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KnobGoblin 24 points ago +25 / -1

What was the line about the government realizing they can bribe and buy the populace with their own money.

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MayfriatusPoinks 24 points ago +24 / -0

“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been 200 years. These nations have progressed through this sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.” ― Alexander Fraser Tytler

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deleted 10 points ago +10 / -0
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Moriartis 3 points ago +3 / -0

I don't know, I could see the argument that we are going from apathy to dependence. We're not entirely dependent on our government yet. At least not compared to say European countries.

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UpTrump 1 point ago +1 / -0

Are european countries also on the verge of collapse, following this guide?

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FragrantDude 3 points ago +3 / -0

From apathy to dependence

^ You are here

From dependence back into bondage

We need to fix this shit somehow, but any force given will be multiplied and directed towards making the country sink faster. Can we start a new United States?

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10MeV 9 points ago +9 / -0

You may be thinking of these two quotes:

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been 200 years."

"Great nations rise and fall. The people go from bondage to spiritual truth, to great courage, from courage to liberty, from liberty to abundance, from abundance to selfishness, from selfishness to complacency, from complacency to apathy, from apathy to dependence, from dependence back again to bondage."

This page talks about their origins, if interested.