Thursday, June 05, 2008

FDR: The First Truth and the Second Truth of Democracy



The first truth is that the liberty of democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of power to a point where it becomes stronger than the democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is Fascism -- ownership of Government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. The second truth is that the liberty of a democracy is not safe if its business system does not provide employment and produce and distribute goods in such a way to sustain an acceptable standard of living.

~ Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882 - April 12, 1945) , the 32nd President of the United States of America, on April 29, 1938, in a message to Congress titled "Recommendations to the Congress to Curb Monopolies and the Concentration of Economic Power."

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