893
Probably accurate (thelemmy.club)

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/8955441

He was a coomer, Ben Franklin?

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top new old
[-] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 117 points 1 week ago

I mean, set aside the slavery politics for just a minute, because that's low hanging fruit.

Imagine showing Thomas Jefferson the Hoover Dam. Imagine introducing Thomas Paine to the internet. Imagine George Washington's face illuminated by a mushroom cloud. How fucking dumb do you think Benedict Arnold would feel if you dropped him onto the deck of a US Aircraft Carrier. How flabbergasted would James Madison feel if you explained that we literally call it the "White House", because we never changed the color after the British burned it down. What do you think Patrick Henry would have to say about Social Security?

FFS,

[-] Slovene85@sh.itjust.works 41 points 1 week ago

What would Hamilton think about his musical?

[-] sundray@lemmus.org 18 points 1 week ago

"I should have thrown away my shot..."

[-] AmyAye@nord.pub 14 points 1 week ago

He wpuld write 5000 blog posts about it.

[-] Schmoo@slrpnk.net 14 points 1 week ago

Thomas Paine is the only one I could tolerate hanging out with. The rest are getting pushed back into the time machine and sent to the Devonian period.

[-] OwOarchist@pawb.social 17 points 1 week ago

The rest are getting pushed back into the time machine and sent to the Devonian period.

Great. Now the sudden appearance of invasive modern bacteria just caused a mass extinction in the Devonian, the entire history of life on earth is changed, and the dominant life form is an amphibian of roughly chimpanzee intelligence.

[-] nightwatch_admin@lemmy.world 10 points 1 week ago

Sounds like progress

[-] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago

I mean, the smell alone would be pretty horrible

[-] cmbabul@slrpnk.net 10 points 1 week ago

Hey now, Paine would be a monster on TikTok

load more comments (3 replies)
[-] TranscendentalEmpire@lemmy.today 47 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

He would be very interested in the very mature milf and gilf sections we have available.

My favorite writing from any founding father is Ben Franklin writing to a younger friend urging them to take an older mistress. My man had an 8 point presentation on the virtues of fucking older ladies. My favorite saying from this is " In the dark, all cats are grey".

"Because they have more Knowledge of the world, and their Minds are better stored with Observations; their conversation is more improving, and more lastingly agreeable. "

"Because when Women cease to be handsome, they study to be good. To maintain their Influence over Man, they supply the Diminution of Beauty by an Augmentation of Utility. They learn to do a thousand Services, small and great, and are the most tender and useful of Friends when you are sick. Thus they continue amiable. And hence there is hardly such a thing to be found as an Old Woman who is not a good Woman. "

"Because there is no hazard of children, which irregularly produced may be attended with much inconvenience. "

"Because through more Experience they are more prudent and discreet in conducting an Intrigue to prevent Suspicion. The Commerce with them is therefore safer with regard to your reputation; and regard to theirs, if the Affair should happen to be known, considerate People might be inclined to excuse an old Woman, who would kindly take care of a young Man, form his manners by her good Councils, and prevent his ruining his Health and Fortune among mercenary Prostitutes. "

"Because in every Animal that walks upright, the Deficiency of the Fluids that fill the Muscles appears first in the highest Part. The Face first grows lank and Wrinkled; then the Neck; then the Breast and Arms; the lower parts continuing to the last as plump as ever; so that covering all above with a Basket, and regarding only what is below the Girdle, it is impossible of two Women to know an old one from a young one. And as in the Dark all Cats are grey, the Pleasure of Corporal Enjoyment with an old Woman is at least equal and frequently superior; every Knack being by Practice capable by improvement. "

"Because the sin is less. The Debauching of a Virgin may be her Ruin, and make her Life unhappy. "

"Because the Compunction is less. The having made a young Girl miserable may give you frequent bitter Reflections; none of which can attend making an old Woman happy."

"8th & lastly. They are so grateful!!!"

[-] BeMoreCareful@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago

In contrast to our current leadership that sells vulnerable young children to fill this same desire.

