Who said this?

P

PaladinX13

New member
"A Democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largess out of the public treasury. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidate promising the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that Democracy always collapses over a loose financial policy, always to be followed by a Dictatorship."

I have sources that say Alexis de Tocqueville and others that say Professor Alexander Fraser Tyler... does anyone know for sure which one of these guys said it?
 
This quote is in United States History for Christian Schools that I have, but unfortunately, there is no source.

Here is a link that may help:

http://www2.southwind.net/~dachief/lpanel.html


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"Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain that build it:
except the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain." (Psalm 127:1)

The Second Amendment rights have not kept pace with the First.

"Freedom is given to the human conditionally, in the assumption of his constant religious responsibility."
(Alexander Solzhenitzyn)

[This message has been edited by Keiller TN (edited October 25, 2000).]

[This message has been edited by Keiller TN (edited October 25, 2000).]
 
Apparently it is a quote from an 18th century Scottish historian,
Sir Alexander Fraser Tytler (or possibly Tyler)

A partial quote seems to be:


"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist
until the voters discover that they can vote themselves money from the public
treasure. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidates
promising the most money from the public treasury, with the result that a
democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy followed by a dictatorship....”


I suggest searching on www.Google.com for more info.
(That’s where I found the above. ;) )
 
Well, that's the problem with search engines, they generated the listed source as both Tyler, Tytler, and de Tocqueville... I have no way of confirming who wrote it. From Gorthaur's link, it would seem Tyler/Tytler did no read it... yet I can't find any information about the writings of Tocqueville.
 
I think it was Mark Twain who said that Democracy is the fervent hope that more than half of the poeple are right more than half of the time.

With election day right around the corner I am crossing my fingers. ;)

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Those who use arms well cultivate the Way and keep the rules.Thus they can govern in such a way as to prevail over the corrupt- Sun Tzu, The Art of War
 
Mark Twain also said....

"Suppose you are a Senator

Suppose you are an idiot....

but I repeat Myself..."
 
From www.guntruths.com

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the
voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that
moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from
the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been 200 years. These nations have progressed through this sequence: "From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to
abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to apathy; From apathy to
dependence; From dependence back into bondage." -- Alexander Fraser Tytler (later Lord Alexander Fraser Woodhouslee), in "The Decline and Fall of the Athenian Republic,"
published 1776.
 
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