Belmont Club quoting Andrew Tytler.

“a democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship.”

Sobering words as the earmarks pile up, the politicians promise ever more benefits that enervate our capitalistic ideals, and the citizenry spends madly the credit it does not need.