# "If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen." **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 17, 2012, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503 "2012-07-17T08:54:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Double\_Foolscap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85e7bf/32.png) [@Double\_Foolscap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Double_Foolscap)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/261 "2012-07-19T16:13:46Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > Here’s Romney criticizing Obama’s position on this: > > [http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/\_news/2012/07/19/12830947-romney-echoes-obama-line-on-public-institutions](http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/19/12830947-romney-echoes-obama-line-on-public-institutions) > > Yeah, uh, that’s a devastating smack down of what Obama said, or something. Yeah, but if you twist his words until they resemble a pretzel and go into it with a pre-conceived notion, he’s _actually_ saying that business owners are buttheads and you’re nothing if you don’t own a dancing horse. _How dare he!_ ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/262 "2012-07-19T16:13:49Z")
Could someone check Facebook for today’s Anti-Obama talking point? It will the out-of-context quote with the picture of a scowling President Obama. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/263 "2012-07-19T16:14:27Z")
What a cunt that Ann Romney is. “You people” Jeez-us. I’m surprised she didn’t say something about the nail ladies. So he gives 10% to his fucking cult. Big deal. Rmoney isn’t going to get away with stonewalling on his taxes. He can’t build a campaign over parsing every sentence Obama utters or masturbating like a motherfuck every time the unemployment numbers go up. I’d say Ann and Mitt both got the spouse they deserve. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/264 "2012-07-19T16:15:38Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > What a cunt that Ann Romney is. Please save this kind of language for the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/265 "2012-07-19T16:22:42Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Please save this kind of language for the Pit. My apologies. I should have read the rules more carefully, I thought we could flame public figures in any forum but obviously I was wrong and I apologize. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/266 "2012-07-19T16:35:01Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > My apologies. I should have read the rules more carefully, I thought we could flame public figures in any forum but obviously I was wrong and I apologize. You can flame public figures in any forum, but some types of comments belong in the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/267 "2012-07-19T16:36:27Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > You can flame public figures in any forum, but some types of comments belong in the Pit. Got it. I was over the line and was wrong to do so. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/268 "2012-07-19T17:03:05Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Got it. I was over the line and was wrong to do so. No you weren’t. You were right and you should keep saying it until Marley bans you! That’d show him who’s boss. 😉 Ann Romney said, “We’ve Given All You People Need To Know” about her family’s finances. To an extent that’s true. We now know that Mitt is a liar about when he left Bain, for instance, but not a very good liar. I don’t know what standards they follow in Utah, Michigan, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Mexico, or wherever the hell he’s from, but here in Chicago we have higher standards than that for liars. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/269 "2012-07-19T17:06:08Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > Don’t forget Barrack **Hussein** Obama. I’d say it’s good for 2 or 3 anti-Dem votes every time it’s uttered. Not any more. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/270 "2012-07-19T18:44:11Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > In short: if you told Michael Phelps that acknowledging all the many people who contribute to an Olympic athlete’s success would somehow diminish his achievements, he would laugh so hard they’d have to drain the pool. This was such a well written, researched and cited post that I’m pretty confident that **magellan01** ’s eyes glazed over, and he did not comprehend a word of it. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/271 "2012-07-19T18:52:51Z")
This stupid quote is _still_ being discussed? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/272 "2012-07-19T18:56:51Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > This was such a well written, researched and cited post that I’m pretty confident that **magellan01** ’s eyes glazed over, and he did not comprehend a word of it. Don’t insult other posters in this forum. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/273 "2012-07-19T19:50:13Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > This stupid quote is _still_ being discussed? Thanks for checking in. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/274 "2012-07-19T20:20:00Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Don’t insult other posters in this forum. Pretty mild as insults go, but apologies nevertheless. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/275 "2012-07-19T21:15:16Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > This stupid quote is _still_ being discussed? Of course. It’s being discussed constantly by, um, certain news media both on and offline, and it’s being used extensively by the all but nominated Republican candidate for President. Its stupidity is almost beside the point at this rate. ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2012, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/276 "2012-07-19T23:03:08Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > This was such a well written, researched and cited post that I’m pretty confident that **magellan01** ’s eyes glazed over, and he did not comprehend a word of it. Well, my eyes didn’t glaze over, but the tears of laughter did cloud them a bit. Even more now as he—and you—seem to be under the impression that what he wrote has anything to do with what I’ve been saying. So I think him for the guffaw and you for the follow-through chuckle. But just out of curiosity, what does someone deflecting and sharing praise he has earned have to do with people minimizing his accomplishments? Phelps started a foundation and promotes good causes. Excellent. But what the hell does that have with what it _took_ for him to win 8 medals? And if you seek to heap praise on him for his good works, I’ll have to stop you. At least until you heap praise on the guy who built the swimming pool, the chlorine manufacturer, the people who made his swimsuits, the guy who washed the towels at the pool he trained at when he was 15, Exxon…for making the gas his parents used to drive him to the pool, and the guy who told a 4-year-old MP the first time he swam alone with floaties, “My, what a good swimmer you are!”. Whoops. forgot the manufacturer—and inventor—of the floaties. But I guess it’s par for the course for the left. Whereas conservatives think people should give to charity, the left thinks “Well you have extra money, let the government take it from you and we’ll spend it on good stuff. Promise” No one is special. Everything takes a village. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2012, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/277 "2012-07-20T02:36:32Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > Here’s Romney criticizing Obama’s position on this: > > [http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/\_news/2012/07/19/12830947-romney-echoes-obama-line-on-public-institutions](http://maddowblog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/19/12830947-romney-echoes-obama-line-on-public-institutions) > > Yeah, uh, that’s a devastating smack down of what Obama said, or something. So he totally distorts what Obama said and then takes Obama’s _real_ position as his own. What else needs to be said about the dishonesty of this man? God help us if he gets elected. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2012, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/278 "2012-07-20T02:54:49Z")
> [@magellan01](#): > > Well, my eyes didn’t glaze over, but the tears of laughter did cloud them a bit. Even more now as he—and you—seem to be under the impression that what he wrote has anything to do with what I’ve been saying. So I think him for the guffaw and you for the follow-through chuckle. So, what exactly was your point in bringing up Phelps? ---
**Author:** ![Sateryn76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Sateryn76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sateryn76)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2012, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/279 "2012-07-20T06:50:54Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > So, what exactly was your point in bringing up Phelps? I think it’s great..but I would note that it is not sponsored or administered by the government. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2012, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503/280 "2012-07-20T07:02:48Z")
> [@Sateryn76](#): > > I think it’s great..but I would note that it is not sponsored or administered by the government. You think what is great; Phelps’s performance, that organized swimming exists at the Olympic level, **magellan01** ’s use of him as an example, or something else? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-youve-got-a-business-you-didnt-build-that-somebody-else-made-that-happen/628503.md?page=15)