Posted on 09/02/2012 7:40:21 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
The official theme of the GOP convention Wednesday night was "We Can Change That," but that didn’t stop several of the speakers from revisiting Tuesday’s theme, the base-rallying battle cry: “We Built It.” The message: The righteous exploitation of President Obama’s “You Didn’t Build That” gaffe isn’t going away.
Ever since the president stood before a crowd of supporters in Roanoke, Va., on July 13 and, while explaining why the wealthy should pay more in taxes, uttered the infamous words “If you've got a business—you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen,” conservatives have hammered him for his disregard for small-business owners. And liberals have hammered back that Obama was taken out of context. To be fair, this is the full quote:
If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you've got a business—you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen.
Obama supporters can complain all they want. They can argue that when he said “that,” he was talking about the roads and bridges, not the business itself. It doesn’t matter. And it’s pointless to blame Mitt Romney or the RNC or anyone else for taking it out of context. Here’s why....
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...
He didn’t say what he said. If you think he said what you heard him say, you’re stupid.
Precisely!!!
It was no gaffe. he meant it.
The former co-founder of Car(l)Ma(r)x even supports the statement.
ditto that.
The Ameriquest of the used car industry.
Well thank you Carmax for letting me know your political views, now I know who never to do business with.
Slate.com eh? Another leftist off the reservation.
Back in the day, in my misspent youth, I was a student at the University of Oregon. I took a class in Marxism from one of the school’s strident and outspoken Marxists, and it was one of more eye-opening experiences of my life. To the point, then: Obama’s statement is classic Marxist thought. My prof taught us the same thing in our class - that is, the wealth appropriated by the capitalists came from the labor of the workers. The delusion of the capitalist is that he thinks that the wealth came from his effort, when actually it came from the workers. One day, at least according to the Marxists, the workers will rise up and kill the capitalists, thereby taking the wealth that they created through their labor. As my prof used to point out to the delight of those of us with more pedestrian values, good and bad have different meanings based on who you are. When the workers kill the capitalists, it won’t be good for the capitalists, but it will be good for the workers.
Famous Cherokee warrior Elizabeth Warren said the same thing last year, I believe.
In any case, I recognized Obama’s meaning the moment he said it. It’s an expression of his ideological core values.
God help us.
The partisan media shills running the p.o.s. USA Today carried water for Obama’s reelection campaign over this weekend. Thanks 2ndDivisionVet.
He didn’t just only mean that. He firmly believes it.
Everything was given to him.
His educational opportunities, his employment, his political offices.
He hasn’t accomplished anything but the attempt at dividing and destroying the USA. Even at that, he isn’t alone.
obama meant just exactly what we thought he meant, context or no context!!!!
There is at least one other obama quote that should not be allowed to go away:
“Take the pain pill”!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-dQfb8WQvo
Building things is racist.
I am tickled pink the media keeps commenting on this. I want this line to stay in the news, active and keep it’s punch! To me this is sweet payback for the way the leftists have twisted Sarah’s “I can see Russia from my house” statement, and refused to let that die even though it was shown to be a creative editing moment. As long as we keep it in the media discourse, it hurts the O re-election IMHO.
I want to see the empty chair phenomenon continue as well.
I find it difficult to believe someone like Obama could be so politically naive. He has been accused of being a socialist by the Republicans since and before he gained office, and he decides to go on a rant about how selfish business owners are for not wanting to pay exorbitant taxes. Then he complains his words were taken out of context. His problem is that the context is worse than the actual words. The context is not only the speech he gave that day but also his whole career.
How’s this from Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (1957):
James Taggart on Hank Reardon:
“Rearden. He didn’t invent smelting and chemistry and air compression. He couldn’t have invented his Metal but for thousands and thousands of other people. His Metal! Why does he think it’s his? Why does he think it’s his invention? Everybody uses the work of everybody else. Nobody ever invents anything.”
She said, puzzled, “But the iron ore and all those other things were there all the time. Why didn’t anybody else make that Metal, but Mr. Rearden did?” (page 262).
That’s what missing in this whole discussion of Obama’s about “You didn’t build that by yourself”: Every inventor of something new worked within an existing social and economic circumstance, and did what no one else did. That is why it is foolish to insist that the inventor didn’t do it by himself. Instead, he worked within the existing circumstances and did what no one else did. In that sense he did do it by himself in spite of what Obama thinks.
“You didn’t build that!”
Racist code-wording for you hate the BLACK President.
Just ask anyone at MSNBC or Daily Kos about this.
