Comments on: Did Obama Really Say, ‘If You’ve Got a Business, You Didn’t Build That’?

By: Steve Aho

Steve Aho — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 02:28:00 +0000

Preident Obama clearly said what he said and meant what he said. He clearly asserted regardless what you have accomplished and built — your successes are less a result your efforts and absolutely subordinate to the contributions of others. He was clear when he stated that others are responsible for your success and I’m here to tell you he,s dead wrrong. Had he ever tried to start and run a capitalistic, entrepreneurial venture he would not believe that. He is speaking from his point of reference in which his success was absolutely a result of using what government provided him and a result of what others did for him.

However, as a 65 yer old entrepreneur after more than 40 years of sweat and personal sacrifice I’m here to tell you that I succeeded purely as a result of my own efforts and despite a very ordinary education, suffocating governmental redtape, growth stunting taxes, economic mismanagement and countless other governmental roadblocks. The only competent assistance and mentoring I received was from my loving wife and other empathetic entrepreneurs. You do mankind a disservice by supposing what others including the president may have really meant other that what he clearly stated. It’s very accommodating of you to surmize what it was he might have wished he said but also confusing disservice to those who know both what he did say and meant to say … as revealing and embarrassing as it was for many of those who support him.

By: EricK

EricK — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 17:32:00 +0000

My income taxes from my business have paid the salaries of government employees who mostly take my time, filing out forms. When I’ve had sleepless nights wondering if I’d make a payroll or if I’d lose a client or if the advertising response rates needed to justify the media investment would pan out, the government was never there with me. When I worked, like so many of your readers, countless hours, day after day, to make a reality out of my vision, and to only run into road block after road block until finally small advances began to turn into bigger break throughs, no IRS agent or regulatory bureaucrat was there offering help.

My success is what drove the ability for the government to tax me, to have the money to build roads, schools and such things. My success is what gave my employes jobs to buy houses, pay bills and live a fuller life. No government will ever be able to do what we successful business owners have done. They are entirely dependent upon us, like a small child needing food, is the government. Without us, they’d starve.

I would rather not have to speak in a voice that likely sounds vain and prideful. I feel odd even speaking of my success in such an open and offensive way. I just feel that it’s necessary given the current political climate, a climate I never dreamed I’d see in America where business owners and job creators are put on the defensive by the president. Not just in this comment but it seems that it’s a recurring theme (remember Joe the Plumber?) interwoven throughout his governing philosophy.

By: Commagereinternational

Commagereinternational — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 22:24:00 +0000

Thank you for
making common sense!!! Games the media is playing will bite them in the end. For the
most part Romney’s rebuttal is trying to say the same thing the President
is saying, just differently. Mr. President is correct no man is an island, we
all receive help one way or the other–we all have customers— people that buy
your product or you sell your product to them. I
have a 25 year old business, 10 year old catering business and now a restaurant;
without customers I would not be in business no matter how good I am at what I
do.

What is so hard
to understand about to be successful we need
each other and that’s in business as well as in life, government is also a part
of that in varies ways, nothing and no one stands independently on it’s on. By the way government has always been in the middle of everything we do, I don’t know where some people are coming from saying I don’t want governement in my life–governement is your life you are the government–people you and me we just select representatives–if you understand what government is all about. We got to stop the republicans with the “Diversions” which is what the Republicans are good at, they are confusing the non-thinker.

Romney has the
right initials MR for Mis- Read.

Mr. President is correct no man is an island, we
all receive help one way or the other–we all have customers— people that buy
your product or you sell your product to them. I
have a 25 year old business, 10 year old catering business and now a restaurant;
without customers I would not be in business no matter how good I am at what I
do.

By the way government has always been in the middle of everything we do, I don’t know where some people are coming from saying I don’t want governement in my life–governement is your life you are the government–people you and me we just select representatives–if you understand what government is all about. We got to stop the republicans with the “Diversions” which is what the Republicans are good at, they are confusing the non-thinker.

Romney has the
right initials MR for Mis- Read.

By: Commagereinternational

Commagereinternational — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 19:30:00 +0000

Thank you for making the President’s statement clear. I am a
small business person (25 years) and I did not hear anything wrong with what
the President said, he is correct; if there were no roads, bridges, freeways,
sidewalks, flood drainage then people could not get to my restaurant in Texas.
Yes other people help build my business such as “customers” that buy and
vendors whom I do business with help build your business. The government has a
role as well, they puts the structures in place to reach my business either by
car, bus, plane, or walking. Yes my teacher inspired me to do international
business because of my concept that I learned from him in International
Business, and the internet allows me to do research so I can reach the public. Yes
the idea and concept belongs to the individual but you must have others in
place to help make it grow. No woman or man is an island, businesses does not
grow because it is a good idea or have connections. Again, this game the media is playing is— let us see who will allow us to do the thinking
for them and see how far will their mind run blindly away.

Mitt Romney is a non-thinker—think
about it, 4 years ago when his own party did not think he was good enough to be
the candidate, they choose John McCain and recently John McCain said Sarah
Palin was a better choice-that is not a good thing to say. Mitt can’t think because his campaign is not based on the
good he has done, but “what he going to do” plus he coat-tails off of every
word the President says—his job is to twist what has been said so the people
will ask unsavory questions and say distasteful things that does not make sense. Please wake up non-thinkers, and discontinue
being spectators and stop looking at what is being said and start hearing what is
being said—Mitt is not for small businesses, he has no platform. He is simply
looking for those that are sick with a shut-in mind. Yes President Obama will be re-elected. God is
in charge.

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 19:16:00 +0000

This President has made his opinions clear time and time again about “so-called job creators”…this time he just stepped in it and he (and his supporters) are trying to dig himself out of it. Do not be confused about his disdain for business.

By: Nicola Pitt

Nicola Pitt — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 16:40:00 +0000

It’s refreshing to read well-balanced writing after all the recent Obama-bashing in the media.