this post was submitted on 01 Nov 2023
279 points (97.6% liked)
196
16514 readers
3681 users here now
Be sure to follow the rule before you head out.
Rule: You must post before you leave.
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
"Temporary" is the key word in that sentence. Benjamin Franklin said this famous quote in response to the governor of Pennsylvania being asked to levy a new tax to support the French and Indian war, which an old money family, the Penns, who ruled from afar, were trying to bribe him to veto. Ben Franklin was very much in favor of this tax and very much pro big government, so long as it was being done by the people (contrary to what all the libertarians who quote him seem to think). His argument was that if the governor kept taking bribes from the Penns, and just rolling over and doing whatever they told him to do, consequences to the state be damned, just so the Penns would keep the money flowing, he deserved whatever was coming to him when they decided to stop.