a few days ago. Interesting stuff....

[zoogs]

http://www.snopes.com/politics/ballot/athenian.asp

[ZRod]

Good thing we're a republic then...

[RedDenver]

http://www.snopes.com/politics/ballot/athenian.asp

An internet meme isn't true? I'm shocked, shocked I tell you!

[zoogs]

 

http://www.snopes.com/politics/ballot/athenian.asp

An internet meme isn't true? I'm shocked, shocked I tell you!

 

 

http://boingboing.net/2016/10/22/alt-right-conspiracy-image-gen.html

[NUance]

Good thing we're a republic then...

 

Shhhh. This is a well kept secret that nobody seems to know about.

 

 

(Because they've never bothered to listen to the pledge of allegiance. LOL)

[84HuskerLaw]

The referenced commentary is accurate historically and it is true that nations with basic elements of democracy (including the USA being a republic form of democracy) have for nearly all of human history ultimately failed due to the voters voting themselves the resources from the government eventually bankrupting the society. Indeed the United States is clearly racing down this path as the governments, at all levels, with unbridled money lust continue to tax/borrowprint/leverage and spend without regard for the future consequences thereof. Americans today are hopelessly indebted as the most reliable estimates (approximately 150 trillion dollars in government obligations (present and unfunded future commitments/obligations) amount to roughly 1/2 million dollars per person for the approximately 300 million adults living in this country. So, if you have not added in this government's indebtedness that you individually will be required to 'service' one way or another for the remainder of your life and thereafter for the remainder of your offspring's lives, then you are grossly overstating your financial position. This means that for basically 95% of all Americans, we are financially insolvent (broke) and will always be so.

 

This is often a rather harsh slap in the face and rude awakening for many people who simply have no clue how bad the fiscal situation is for America and all its people. We are bankrupt and just haven't recognized it yet. The day is coming and when the realization finally sets in for most folks, it will be a dark and disheartening condition indeed.

[Landlord]

Any kind of system of government is always temporary in nature.

[JJ Husker]

The way ours has been functioning, the more temporary the better IMO.

[zoogs]

Really? What would you like to replace it, and how?

[Landlord]

This means that for basically 95% of all Americans, we are financially insolvent (broke) and will always be so.

 

 

What an ignorant and arrogant thing to say with regards to the global climate and how filthy rich even us lower middle class people are comparatively.

[Count 'Bility]

 

This means that for basically 95% of all Americans, we are financially insolvent (broke) and will always be so.

 

 

What an ignorant and arrogant thing to say with regards to the global climate and how filthy rich even us lower middle class people are comparatively.

 

Lol. good stuff landlord. it's totally mind boggling to me what we consider poverty in this country. The rampant running materialistic disease in this country is ridiculous. There's REAL poverty in this country, but for whatever reason, the poverty line is moved so high that it makes it impossible seemingly to adress true poverty.

[zoogs]

The federal poverty level is circa $20,000/year for a three-member household.

 

http://www.irp.wisc.edu/faqs/faq1.htm

[Count 'Bility]

The federal poverty level is circa $20,000/year for a three-member household.

 

http://www.irp.wisc.edu/faqs/faq1.htm

i stand corrected. I thought it was higher than for whatever reason. Maybe i'm just going off perception. Things like why my neighbor, who works for the local utility company (so he makes a decent buck), buys 3 packs of cigarettes a week, but qualifies for reduced price lunch at school for his 2 kids. While I get there are real issues, things like this make me go hmmm at times. maybe not the actual poverly line as defined, but it seems there's this percetion in this country that "poor" is actually much better off that what "poor" should be seen as. If that makes any sense.

[zoogs]

He probably can't afford to buy 3 packs of cigs a week. But does so because he can't help it*. Cigs and liquor, bad habits, those

 

*I'd say he can, but I've also never known a heavy smoker who could simply just drop it, either. Wish they could. Some don't want to.

 

(EDIT) Reduced price meal threshold is under $40K for a household of three, which is also pretty low.