Tom Paine, Hope the Election Changes Things!

Well, congratulations electorate.
Now let's see if some things get changed!

Here is an article about 1776 and what we had then:

*ZNet | U.S.*

*Would Tom Paine end up in an orange jumpsuit today?*

*by Mickey Z.; November 10, 2006*

The coast-to-coast mall known as America just loves to sing the

praises of its revolutionary heroes-the land-owning white

slaveholders affectionately called "Founding Fathers." But

America, the land of denial, would rather ignore the

revolutionary roots and spirit behind its birth. In other words,

if pamphleteer Tom Paine were around today, well, he might not

be around today. Can you say "enemy combatant"?

We are often told actions speak louder than words but the life

of Thomas Paine (1737-1809) tells a different story. Born in

England, Paine eventually found a home as resident radical in

the Colonies. His mutinous pamphlet, "Common Sense," was written

anonymously, published in January 1776, and promptly read by

every single member of Congress.

Time out: Every member of Congress read "Common Sense." (Insert

your own punch line here.)

Paine's "Common Sense" went on to sell roughly 500,000 copies

and helped inspire a fledgling nation to fight for its independence.

Hold on a minute; we need another time out: A seditious pamphlet

sold a half-million copies in 1776. To perform a similar feat

today, an author would have to sell more than 46 million books.

I doubt even Oprah could make that happen.

"Common Sense" stirred the spirits of colonial America by

putting into words what those seeking freedom from British rule

had been feeling for long, long time. Viewed through the prism

of the twenty-first century, Paine's prose reads, at times, like

something one might hear at a hokey school play, for example: "O

ye that love mankind! Ye that dare oppose, not only the tyranny,

but the tyrant, stand forth! Every spot of the old world is

overrun with oppression. Freedom hath been hunted round the

globe. Asia, and Africa, have long expelled her. Europe regards

her like a stranger, and England hath given her warning to

depart. O! receive the fugitive, and prepare in time an asylum

for mind."

But, dated vernacular aside, "Common Sense" does make clear what

Paine is trying to provoke, e.g. "I have never met with a man,

either in England or America, who hath not confessed his

opinion, that a separation between the countries, would take

place one time or other. And there is no instance in which we

have shown less judgment, than in endeavoring to describe, what

we call, the ripeness or fitness of the Continent for independence."

"Common Sense" popularized the concept that even a good

government is, at best, a necessary evil. Paine effectively

demonized King George III and argued against a small island

nation like England ruling a continent on the other side of the

ocean. Perhaps most importantly, "Common Sense" painted a

post-independence picture of peace and prosperity. More so than

the battles at Lexington and Concord-which preceded the release

of Paine's influential pamphlet-it was "Common Sense" that

served as the spark to light the revolutionary flame (which is

today more honored in the breach).

"These are the times that try men's souls," Paine once wrote.

"Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this

consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more

glorious the triumph."

Standing up against tyranny today rarely results in glory.

Mickey Z. can be found on the Web at http://www.mickeyz.net.