Our progress in degeneracy appears to me to be pretty rapid. As a nation we began by declaring that "all men are created equal." We now practically read it "all men are created equal except Negroes." When the know-nothings get control, it will read, "all men are created equal, except Negroes and foreigners and Catholics."From a letter to Joshua Speed, August 24, 1865.
When it comes to this, I shall prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of loving liberty. To Russia, for instance, where despotism can be taken pure, and without the base alloy of hypocrisy.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Quote for the Day I
After perusing this morning's headlines, I remembered this quote from good ol' Abe Lincoln, commenting on the "know-nothing" party, a political movement in the mid-1880s that was anti-immigrant. Substitute "Republican" for know-nothing and gays or DC residents for the "low classes of white people" or "Negroes" and the quote well reflects the sorry state of affairs today:
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2 comments:
That quote from August 1865 would be, perhaps, something from beyond the grave maybe?? Abe died on April 14, 1865.
Sorry, typo. 1855. At least someone was paying attention.
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