In This Thread: Never Mind

It was a dare.

We can't sustain actual threads, or can we? If so, spin the motherfuckers off.

Here are some statements. Are they wrong? Why? Why not?
Feel free to pick and choose!

A. Look at the weather projections for this weekend. Compare them to the actual ones. Hell, even do a day from now. Why should I believe modeling of the climate a hundred years from now?

B. “The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed, and hence clamorous to be led to safety, by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.” - H.L. Mencken

C. Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

D. A politician violates the rule of law. The entire rest of the government removes that one man and exiles him. The latter is the one to condemn.

E. There are some things more important the rule of law. Like say, computer model projections of the climate a century in the future. Or the life of a health insurance provider that also makes cars.

F. “Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard.” - H. L. Mencken

G. "In general, the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other." - Voltaire

H. "A just security to property is not afforded by that government, under which unequal taxes oppress one species of property and reward another species." - James Madison

I. "If a nation values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom; and the irony of it is that if it is comfort or money that it values more, it will lose that, too." --W. Somerset Maugham

J. “Don’t expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong.” —Calvin Coolidge

K. “When it becomes dominated by a collectivist creed, democracy will inevitably destroy itself.” —Fredrich August von Hayek

L. "Our natural unalienable rights are now presumed to be a dispensation of government, divisible by a vote of the majority. The greatest good for the greatest number is a high-sounding phrase but contrary to the very basis of our Nation, unless it is accompanied by the recognition that we have certain rights which cannot be infringed upon, even if the individual stands outvoted by all of his fellow citizens. Without this recognition, majority rule is nothing more then mob rule." - Ronald Reagan

M. “A government which lays taxes on the people not required by urgent public necessity and sound public policy is not a protector of liberty, but an instrument of tyranny.” —Calvin Coolidge

N. "The intellectual probity of a person is measured not merely by what comes out of him, but by what he puts up with in others." - William F. Buckley

O. "If one rejects laissez faire on account of mans fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action." - Ludwig von Mises

P. “The urge to save humanity is almost always a false-face for the urge to rule it.” —H. L. Mencken

Maybe the best one:
R. "Everything fails by irrelevant standards." - Thomas Sowell (Who, an distinguished but unnamed University of Alabama intellectual declared an "Uncle Tom" and "Oreo" despite Wikipedia's wishes.)

Last edited by benji on Wed Jul 08, 2009 4:11 pm, edited 5 times in total.

People who quote others a lot don't have a lot to say themselves?

I designed a neverending thread on another board once. It would have been sustainable till the last 2 people on earth, but the mods there felt threatened and torpedoed it.

A. Look at the weather projections for this weekend. Compare them to the actual ones. Hell, even do a day from now. Why should I believe modeling of the climate a hundred years from now?

Because it gives attention seekers and irrelevant talking heads a new purpose and potential employment options. Shithead kids can suddenly say "Save the environment, kill a cow" and everything thinks it is cute, next thing you know they're on the news pissing me off.

B. “The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed, and hence clamorous to be led to safety, by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.” - H.L. Mencken

I don't know what this means in any way but I enjoy the use of clamorous and hobgoblins.

C. Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Power doesn't corrupt, the absolute reliance on the person with power by everyone else does.

D. A politician violates the rule of law. The entire rest of the government removes that one man and exiles him. The latter is the one to condemn.

I don't know if I like "stand by your man" in politics, unless it refers to the fact that they didn't keep him in check, in which case I agree but unless you turn into Big Brother there is no way of doing that. There are freaks and lunatics all over the World, some just seep through into federal/local politics. Like the one here who was caught sniffing a chair after a woman had been sitting in it.

E. There are some things more important the rule of law. Like say, computer model projections of the climate a century in the future. Or the life of a health insurance provider that also makes cars.

Leave the environment alone!!! BE GREEN!

F. “Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it good and hard.” - H. L. Mencken

Yeah, those sons of bitches. Actually I agree, and I hate forced voting because it means the biggest retards in the country are allowed a vote.

G. "In general, the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other." - Voltaire

Stop quoting Robin Hood.

H. "A just security to property is not afforded by that government, under which unequal taxes oppress one species of property and reward another species." - James Madison

Don't let your tears overfill the swimming pool in the living room of your mansion.

I. "If a nation values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom; and the irony of it is that if it is comfort or money that it values more, it will lose that, too." --W. Somerset Maugham

Freedom is the most overused and overrated Word on common language today. No one is free. We pay taxes, we have responsibilities towards the states and governments.. all in exchange for our "freedom". You might have the freedom to choose not to pay your taxes, but then you lose the freedom to not have your anus extended in size by Bubba in Cell Block G.

