The problem is that a plain fence can be so boring. So let’s dress it up, say with a little placard over the gate. Perhaps we should inscribe fancy words on it, too.
What comes to mind is an expression often attributed to a wise Frenchman named Alexis de Tocqueville, who wrote about the American experiment with freedom and liberty after it began more than 200 years ago.
No matter who said these words first, they’re perfect for the plaque on our fence. Here goes:
“The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.”
Happy Independence Day.
Pigs in a pen deliver lesson about freedom, by John Kass, Chicago Tribune, July 4, 2010
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