Pigs are Pigs

by Don Boudreaux on May 30, 2007

Here’s a letter that I sent on Monday to the Washington Post:

Re Congressional
Democrats’ penchant for earmarks (Robert Novak, "Murtha’s Friends," May
28): When pigs second in line at the trough accuse pigs first in line
of being shameful gluttons, it is a dimwitted farmer indeed who
fantasizes that the squealing accusers will be any less gluttonous when
they gain favored access to the slopping pit.

Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
GMU

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Mesa EconoGuy

Piggies (Harrison)

Have you seen the little piggies

Crawling in the dirt

And for all the little piggies

Life is getting worse

Always having dirt to play around in.

Have you seen the bigger piggies

In their starched white shirts

You will find the bigger piggies

Stirring up the dirt

Always have clean shirts to play around in.

In their styes with all their backing

They don't care what goes on around

In their eyes there's something lacking

What they need's a damn good whacking.

Everywhere there's lots of piggies

Living piggy lives

You can see them out for dinner

With their piggy wives

Clutching forks and knives to eat their bacon.

Mark

Cynical Libertarian,

I think technically the Constitution would also come after the founding of the Republic.

Danton

=================

[" If pigs could vote, the man with the slop bucket would be elected swineherd every time, no matter how much slaughtering he did on the side. "]

{ --Orson Scott Card}

The Cynical Libertarian

Objectivist, didn't the Bill of Rights get put into the constitution AFTER the founding of the Republic?

Objectivist

If we could prvent the government from making any new laws, and repealing all the laws since the founding of the Republic, then the country would be in great shape.

muirgeo

Michael,

Well stated. I meant to say "business freindly". Qoutations implying a tongue-in-cheek admonition.

Jon

@ Michael:

I'm not so sure this is the peak. British Protectionism under the Empire was pretty rampant.

Michael Giesbrecht

Muiriqeo: "Yep they are business freindly indeed."

They are friendly with some businesses at the expense of others. I wouldn't call the current administration "business friendly". They're just taking care of their cronies, not businesses in general. What we are experiencing, I believe (though my historical perspective is far from complete), is a high-water mark for crony capitalism or mercantilism.

muirgeo

Not making excuses for Murtha because I think ear marks like this are disgusting and a huge problem. I'll write my democratic congress women to complain.

However it needs to be noted that theduring the current business freindly Bush administration ear mark spending has doubled over what it was previous. This is coincident with this administrations unprecedented growth of the K-street lobby industry. Yep they are business freindly indeed.

Those who keep insisting money is a form of free speech and not out right bribery that underminds both our markets and our government will continue to facilitate the problem.

John

Yes. It's so true, it's boring.

The Cynical Libertarian

Very good. Sir Winston Churchill once said:

"I like pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals."

Jon

Isn't that just like politicians? Bitch when other people come first and then hog all the resources when they get to the front of the line.

No pun intended on the "hog" part...