Saturday, April 09, 2011

Democracy

Hmmm.... this would make a good tagline. Saw it in a friend's email signature:
"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!"   -- Benjamin Franklin
Update: As 6george0 astutely noted, with the word "lunch" in there does draw the quote's origins into question. Looks like the research says that there's no evidence that this quote came from Ben Franklin.  I had no idea when "lunch" came into the vernacular, although I do know that the mid day meal was often called "dinner" (actually in some circles it still is).  But as 6george0 adds ... it's a good quote, regardless of the source.

2 comments:

6george0 said...

I wonder if "lunch" was part of the
vernacular in the late 18th century,
but a fine comment, never-the-less.

philmon said...

You're probably right. The word "lunch" in there does draw the quote's origins into question. Looks like the research says that there's no evidence that this quote came from Ben Franklin. I had no idea when "lunch" came into the vernacular, although I do know that the mid day meal was often called "dinner" (actually in some circles it still is). But as you say ... it's a good quote, regardless of the source.