If any one person's rights are violated, my rights are violated.

The only difference is where you might be in the queue.

Hardly a peep from the G.O.P. to defend or protect America and American values. They are totally submissive to their Draft-dodging Casino Hustler and Hate Monger.

Yeah, one would think that, not even the interns, but anybody might Google it, especially if they're going to cite it.

I do appreciate the thought -- and they are all doing a good job of covering what's going on.

it implies that one should stand up for others out of self-interest. One should stand up for others because it is the right thing to do, whether or not it benefits oneself.

...for the very reason that it states so powerfully that we are all in this together, and that what happens to one of us happens to all of us.

It gets misattributed a lot -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Reinhold Niebuhr are often given credit -- and also misquoted a lot -- but it's never actually been forgotten since that time. People who remember it at all get it.

We are all in this together because if we don't protect persecuted minorities we will eventually be persecuted ourselves. It makes an argument to act out of self-interest, not altruism.

...the Social Contract? How about the recognition of a common humanity in others? How about a deep belief in ethical behavior regardless of a god? How about the belief that some version of Heaven awaits those who act well? How about "many paths to the same God"? How about the Golden Rule at the heart of nearly all religions? How about the Hindu greeting that says "I recognize the god in you"? How is self-interest never not a factor in our behavior, even if is only to have a quiet conscience?

Martin Niemoeller was a Protestant clergyman who lived through the Holocaust, imprisoned because he spoke out against the Nazis. You would have to explore his writings yourself to find out if his motivations were sufficiently pure for your standards.

All I know is his behavior was to oppose pure evil, and to risk his life doing so. The quote I cited is powerful for its simplicity and clarity. Pastor Niemoeller could have narrowly quoted Jesus, as he was a Christian, but instead he made it a universal observation (which, actually, Jesus did as well in his parables).