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April 1, 2017
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Mommy and daddy’s little tax deduction” (a young child)

Dependent children can be claimed on a parent or guardian's tax returns. "Mommy/Daddy's little tax deduction" (a baby) is a jocular phrase that has been printed on many…

March 23, 2010
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Money in politics is like squeezing a balloon” (air/water is displaced)

Money in politics has often been described as “like squeezing a balloon" —that is, the air/water gets displaced within the balloon but doesn't leave it. The political adage has been…

March 22, 2010
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Money in politics is like water flowing downhill” (unstoppable)

Money in politics has often been described as "like water flowing downhill' (or "like water running downhill") -- in other words, an inevitable force of nature's gravity.…

September 22, 2021
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Money is not free speech. Corporations are not people”

"Corporations are not people" and "Money is not free speech" are two political sayings (often grouped together) that have been printed on many images. The saying have often been…

December 16, 2009
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Money is the mother’s milk of politics”

"Money is the mother's milk of politics" a December 14, 1962 Time magazine story quoted from Jesse Unruh (1922-1987), then speaker of California's state assembly. The quotation…

August 7, 2013
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Money trumps politics”

"Money trumps politics" means that people will lose their political beliefs if paid enough money. For example, a radio station will air conservative talk radio -- if that programming…

December 9, 2020
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Morality is doing what is right, regardless of what everybody else is doing”

"Morality is doing what is right, regardless of what you are told. Obedience/Religion is doing what you are told, regardless of what is right" is a saying that has been printed on many…

September 2, 2008
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most Dangerous Place” (between a politician and a camera or microphone)

It's often said that the most dangerous place to be in the world is between a politician and a camera (or a microphone). You'll get crushed! U.S. Senator Bob Dole (R-Kansas) said in 1995…

May 1, 2026
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most of my decisions are loosely based on whether or not it’s illegal, or merely frowned upon”

"Most of my decisions are loosely based on whether or not it’s illegal, or merely frowned upon" is a jocular saying that has been printed on many images. The speaker is joking about his…

November 26, 2024
Food/DrinkGovernment/Law/Military/Religion /HealthHolidays/Events/Parades

“Most pardoned turkeys end up back in the system”

What happens to turkeys that the president of the United States pardons for Thanksgiving? "I fear the turkey pardoning sets a bad precedent. What's the turkey recidivism rate since the…

January 11, 2021
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most people want to serve got, but only in an advisory capacity”

"Most people want/wish to serve God, but only in an advisory capacity" is a saying that has been printed on many images. "Most people wish to serve God, but in an advisory capacity…

September 19, 2022
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most people wearing the Che Guevara shirt would have been killed by Che Guevara”

An image of Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, writer, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and military theorist Ernesto "Che" Guevara (1928-1967) was made by Irish artist Jim…

January 24, 2021
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most people wish to serve God, but in an advisory capacity only”

"Most people want/wish to serve God, but only in an advisory capacity" is a saying that has been printed on many images. "Most people wish to serve God, but in an advisory capacity…

January 24, 2021
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most people wish to serve God, but only in an advisory capacity”

"Most people want/wish to serve God, but only in an advisory capacity" is a saying that has been printed on many images. "Most people wish to serve God, but in an advisory capacity…

May 16, 2011
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Most people would be glad to tend their own business if the government would give it back”

ost people would be glad to tend/mind their own business if the government would give it back" has been cited in print since at least 1971 and is of unknown authorship. The anti-government,…

August 23, 2010
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Move along! Nothing to see here!”

"Move along, folks! Nothing to see here!" is what police might say to onlookers of a traffic accident. The line became so familiar by the 1980s that it was parodied in the film The Naked…

May 9, 2021
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“Move Tax Day to the day before Election Day”

Tax Day is April 15th and Election Day is the first Tuesday in November in the United States. Many people have suggested moving Tax Day to the day before Election Day. American lawyer, author and…

April 30, 2020
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“My body has absorbed so much soap and disinfectant lately that when I pee it cleans the toilet”

The 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic caused many people to use hand sanitizer and to wash their hands frequently. "My body has absorbed so much soap and disinfectant lately that when I pee it…

May 21, 2022
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“My body is a temple. Therefore I am a church and exempt from paying taxes”

"My body is a temple. Therefore I am a church and exempt from paying taxes" is a jocular saying that has been printed on several images. “@Anrkiss: If the church is tax exempt and my…

April 26, 2019
Government/Law/Military/Religion /Health

“My child, my choice”

"My child, my choice" is a parents' rights saying that has been printed on many images. The saying often refers to the choice of vaccinating a child, and can refer to educational…

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BARRY POPIK is a contributor to the Oxford English Dictionary, Dictionary of American Regional English, Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Yale Book of Quotations and Dictionary of Modern Proverbs. Since 1990 he has also been a regular contributor to Gerald Cohen's Comments on Etymology.

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