Typical Politician, Joke (Page 2): :sm02: :sm02: :sm02:...

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

dpfoto Loc: Cape Coral, FL

Would you really EXPECT a politician to tell the truth? That would be going against everything they've ever learned.

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

I don't see politics as our enemy, as the joke implies, though it is amusing insofar as it is all too true.

The reply I expected from the politician was that people in the long run are better off solving their own problems. They knew there were no doctors there when they chose to live there. They ought not to live in places without doctors. I have heard such politicians all my life, not just today. (If you are safe at home these days, and bored, try reading speeches of FDR and those of Hoover--they could be used today without editing a thing.)

The problem is that people with serious illness need medical care now--not just in the long run, whether they made wise decisions in the past or not. To paraphrase Jesus, government and law exist for the good of the people, not the other way around. So we should ask what government can do for us--and for others, just as we also ask what we can do as individuals for others. This has been called "enlightened self-interest" and it is the teaching of Adam Smith (founder of modern capitalism).

None of our nation's founding fathers thought government was a bad idea, though they knew that individuals are fallible and prone to weakness and malice--so government itself must be put under law, not under a king. This only works if we make it work. Jefferson said he would sign any bill that benefitted the people, even if a Constitutional Amendment was necessary. (They thought the Constitution would be changed all the time--he said rule by dead men is not democracy.) Doing together what we cannot do alone is one point of society, and the other point is sharing both the benefits and the burdens of life. Self-interest and common interest are, for humans, tied together--not opposing forces. Without self-interest, we could not make a living, but without friendship, we would starve--nobody would do business with us. The two are both our problem and our solution, yes? Self-interest without the rule of law is worse than the law of the jungle, for it will lead to its own destruction (which animals would never go for). But care for others without care for self is also doomed--we would destroy ourselves in the process. Bosheviks on the left and Fascists on the right are both wrong for the same reason--they go off the deep end on just one of our duties, forgetting the other. Both are irrational and suicidal--that is to say, nuts.

We don't have to listen to the politicians who want us to choose between two forms of madness. Some politicians on both sides tell us the other side goes too far one way and is crazy, and this can persuade us that both are right--both sides really are crazy. But I believe most people who go into politics sincerely want to do what is right and best for all. After all, none of us is in a career without bad people in it--but there are good mechanics, car dealers, lawyers, advertisers and salesmen, etc.

Whenever people say, "They all do it," referring to lies and greed or other vices, I suspect the speakers are somehow trying to justify their own thoughts and actions. Mark Twain said humans are the only animals that blush--and the only ones who ought to.

will47 Loc: Indianapolis, IN

Charles 46277 wrote:

I don't see politics as our enemy, as the joke implies, though it is amusing insofar as it is all too true.

The reply I expected from the politician was that people in the long run are better off solving their own problems. They knew there were no doctors there when they chose to live there. They ought not to live in places without doctors. I have heard such politicians all my life, not just today. (If you are safe at home these days, and bored, try reading speeches of FDR and those of Hoover--they could be used today without editing a thing.)

The problem is that people with serious illness need medical care now--not just in the long run, whether they made wise decisions in the past or not. To paraphrase Jesus, government and law exist for the good of the people, not the other way around. So we should ask what government can do for us--and for others, just as we also ask what we can do as individuals for others. This has been called "enlightened self-interest" and it is the teaching of Adam Smith (founder of modern capitalism).

None of our nation's founding fathers thought government was a bad idea, though they knew that individuals are fallible and prone to weakness and malice--so government itself must be put under law, not under a king. This only works if we make it work. Jefferson said he would sign any bill that benefitted the people, even if a Constitutional Amendment was necessary. (They thought the Constitution would be changed all the time--he said rule by dead men is not democracy.) Doing together what we cannot do alone is one point of society, and the other point is sharing both the benefits and the burdens of life. Self-interest and common interest are, for humans, tied together--not opposing forces. Without self-interest, we could not make a living, but without friendship, we would starve--nobody would do business with us. The two are both our problem and our solution, yes? Self-interest without the rule of law is worse than the law of the jungle, for it will lead to its own destruction (which animals would never go for). But care for others without care for self is also doomed--we would destroy ourselves in the process. Bosheviks on the left and Fascists on the right are both wrong for the same reason--they go off the deep end on just one of our duties, forgetting the other. Both are irrational and suicidal--that is to say, nuts.

We don't have to listen to the politicians who want us to choose between two forms of madness. Some politicians on both sides tell us the other side goes too far one way and is crazy, and this can persuade us that both are right--both sides really are crazy. But I believe most people who go into politics sincerely want to do what is right and best for all. After all, none of us is in a career without bad people in it--but there are good mechanics, car dealers, lawyers, advertisers and salesmen, etc.

I don't see politics as our enemy, as the joke imp... (show quote)

Lots of words to get to the point: all politicians are vile, disgusting entities.

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

will47 wrote:

Lots of words to get to the point: all politicians are vile, disgusting entities.

First, you mean you have no heroes in that field of battle?
Second, are we not all politicians in everyday life? Politics is the art or craft of getting along with others.

Abo

will47 wrote:

Lots of words to get to the point: all politicians are vile, disgusting entities.

For the vast majority I agree... hideous organisms.

However I think a rare few do genuinely want to make our lives better.

Pepsiman Loc: New York City

Kraken wrote:

A politician visited a remote little rural village and asked the inhabitants what the government could do for them.

“We have two big needs,” said the village headman. “First, we have a hospital but no doctor.”

The politician whipped out his cellphone, spoke for a while and then said, “I have sorted it out. A doctor will arrive here tomorrow. What is your other need?”

“We have no cellphone reception at all in our village.”

will47 Loc: Indianapolis, IN

Abo wrote:

For the vast majority I agree... hideous organisms.

However I think a rare few do genuinely want to make our lives better.

If your statement is true, the rare few are an endangered species.

Abo

will47 wrote:

If your statement is true, the rare few are an endangered species.

Absolutely

Swede Loc: Trail, BC Canada

Swede

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

Very funny with a definite ring of truth!

hookedupin2005 Loc: Northwestern New Mexico

Kraken wrote:

A politician visited a remote little rural village and asked the inhabitants what the government could do for them.

“We have two big needs,” said the village headman. “First, we have a hospital but no doctor.”

The politician whipped out his cellphone, spoke for a while and then said, “I have sorted it out. A doctor will arrive here tomorrow. What is your other need?”

“We have no cellphone reception at all in our village.”

Hahahahaha! I can see a red-faced politician not getting a single vote from THAT village!

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

hookedupin2005 wrote:

Hahahahaha! I can see a red-faced politician not getting a single vote from THAT village!

When Mo Udall (Arizona Congressman) tried a run for President in 1976, he was campaigning in some rural area and climbed up on a piece of machinery to speak to a gathering of farmers, but they all laughed at him. The machine was a manure spreader.

Daryl New Loc: Wellington,New Zealand

Gotcha....

SteveR Loc: Michigan

That, Kraken, is your best post ever!!! Hilarious, actually.