From: fedora@fea.st   
      
   On Sun, 15 Feb 2026 14:19:32 -0500, Wilson    
   wrote:   
      
   >On 2/15/2026 1:37 PM, Noah Sombrero wrote:   
   >> On Sun, 15 Feb 2026 13:25:10 -0500, Wilson    
   >> wrote:   
   >>   
   >>> On 2/15/2026 1:18 PM, Noah Sombrero wrote:   
   >>>> On Sun, 15 Feb 2026 09:44:05 -0800, Dude  wrote:   
   >>>>> On 2/15/2026 7:40 AM, Noah Sombrero wrote:>>> You can't simply go around   
   announcing that libertarianism is a   
   >>> principle and therefore   
   >>>>>> true.   
   >>>>>>   
   >>>>> Who are these "libertarianism" of whom you speak? Apparently, you've   
   >>>>> never even seen a photo of The Statue of Liberty. Wait! What?   
   >>>>   
   >>>> The sol poem   
   >>>>   
   >>>> Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,   
   >>>> With conquering limbs astride from land to land;   
   >>>> Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand   
   >>>> A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame   
   >>>> Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name   
   >>>> Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand   
   >>>> Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command   
   >>>> The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> "Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she   
   >>>> With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,   
   >>>> Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,   
   >>>> The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.   
   >>>> Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,   
   >>>> I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"   
   > >>   
   >>> That poem was added to the statue of liberty after it had been erected   
   >>> as part of a private fund-raising effort. It does not define the meaning   
   >>> of the statue, the creators intention for making it, or the reason the   
   >>> nation of France gave it to the US.   
   >>   
   >> Or actually it does.   
   >>   
   >> Let's hear it, why do you think france put that statue on a boat and   
   >> shipped it across the atlantic?   
   >   
   >"The Statue of Liberty, officially titled Liberty Enlightening the World   
   >(La Liberté éclairant le monde in French), was a gift from the people of   
   >France to the United States, formally presented in 1884 and dedicated in   
   >1886.   
   >   
   >Origins and Motivations   
   >   
   >French political thinker, historian, and abolitionist Édouard de   
   >Laboulaye first proposed the idea in 1865, shortly after the end of the   
   >American Civil War and the abolition of slavery in the US. Laboulaye   
   >admired the American republic and its constitution, and he saw the   
   >monument as a way to:   
   >   
   >- Celebrate the enduring friendship and alliance between France and the   
   >United States, particularly France's crucial support during the American   
   >Revolutionary War.   
   >   
   >- Commemorate the upcoming 100 year anniversary of the American   
   >Declaration of Independence and honor the US as a successful example of   
   >republican government and the abolition of slavery (symbolized by the   
   >broken chains at the statue's feet).   
   >   
   >In the French domestic context, the timing was significant. France had   
   >just suffered defeat in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871), leading to   
   >the collapse of Napoleon III's empire and the establishment of the Third   
   >Republic. Laboulaye and other French republicans viewed the gift as a   
   >subtle promotion of republican ideals and liberty at home, expressing   
   >hope that these values would prevail in France against monarchical or   
   >authoritarian tendencies.   
   >   
   >The project was a joint effort: French citizens funded the statue itself   
   >through public contributions, while Americans funded the pedestal and   
   >installation.   
   >   
   >Meaning to the French   
   >   
   >To the French, the statue primarily symbolized the universal ideals of   
   >liberty and enlightenment stemming from both the American and French   
   >Revolutions. It depicted Libertas (the Roman goddess of freedom) holding   
   >a torch to illuminate the world with reason and republican principles,   
   >reflecting France's own revolutionary motto of Liberté, Égalité,   
   >Fraternité. It was not originally intended as a symbol of immigration   
      
   Yes, that association came a few years later, not that it should be   
   discarded because of that.   
      
   >(that association developed later in the US), but rather as a   
   >celebration of shared political values and a beacon of hope for liberty   
   >worldwide.   
   >   
   >In summary, the gift was both a diplomatic gesture of transatlantic   
   >solidarity and a domestic statement by French republicans affirming the   
   >triumph of liberty over oppression."   
   --   
   Noah Sombrero mustachioed villain   
   Don't get political with me young man   
   or I'll tie you to a railroad track and   
   <<>> to <<>>   
   Who dares to talk to El Sombrero?   
   dares: Ned   
   does not dare: Julian  shrinks in horror and warns others away   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)