Posted on 02/09/2009 9:30:38 AM PST by edh
"When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic. "
I pulled a Benny Hill and had assumed Ben Franklin said this since it seems that virtually any "Ben Franklin Quote Site" claims he said/wrote this. However, I cannot find a citation regarding this quote. Does anyone know the history behind this quote and where it first appeared? Where exactly did Franklin say/write this (i.e. does some kind of record exist that he coined this?).
A friend actually brought up that this "quote" was only "documented" as recently as 1988 (see Wikiquotes. Someone mentions that there although I cannot find that article either).
While I agree wholeheartedly with the quote, I also hate making a fool of myself should Franklin not be the author of the quote or if this happens to be one of those "manufactured quotes" that happen from time to time.
Interesting website that says this quote from Tyler is a hoax - the actual author is unknown.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/north/north484.html
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