"The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance."- Cicero - 55 BC
Who knew that Cicero had a crystal ball that could see 2009 from way back then?
17 comments:
What a GREAT quote!
I may borrow it for my blog, if you wouldn't mind.
I have linked your blog to mine. Hope to read more insights in the weeks to come.
Thanks!
-Sue
Caesar had him killed, didn't he?
No crystal ball, just common sense. Something that is in short supply nowadays.
Cicero was to Rome what Obama is to the United States. An arrogant, petty, self-absorbed political parasite whose only achievement was in rhetoric. He eventually realized his just dues.
So I guess there is hope for us yet.
Cube, what is 'common sense' anyway. It seems to ring a bell, but it's been so long, I'm not sure what it is anymore.
Good quote Z!
What we need is not merely a politician, what we need is a gladiator!
Pris
Regardless of Cicero's flaws, that quotation is spot on.
Z,
The quote is more important than the man. I'll agree with Mustang in this part of his comment, his "only achievement is in rhetoric."
Whoops,
I meant to link to my other blog using THIS profile...
Thanks for your kind comments. Looking forward to sharing thoughts and ideas!
-Sue
The more things change, the more they stay the same, huh?
Ugh.
Almost 2000 years later and we still can't get it right
There are so many lessons that were learned the hard way by others thousands of years ago. But too many of us are still too stupid and still too lazy to learn from their mistakes.
I love it!
Found on the Internet:
The budget should be balanced, the treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt, the mobs should be forced to work and not depend on government for subsistence.
Source: Attributed to MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO, Congressional Record, April 25, 1968, vol. 114, p. 10635. This passage was reprinted in U.S. News & World Report, July 29, 1968, p. 15. Still later, a contributor reported this to The Review of the News, June 30, 1971, p. 19, and he also attributed this to Cicero. No evidence has been found to confirm that Cicero said these words, and it is almost certainly spurious.
Another site states: “Source: attributed but questionable”
Although Cicero was a political conservative and could have said it, he probably did not. He was assassinated on orders of the Triumvirate in 43 BCE. Many of his works were preserved because the Church considered him “a righteous pagan” — psi bond
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/c/cicero-plan.htm
The real original quote was:
"The arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and assistance to foreign hands should be curtailed, lest Rome fall."
But it's still a good quote.
Thanks, Marler.
It's a quote we should all heed, whoever said it, which, of course, is so not the point.
The arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and assistance to foreign hands should be curtailed, lest Rome fall.
This ancient quote from the real Cicero has little applicability today. Liberals and conservatives can all agree on the first part, but no one can seriously contend that foreign aid will bring about America’s fall. Of the U.S. budget, it is too small a part, but one that U.S. presidents have traditionally used to gain compliance with perceived U.S. national interests.
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