J. “Don’t expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong.” —Calvin Coolidge

The phrase "pulling down the strong" is extreme, reducing the amount of excess and will-never-be-spent someone like Bill O'Reilly has so someone who's living below the breadline and paying for their groceries in government issued paper coupons can live a little bit more comfortably won't bring down a nation.

K. “When it becomes dominated by a collectivist creed, democracy will inevitably destroy itself.” —Fredrich August von Hayek

L. "Our natural unalienable rights are now presumed to be a dispensation of government, divisible by a vote of the majority. The greatest good for the greatest number is a high-sounding phrase but contrary to the very basis of our Nation, unless it is accompanied by the recognition that we have certain rights which cannot be infringed upon, even if the individual stands outvoted by all of his fellow citizens. Without this recognition, majority rule is nothing more then mob rule." - Ronald Reagan

tl;dr

M. “A government which lays taxes on the people not required by urgent public necessity and sound public policy is not a protector of liberty, but an instrument of tyranny.” —Calvin Coolidge

I agree. Taxes should be used only for things we actually need, and believe it or not I don't need to be paying for politicians to go on holiday or fix their houses.

N. "The intellectual probity of a person is measured not merely by what comes out of him, but by what he puts up with in others." - William F. Buckley

Tolerance is not an intellectual trait. It's just a matter of being too nice, you can be stupid and overly nice. It's also something you learn depending on the environment you grow up in, so if your brother is that kid who shoved a control up his ass then you, over years, learn tolerance.

O. “The urge to save humanity is almost always a false-face for the urge to rule it.” —H. L. Mencken

Not sure Mother Theresa was planning on bombing any Middle Eastern countries in the near future but point made.

P. "If one rejects laissez faire on account of mans fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action." - Ludwig von Mises

Don't get it.

R. "Everything fails by irrelevant standards." - Thomas Sowell (Who, an distinguished but unnamed University of Alabama intellectual declared an "Uncle Tom" and "Oreo" despite Wikipedia's wishes.)

He was black? *turns off ears*...

P. "If one rejects laissez faire on account of mans fallibility and moral weakness, one must for the same reason also reject every kind of government action." - Ludwig von Mises


Don't get it.

I guess that implies that based on the assumption that the government is inherently composed of flawed individuals with "moral weaknesses", someone who does not tolerate such "fallibility" in general, should not tolerate or agree with any decision made by his/her government. Basically, if our natural flaws should never be considered as an excuse in everyday's life, neither should they be tolerated when coming directly from the people "representing" us. I don't know, that's how I understand this.

It means if you think the free market doesn't produce the best outcomes, and the free market is made up of individuals, then the government (also made up of individuals) cannot be any more efficient.

D. A politician violates the rule of law. The entire rest of the government removes that one man and exiles him. The latter is the one to condemn.

I don't follow. The government should be condemned for enforcing laws on politicians?

E. There are some things more important the rule of law. Like say, computer model projections of the climate a century in the future. Or the life of a health insurance provider that also makes cars.

I don't see how either of these are more important. All of them except the two I've listed seem to be serious while those two set off the sarcasm detector, but they aren't very amusing. Agree with everything else, however, even though they're primarily opinions and conclusions based on limited data that I find plausible/valid, but aren't worthy of being deemed "right" or "wrong." Then again, hardly anything has so few shades of grey that it's worthy of such a proclamation.

I don't follow. The government should be condemned for enforcing laws on politicians?

Yes.

I don't see how either of these are more important. All of them except the two I've listed seem to be serious while those two set off the sarcasm detector, but they aren't very amusing.

Some things are just more important. People need health insurance. It is their right to health insurance and that trumps anything that says the federal government doesn't have the power to provide it. Of course, you'd think otherwise since you worked for an insurance company spending each day trying to find a new way to scam the elderly.

It is the end of the planet, we are destroying it. If we do nothing, all six billion people on the planet will perish. If that means the government needs to regulate the very essence of life, then so be it. The rule of law is just standing in the way of saving the planet.

I'm sure any reasonable person could come up with hundreds more examples of instances where need trumps any silly "rule of law"

Agree with everything else, however, even though they're primarily opinions and conclusions based on limited data that I find plausible/valid, but aren't worthy of being deemed "right" or "wrong." Then again, hardly anything has so few shades of grey that it's worthy of such a proclamation.

Sorry, opinions can be wrong. Especially when they aren't objective opinions.

So only those two were sarcastic.

Sorry, opinions can be wrong. Especially when they aren't objective opinions.

Replace "opinions" with "philosophies" then.

I don't see the difference, philosophies can be wrong. Especially the ones that ignore reality and the proven facts.

So only those two were sarcastic.

Sarcastic? I think you mean realistic.

I put the correct answers in the OP.