You mean, the one that Sarah didn't say, but that Tina Fey said?
I commend Slate for trying to explain this to their readers. Afeter reading the comments from the “Progressives”, sadly, it didn’t work.
Very eloquent summary.
This is what he meant.
If you’ve got a business, that...you didn’t build that. Someone else made that happen.
That is why he must have a teleprompter. He cannot contain his hostility towards America without it.
He’s an idiot and a husk.
‘Property is theft’ since ‘You didn’t build that’, you have no complaint when it’s taken from you by force (which is government) if necessary.
If you think he said what you heard him say, you’re a waysis too!.....
I wholeheartedly agree — there’s no such thing as bad publicity about Zero’s public expression of his real attitude — which is reparations [sic] and redistribution in a dissent-free environment.
I just emailed carmax and told them I would never purchase a car from them again due to the owners support of Obummers comments. I told them to get ready to be "Chick-fil-a'd" in reverse. everybody needs to email these people.
Is it any wonder a person who firmly believes “white folks’ greed runs a world in need” - a line Obama quoted approvingly in his own book (page 293) - would also believe that a business owner only owns it by taking advantage of others?
You’re exactly right, and notice that Slate did not include those portions of the speech when they put the “You didn’t build that” into “context.” They conveniently left off the key sentences of the entire speech, which shows that “you didn’t build that” meant exactly what conservatives have been saying he meant:
“I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart. There are a lot of smart people out there. It must be because I worked harder than everybody else. Let me tell you something — there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.”
I did the same thing as you, only my course was in Comparative Religions. What I learned about a little understood religion called Islam alarmed and frightened me, because I could extrapolate into the future the events that eventually came true on a bright sunny September morning in 2001. Islam and Marxism have a whole lot in common.......
Yes, thank you, and I would add to that, that not only do some us do things with out help, we also acomplish things against great odds, with others - even family members - saying “You can’t do that, it will never work out.” And we get up and do it anyway. That’s what really makes me angry about that statement.
Aw that’s racist — to expect to interpret Barack’s remark as though it had been put in English! Ebonics mixes singulars and plurals without rhyme or reason. Surely there was an elided word [stuff] as in “You didn’t build that [stuff].”
The thing about the spin from the left on this as to what the President “actually meant” is that it doesn’t at all change the meaning - the point of the speech still remains to diminish the significance of individual achievement - that is the only thing it could have meant - with that sentence preceded by the other mocking comments about people claiming to be “so smart” and claiming they “worked hard”, etc. Their spin is also just as incorrect - the roads and bridges would not be there without business owners and their employees producing the capital that was taxed. Look at the old pictures of towns / cities when they were first starting up - no roads, no bridges. Dirt paths and little boats to take things across. Totally wrong - he and his fellow liberals have it backwards.
Sarah Palin NEVER, EVER uttered such a stupid and inane comment........
Both believe in ganging up to do brutal, unthinkable things.
I wonder how professor thomas crapper feels about this. who knew obama helped him invent the toilet with the help of roads and bridges.
I wonder how professor thomas crapper feels about this. who knew obama helped him invent the toilet with the help of roads and bridges.
Made me fell real sick. She was trying to tell him she needed the money to get her car out of the shop.
The difference is important. Obama was indeed saying that the success of the business owner was neither due to hard work nor to the unique talent of the business owner...and in FULL context there is no escape for the liberals trying to claim it was a gaffe.
Rachael Larimore appears to be the first liberal member of the press able to understand both sides. Rachael actually ‘empathized’ with us. Very strange - stranger yet that Slate ran it...
"Former CarMax associates or people affiliated with CarMax do not represent the company's views when speaking about the presidential campaign. CarMax does not take a position regarding presidential campaigns."
Add the derisive tone of voice, full of contempt for the business owner, and you there is no mmistaking precisely what he meant.
"out of context", my ass.
Well thank you Carmax for letting me know your political views, now I know who never to do business with.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I left Progressive Insurance when I found out that they are big Democrat/Obama supporters (financially). My vehicles are now insured with Allstate. Progressive will never get another penny out of me.
Again, this doesn't explain why ALL smart, hard-working people become successful. He implies that government is the sole contributor to success.
Roads and bridges were built by Americans using American taxpayers money. The government has no money. The money to pay for all that came from hard working Americans. Damn straight We Built That!
Hahah. Do you believe what obomo says he said- or your lying ears?
Hahah. Do you believe what obomo says he said- or your lying ears?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.