Over at Protein Wisdom, Friend In The Ether Sdferr Pablo remarked recently:
The conservative movement is far smaller than I thought it was. I’ve lost all respect for some people I never imagined I’d be saying that about.
It seems that we make up a decent bit less than the ‘thirty-percent of Americans are conservative’ meme that is repeated all the time. If I’m correct, we have, perhaps, a harder road ahead then did The Founding Fathers.
However – I’m still looking into this, so please bear with me – I’m getting the impression, in reading the writings of some of The Founders and in legitimate biographies of them, that the long-touted ‘thirty-percent of American Colonists supported the struggle for Independence’ meme may be too high a figure.
From late 1770 through late 1772, Samuel Adams was reduced in the number of supporters in his fight to defend our rights as Englishmen: John Hancock had abandoned the Cause, John Adams had retired to Braintree, and a good number of others conceded key points to Royal Governor Hutchinson and the British Government [all in the name of Pragmatism and Moderation, by the way]. This period has been labeled by Historians as ‘The Quiet Period’ –and the Servile Silence that resonated throughout Massachusetts was deafening.
In his correspondence with fellow ‘die-hards’ [such as James Warren, James Hawley, and Dr. Joseph Warren], Samuel Adams counseled Patience in waiting for the right issues to come along that could be used to re-rouse enough people to reignite the ‘Flame Of Liberty’ [he was prophetic in his belief that the Royal Government would continue to misunderstand The American Mind and keep on committing misstep after misstep]. That is, of course, what happened in 1773 – and the rest is Glorious History.
So, as Mr. Adams wrote to James Warren on 09 December 1772: ‘Nil desperandum. That is a Motto for you and me. All are not dead; and where there is a Spark of patriotic fire, we will enkindle it.’
We just need to be properly ‘armed’ with the right rhetorical weapons when the Despots misfire. As Samuel Adams often advised: When the other side makes a move to further their ends, we must ‘put our Enemies in the wrong’.
And…we must:
OUTLAW.
