I can’t decide if it’s ironic or macabre to share quotes about guns the day before Memorial Day, but a friend sent me “Give a man a gun and he can rob a bank. Give a man a bank and he can rob the world” along with this image (sorry, it’s copyrighted) and while I was looking for the author I found some excellent quotes.

I couldn’t find solid attribution for the quote that tweaked my interest, but I do think I found the original that was changed; William K Black said, “The best way to rob a bank is to own one.” (BTW, he has an interesting bio.)
Al Capone believed in the power of guns, “You can go a long way with a smile. You can go a lot further with a smile and a gun.”

But Superintendent Pang in the film Hard Boiled really nailed gun psychology, “Give a guy a gun, he thinks he’s Superman. Give him two and he thinks he’s God.”

Among other tools guns are used for suicide, but if you pay heed to Dorothy Parker you won’t do it, Razors pain you; rivers are damp; acids stain you; and drugs cause cramp. Guns aren’t lawful; nooses give; gas smells awful; you might as well live.”

What do guns, tequila and computers have in common? Mitch Ratcliffe has the answer, “Computers have enabled people to make more mistakes faster than almost any invention in history, with the possible exception of tequila and hand guns”

In 1958 Woody Guthrie penned lyrics about an outlaw that could have been written about bankers in 2008, “Yes, as through this world I’ve wandered I’ve seen lots of funny men; Some will rob you with a six-gun, And some with a fountain pen.”

Finally, the without a doubt, best sentence ever with the word ‘gun’ was spoken by Mae West when she said, “Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?”

Flickr image credit: Fr. Dougal McGuire

I ran into the following quote from Adam Smith and thought he’d be a good subject for today’s Quotable Quotes. It’s too bad that Smith, known as the godfather of free market capitalism, doesn’t carry more weight with our bankers and politicians, although Occupy Wall Street seems to get it.

“The disposition to admire and almost worship the rich and the powerful is the great and most universal cause of the corruption of our moral sentiments.”

All those bankers who have refused to provide the credit necessary for SMB to move forward might want to consider these wise words, “It is not by augmenting the capital of the country, but by rendering a greater part of that capital active and productive than would otherwise be so, that the most judicious operations of banking can increase the industry of the country.”

Sadly, the world has changed to the point where customer outrage has little to no effect, although Smith’s words still ring true for some, “The real and effectual discipline which is exercised over a workman is that of his customers. It is the fear of losing their employment which restrains his frauds and corrects his negligence.”

This struck me as a great truth considering the ideologues that pass for politicians these days, “I have never known much good done by those who affected to trade for the public good.”
It’s not fair to bash bankers and pols and let the corporate world off Smith’s hook, so here’s one just for them, “Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production; and the interest of the producer ought to be attended to, only so far as it may be necessary for promoting that of the consumer.”

Conspicuous consumption was out of style, or at least underground, after the 2008 crash, but is back in full force now proving that Smith understood exactly what drives them, “With the greater part of rich people, the chief enjoyment of riches consists in the parade of riches.”

Finally, the so-called 1% would do well to remember this, “No society can surely be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of the members are poor and miserable.”

Image credit: Wikipedia

The Twitterverse and blogsphere are raging pro and con over the hiring of homeless people to promote mobile wi-fi devices at the South by Southwest conference calling it ‘exploitation’.

It matters not that Mitchell Gibbs, director of development at the Front Steps homeless shelter and involved in setting up the program, believes it has inspired an “entrepreneurial spirit” among its homeless participants, “It’s an employment opportunity, regardless of who is offering it.”

And homeless participant Clarence Jones must be wrong when he says, “Everyone thinks I’m getting the rough end of the stick, but I don’t feel that. I love talking to people and it’s a job. An honest day of work and pay.”

Obviously the pundits know more; they’ve probably spent more time working hands on with the homeless than Gibbs and studied homelessness more than Jones.

These days arrogance knows no bounds and this is a great example of that.

I don’t see this as any different than the human sign holders, many of whom are also homeless, that you see at major intersections promoting everything from mattress sales to cell phones to pizza.

Of course, the products they promote don’t infringe the promised land of tech, so nobody cares.

It’s likely that nobody would care if they hired the homeless as hotspots in other cities or even in Austin when SXSW wasn’t on.

I agree with Adam Hanft, who said that even if the effort was well intended, it seemed to turn a blind eye to that disconnect. “There is already a sense that the Internet community has become so absurdly self-involved that they don’t think there’s any world outside of theirs.”

Talking abut disconnect, perhaps the Internet community is catching up with the financial community.

Can you imagine the backlash if the homeless were hired as sign holders for banks anywhere?

Flickr image credit: Brett Jordan

Image credit: Guacamole Goalie on flickr

Commuting in Manhattan

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