[-] dismay3915@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago

Oh my god this is gold :))) He's totally talking about 55-60+ My man was a horny philosopher

[-] Viking_Hippie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 1 week ago

New headcannon: that's the ORIGIN of the saying, so anyone who uses it owes a piece of their vocabulary to Benny F's GILF fetish 😄

Not the origin, but he did further popularize it by using it a bit more literally than anyone before. The first use of it in literature was in Don Quixote.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] Arrandee@lemmy.world 5 points 1 week ago

Ben was a playa, no doubt about it.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] deegeese@sopuli.xyz 44 points 1 week ago

Imagine looking up to slavers from hundreds of years ago as your moral compass 🤮

[-] Dookieman12@piefed.social 40 points 1 week ago

Ben Franklin owned seven slaves early in his life, but later got rid of them, became an outspoken critic of slavery, and worked toward its abolition.

Also, slavery or not, the point still stands. They wouldn't recognize America today and would be horrified.

[-] deegeese@sopuli.xyz 23 points 1 week ago

Tradition is just peer pressure from dead people.

If nothing would shock your ancestors, you have stagnated.

load more comments (22 replies)
load more comments (2 replies)
[-] theuniqueone@lemmy.dbzer0.com 34 points 1 week ago

They would be horrified about the lack of slavery, women having rights, that we didn't completely wipe out the natives and stuff like that the founders were monsters.

[-] AscendantSquid@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago

Pretty sure that's what Madison Cawthorn's saying

[-] mechoman444@lemmy.world 19 points 1 week ago

Benjamin Franklin is, by far, one of the most interesting figures in American history. He's one of my favorite historical people to read about because every time he's mentioned, you end up learning something fascinating about him.

I recently had a discussion with someone on Lemmy who absolutely hated Benjamin Franklin solely because he owned slaves early in his life.

Nothing else mattered to him. It didn't matter that Franklin later became one of the earliest and most outspoken abolitionists in American history, serving as president of the Philadelphia Abolitionist Society for years and advocating publicly for the abolition of slavery.

I completely condemn the fact that Franklin owned slaves. Slavery is morally reprehensible and indefensible. At the same time, I don't believe that should prevent us from recognizing Franklin as one of the most fascinating and consequential figures in American history. His life demonstrates that people can hold deeply immoral beliefs, later reject them, and spend years working to undo the injustice they once accepted.

[-] Godric@lemmy.world 2 points 3 days ago

It's very possible moral in the context of your own time. To still be seen as a moral bastion, centuries after the public discourse has advanced beyond anything you've ever been really exposed to is astonishing, so much so that some people are remembered specifically for that.

I'm sure in a century or two, 99.99% of us here will hold at least one view that is seen as reprehensible to the future zeitgeist. Grandpa and Grandma having some dated views isn't something recent, after all XD

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] OwOarchist@pawb.social 18 points 1 week ago

He's definitely watching the GILF category.

[-] some_kind_of_guy@lemmy.world 16 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

He's having some trouble deciding

  • shy wife of shaker priest next door gets spitroasted by two high degree free masons
  • candle-making spinster has 9 trembling orgasms on her "custom wax figures"
[-] DmMacniel@feddit.org 18 points 1 week ago

Sure the would be mortified. Woman that can vote and have rights? The ban of slavery caught up to them in the end? An orange president?

[-] OwOarchist@pawb.social 8 points 1 week ago

The ban of slavery caught up to them in the end?

Though Ben Franklin owned a few slaves when he was young, he later gave them up and became an outspoken abolitionist. I don't think he'd be too mortified to find out slavery had been ended.

He might be mortified to find out that prisoners can still be enslaved, and that the US has a more people incarcerated than any other nation in history. Both by percentage of population and by absolute number. "Land of the free", am I right?

[-] Kolanaki@pawb.social 17 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

"C'mon, Franklin, we're going to Delaware."

"Why should I?"

"For the drinking and the whoring."

Ben immediately stands up "Alright, boys, we got no time to spare! We gotta get to Delaware!"

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io 12 points 1 week ago

I think they'd be horrified women and black people can vote if anything. Oh and the state imposes some taxes on the rich; I bet that'd horrify them too.

[-] sundray@lemmus.org 5 points 1 week ago

So modern day Republicans, basically. Fuckers still have their hands around our throats.

