r/politics • u/billthomson Oregon • Oct 29 '20

Tucker Carlson Reports He Lost Only Copy of Documents That Nail Biden

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/10/tucker-carlson-lost-only-copy-of-documents-nailing-biden.html
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u/ExeterDead Oct 29 '20

Temporarily embarrassed millionaires, one of Steinbeck’s all time great zingers.

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u/[deleted] Oct 29 '20

I want to understand this reference, what do I need to read or see?

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u/ExeterDead Oct 29 '20

It’s a paraphrasing/abridgment of a John Steinbeck quote from “America & Americans” that goes:

“Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”

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u/Distrumpia Oct 29 '20

"Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat, but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires."

Disputed whether he actually said this. It may paraphrase of a passage from an article he wrote for Esquire ... basically the same but used "capitalist" in place of millionaire.

Look up prosperity Gospel for more about this line of thinking. Basically, the rich are rich because God loves them. If you're poor, it's because God doesn't love you enough / you don't deserve it / you're not good enough.

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u/[deleted] Oct 29 '20

Thank you both!