The Ten Cannots

I got an email from a friend the other day. It contained some words of wisdom as follows:

1. You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
2. You cannot help small men by tearing down big men.
3. You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
4. You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
5. You cannot help the poor man by destroying the rich.
6. You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than your income.
7. You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
8. You cannot establish security on borrowed money.
9. You cannot build character and courage by taking away man's initiative and independence.
10 You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.

These 10 Cannots were attributed by my friend and someone who had sent them to him as coming from President Lincoln. This looked too good to be true so I did a little research, and Abe Lincoln was not the author of these nor did he every speak them. According to a number of sources I checked these were written on a back of a pamphlet that did contain a quote of Lincoln's. However, on the back of the pamphlet, Rev. William J. H. Boetcker, Presbyterian Clergyman, penned these 10 Cannots. There is conflict about when the 10 Cannots were originally published. I found a couple of publication dates of 1916, but also found dates of 1942, and even 1873.

Well Lincoln didn't write or say them, but never-the-less, I think these 10 Cannots are true wisdom no matter who said them and I think our current President and Congress would do well to heed them.

Thoughts?