Quoth PJ O'Rourke...

Reaganite Republican ^ | June 27, 2012 | Reaganite Republican

[Reaganite Republican]

'Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys'  -P. J. O'Rourke 

The good news is that -according to the Obama administration- the rich will pay for everything. The bad news is that 
-according to the Obama administration- you're rich

You can't get rid of poverty by giving people money...

America wasn't founded so that we could all be better. 

America was founded so we could all be anything we 

damned well pleased. 

There's something about Marxism that brings out warts... the only kind of growth this economic system encourages. 

When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are the legislators. 

The weirder you're going to behave, the more normal you should look. It works in reverse, too: When I see a kid with three or four rings in his nose, I know there is absolutely nothing extraordinary about that person.

Even very young children need to be informed about dying. Explain the concept of death very carefully to your child. This will make threatening him with it much more effective. 

There is no virtue in compulsory government charity... and there is no virtue in advocating it. A politician who portrays himself as caring and sensitive because he wants to expand the government's charitable programs is merely saying that he is willing to do good with other people's money. Well, who isn't?  And a voter who takes pride in supporting such programs is telling us that he will do good with his own money... if a gun is held to his head.

Your money does not cause my poverty. Refusal to believe this is at the bottom of most bad economic thinking.

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[Reaganite Republican]

*** PING ***

[muir_redwoods]

One could improve the outcome of most economics courses simply be assigning 4 or 5 books by PJ O’Rourke

[brivette]

I own “Give War a Chance” by PJ O’Rourke.

[Huebolt]

I bought his book. It was excellent! National Lampoon too.

I like:

I was able to answer quickly and with confidence - “I don’t know.”

[woodbutcher1963]

I have not read anything from PJ lately. Is he still writing for Rolling Stone ?
I loved Parliment of Whores.

I have always been proud he was a NH citizen.

[Reaganite Republican]

He’s long gone from National Lampoon

As a Christian and peace-through-strength GOPer, I sure don’t agree with everything he says -same as, say, Pat Buchanon- but an ORIGINAL THINKER... the only kind of political author worth reading imho

I myself am reading ‘All The Trouble with the World’ for a 2nd time right now...

[Hemingway's Ghost]

PJ is one of the best phrase-turners ever to pick up a pen. Thanks for this collection . . . we could probably fill a whole thread with his bon mots.

[Sherman Logan]

When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are the legislators.

The most profound of these insights, IMO.

The solution routinely put forward for government being corrupted with business money is to implement tighter government regulation of business. This merely encourages (forces) businesses to become more involved with government, in self-defense if nothing else.

It's sort of like the black market in drugs (or anything else). The more effective you are at stopping the flow of the black market goods, the more you drive up the price and profit, which of course incentivizes more people to enter the trade.

Your "control" efforts are counter-productive by definition.

Also, when business success is more dependent on government contacts and influence than on economic efficiency, even those enterprises that thrive function less efficiently and therefore produce less wealth for society.

[woodbutcher1963]

I think “All the Trouble...” was the last book of his I read.

Has he written anything since you can recommend ?

[Reaganite Republican]

I’m less keen on the anti-war bent he’s on in recent years... ever since 2000-on

I liked ‘Driving Like Crazy’ tho-

[mc5cents]

One of my favorite P.J. quotes from my homepage:

"Freedom in not empowerment. Empowerment is what the Serbs have in Bosnia. Anybody can grab a gun and be empowered. It's not entitlement. An entitlement is what people on welfare get, and how free are they? It's not an endlessly expanding list of rights - the "right" to health care, the "right" to food and housing. That's not freedom, that's dependency. Those aren't rights, those are the rations of slavery - hay and a barn for human cattle."
-- P.J. O'Rourke

[QT3.14]

My all-time favorite from him:

At the core of liberalism is the spoiled child - miserable, as all spoiled
children are, unsatisfied, demanding, ill-disciplined, despotic and
useless. Liberalism is a philosphy of sniveling brats."

[QT3.14]

When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are the legislators.

The most profound of these insights, IMO.

Mark Twain long ago had to say something about that:

"There is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress."

[EQAndyBuzz]

“I loved Parliment of Whores.”

Required reading in my household.

[JimRed]

'Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys' -P. J. O'Rourke

Great bumper sticker!

[ssaftler]

'Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys Ted Kennedy' -P. J. O'Rourke

Minor adjustment for us Massachusetts natives.

[Reaganite Republican]

“PJ is one of the best phrase-turners ever to pick up a pen. Thanks for this collection . . . we could probably fill a whole thread with his bon mots.”

Indeed... a true original thinker. I just found out an old high school friend I assumed was a lib has met PJ twice and has six of his books, all autographed- his wit has a wide appeal, our side could use more of that

[Reaganite Republican]

His best ever, imho

[Reaganite Republican]

He uses his family experiences SO well in illustrating his philosophical/political arguments

Conservatives need to be effective SALESMEN like Reagan and PJ... you need to explain it, since the other side is made to sound so appealing on the surface

And the humor is a most powerful tool... it’s just like on a date, if you get her to laugh you’re there.