[-] Pacattack57@lemmy.world 10 points 1 week ago

Thomas Jefferson resigned as Secretary of State due to the amount of corruption in government. I guarantee they wouldn’t be surprised. I would hope they would feel shame for not writing the constitution better.

[-] applebusch@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 points 1 week ago

wait till he learns about trans women

[-] Duamerthrax@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

They would be deeply confused by our seeming hatred for France, then be deeply confused why America is fucking around in other countries.

Thomas Paine might be a little happy about a few things though. Hard to tell.

[-] Godric@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

I wouldn't say Americans hate the French, we just have a friendly rivalry based on who can be the most arrogant!

They had us during the early years, we had them during the bad years, we have a long and brotherly history with those frog eating surrender monkeys :)

[-] Duamerthrax@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

Are you old enough to remember "Freedom Fries"? I know people still stuck in that era.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] Danarchy@lemmy.nz 7 points 1 week ago

The real Ben Franklin if time travel was invented “JFC another one idk fuck off back to your OWN TIME, MAYBE?!”

[-] Snapz@lemmy.world 6 points 1 week ago

Prehistoric man would be straight up FLUMMOXED, by a lunchable.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] dharmacurious@slrpnk.net 6 points 1 week ago

Franklin strikes me as a ThisVid type of guy. There's fucking weird stuff on there, and he'd be so fucking into it

[-] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 6 points 1 week ago

I feel like virtually all of The Founding Fathers would have definitely moved to ban it except Ben Franklin, who would have vehemently opposed them.

This kinda supports but also detracts from the implications that follow from the OOP:

  • The Founding Fathers would probably have largely agreed that such things should be banned.

  • Why should we fawn over all of the opinions of people two centuries dead? Surely they got some things right and some things wrong, yes?

[-] kif@lemmy.nz 6 points 1 week ago

Xhamster isn't American.

[-] ContactClosure@lemmus.org 4 points 1 week ago

Fuck Madison Cawthorn. Let that piece of shit slide into obscurity.

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments
view more: next ›
this post was submitted on 06 Jul 2026
893 points (98.9% liked)

Lemmy Shitpost

40849 readers
4368 users here now

Welcome to Lemmy Shitpost. Here you can shitpost to your hearts content.

Anything and everything goes. Memes, Jokes, Vents and Banter. Though we still have to comply with lemmy.world instance rules. So behave!


Rules:

1. Be Respectful


Refrain from using harmful language pertaining to a protected characteristic: e.g. race, gender, sexuality, disability or religion.

Refrain from being argumentative when responding or commenting to posts/replies. Personal attacks are not welcome here.

...


2. No Illegal Content


Content that violates the law. Any post/comment found to be in breach of common law will be removed and given to the authorities if required.

That means:

-No promoting violence/threats against any individuals

-No CSA content or Revenge Porn

-No sharing private/personal information (Doxxing)

...


3. No Spam


Posting the same post, no matter the intent is against the rules.

-If you have posted content, please refrain from re-posting said content within this community.

-Do not spam posts with intent to harass, annoy, bully, advertise, scam or harm this community.

-No posting Scams/Advertisements/Phishing Links/IP Grabbers

-No Bots, Bots will be banned from the community.

...


4. No Porn/ExplicitContent


-Do not post explicit content. Lemmy.World is not the instance for NSFW content.

-Do not post Gore or Shock Content.

...


5. No Enciting Harassment,Brigading, Doxxing or Witch Hunts


-Do not Brigade other Communities

-No calls to action against other communities/users within Lemmy or outside of Lemmy.

-No Witch Hunts against users/communities.

-No content that harasses members within or outside of the community.

...


6. NSFW should be behind NSFW tags.


-Content that is NSFW should be behind NSFW tags.

-Content that might be distressing should be kept behind NSFW tags.

...

If you see content that is a breach of the rules, please flag and report the comment and a moderator will take action where they can.


Also check out:

Partnered Communities:

1.Memes

2.Lemmy Review

3.Mildly Infuriating

4.Lemmy Be Wholesome

5.No Stupid Questions

6.You Should Know

7.Comedy Heaven

8.Credible Defense

9.Ten Forward

10.LinuxMemes (Linux themed memes)


Reach out to

All communities included on the sidebar are to be made in compliance with the instance rules. Striker

founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS