"A republic, if you can keep it"

Ben Franklin would be appalled to see how complacent America is now

"A republic, if you can keep it" is a famous quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin at the end of the 1787 Constitutional Convention, expressing that "the new form of government (a republic) depends on the active, informed participation and virtue of its citizens to survive."

Will inactive and uninformed citizenry let it be taken from us?

The ignorant masses seem unlikely to stop anything while their bellies are full. Hundreds of millions of Americans and Europeans act like they’re relaxing in a hot tub when it’s more like the proverbial frogs in a slowly boiling pot. Wake up, people! The feces is about to hit the fan soon. If you want war and economic chaos just keep doing nothing.

When they offer a solution (to the problem they created) that takes away more freedoms - to make people feel less worried and to feel a little bit like things will go back to more like how they used to be if we just approve a few changes… Remember another quote from Ben: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."