"Somebody Made That Happen"
Rob Long ·
July 15, 2012 at 3:18pm
Here's all you need to know about what, exactly, Barack Obama thinks about business -- the small kind, the large kind, the family kind, the any kind:
It's almost too perfect, isn't it? And I especially love that turn of phrase -- "somebody made that happen."
It's always somebody for the left, isn't it? Somebody will pay. Somebody will do it.
- Comment (71)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (10)
Comments:
Apr '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Amazing.
May '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
The comment that reveals our president to be 1/32nd Cherokee, just like Liz "Lieawatha" Warren.
Feb '12
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
The man is an embarrassing ignoramus when discussing economic matters. It's almost as if he's contracted Biden's disease.
Two positives come from this: First, his instincts take him to deep, warning track left field when that teleprompter isn't lit up. That will probably cost him in any debate concerning the state of the economy.
But the big payoff is in campaign ad material. There's no need to deconstruct or dissect what he has to say. It doesn't need to be taken out of context. Quote him, then spend 20 seconds explaining that he views US citizens as children, incapable of directing their own affairs without massive government intervention. Innovation and entrepreneurship are things that someone else does. Because the process of making money is a mystery to him, he believes only exploitation can explain it. Fade to black.
May '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Statement: "Somebody made that happen."
Answer: "Yeah. ME! I made that happen."
Jun '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
I've been waiting for years for Somebody to show up and make me a billionaire...and frankly I'm beginning to lose my patience!
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
"If you've got a business, you didn't build that; somebody else made that happen."
Okay. Anyone care to guess what happens to my business if I stay home next week and wait for "somebody else" to turn up to build it for me?
Multiply the above times many millions and gaze forth on our present economic doldrums with wide-eyed understanding.
Jan '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
We're all standing on the shoulders of giants.
Aug '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Too bad Jonah Goldberg overlooked this gem in his last book.
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Wait a minute: What if the president's "somebody else" is actually Mitt Romney and Bain Capital? After all, Mitt created untold billions of wealth for his investors by helping entrepreneurs build businesses, thereby netting the quarter-bill for himself that seems to so agitate Mr. Obama.
Edited on July 15, 2012 at 5:07pmJan '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
It takes a village...to make the true producers feel guilty about the success they've earned -- success that they could only have enjoyed by first satisfying the wants of most villagers.
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Building a business is not Marxist inevitability, Asimovian Psychohistory, or any other ineluctable process. Building a business is path dependent. Commitment, vision, refusal to give up in the face of underestimated adversity, these are the keys to success. It's an individual effort, or the concentrated effort of a small collection of like-minded individuals who voluntarily pledge themselves to the cause in a corporate effort. And the most successful are moving against the grain of conventional wisdom, not with it, which is one more reason why politically-directed "entrepreneurism" is so wildly unsuccessful. And this may have something to do with why President Obama--the very distillation of Left liberal conventional wisdom--is so clueless about the workings of free-market capitalism.
Oct '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Clandesteyn
Too bad Jonah Goldberg overlooked this gem in his last book. · 23 minutes ago
I had the same thought. This idea that you're only successful because you were able to drive on publicly funded roads is a liberal cliche. No one would argue that we don't all benefit from roads. And yet, not everyone who drive on a road starts a successful business. hmmm. Why is that?
Jun '12
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Sorry to be lame- but is there a longer version of the quote? The numerous pronouns "that/it/you" makes it tough to even follow the sentence. I really want to pounce here but I keep replaying it but I'm not even sure what Obama is saying. The comments all seem to indicate Obama is saying people who build businesses didn't actually build them, which seems dumb even for him. Is he making reference to the lib conviction that the environment provided by govt (the roads to your warehouse, the internet that allows you to take orders, the safe streets that allow customers to visit your) is the reason that your business florishes? I just want to direct my fire appropriately :)
May '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
"Somebody" is blowing smoke up our, er, something.
May '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Seriously, it would be great if somebody on the producers side of the debate would point out how much of the road tax, sales tax, franchise tax, unemployment tax, &tc ad infinitum, the business owners have to pay.
Apr '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Obama seems to have appointed himself lead producer on the Romney campaign ad team. I love it when he goes off TelePrompTer and opens the kimono just enough to give away what he really thinks of this country and its citizenry.
Feb '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
"And if you get elected President, you didn't do that. Somebody else made that happen."
I wonder if he believes that?
Dec '10
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Ah, young whipper snapper, the material productive forces are the fountain head for the success of all running dog capitalists, you're just a parasite.
Sep '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
Specifics Obama cites of "help" that successful business people received - teachers, roads and bridges, internet, fire fighting service. Common theme? They are common services that everyone benefits from at the get -go. We all work hard too.
It just pains Obama to acknowledge individuals' differences result in varying outcomes. It appears to me that his main concern is wealth disparity (i.e., lack of equality) among citizens. If his goal is make the most people as possible as economically equal as possible, then compressing everyone into state-provided dependency means more people get the same services -- that's fairness!
Better that 75% of us are roughly equal at a lower standard of living than 60% roughly equal but more wealthy. The dear Maggie Thatcher makes the point here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8SQHwyNU1Q
Apr '11
Re: "Somebody Made That Happen"
whatmeworry: I love that Thatcher segment. I've seen if a few times but thanks for sharing it. "They (the left) would rather the poor were poorer provided the rich were less rich."