The was no history of the New World when the first Pilgrims arrived in 1620. Well, there was a history, of course, but it wasn’t theirs. So, whatever history there was, it just didn’t matter. A not-yet “America” would start with a totally clean slate. Then, for about the next 150 years, the colonies developed separate local histories. After this, slowly and then all at once, a rather unique world-changing event took place — the United States achieved Independence. NOW, at last, we had a Common Story to tell. NOW Americans were bound together.
Ours. The only history that really mattered.
What makes the American story fairly unique is that; 1) our “founding” has a clearly delineated beginning, and 2) it took place in just one generation.
This is so unlike China’s which would include dynasties covering thousands of years … or Russia’s which would cover several hundred years starting in the 9th century with it’s Slavic-Finn-Urgic roots to Mongol invasions, to Tatars, to Czars and kings and queens, to Communism, and back to an Orthodox Renaissance. The Scandinavian countries have a long and complex history. As does India, Greece, Japan, and even Israel. Tiny San Marino has the world’s oldest written constitution still in force, dating back to 1600. See list of sovereign states by date founded here.
In comparison, America is one of the newer kids on the block. (But, at least we’re not Canada which eased into nationhood virtually unnoticed … so much so, that half of Canadians didn’t know they achieved independence until 10 years after the fact.)
Another generally unique aspect of the American Revolution is its simplicity; oppressed by the British, American colonists fought a war, won, achieved independence, formed our own government, wrote the amazing Constitution, and lived happily ever after. This particular history is preached even our own times as hardly a day goes by when some politician, media pundit, or even an ordinary American citizen appeals all knowingly (supposedly) to our “Founding Fathers“and/or the “framers of the Constitution“. An American identity was established … so simple, clean, and elegant.
Through it all a wise person will realize, however, that our national identity is defined by how we choose to tell our story. What did we include, and why? Is the story accurate, and verifiable with documentation? Is the story fictionalized and, if so, for what purpose? Who is telling the story? What is their motivation … truth, or some other agenda? And, perhaps most importantly of all, what does the story of America leave out, and why?
So, then, how was the story memorialized?
“Quinn Family Portrait” — Shamrock TAVERN, Wildwood, NJ circa 1771
WORD OF MOUTH. The first method was by word-of-mouth. Stories were told with great vigor in taverns and meeting houses where some railed angrily against Parliament while others supported the Crown, and after the arguing (and sometimes outright brawls) were over, everyone got drunk on pint after pint of hard cider … which was followed by even more war stories. This is how the call for Revolution first spread. Of course, with each retelling of a particular story it was met with additional augmentation, embellishments, and enrichments — adding this, subtracting that — to the point where the storied events only loosely resembled what actually happened. Oral folklore is notoriously malleable and can significantly serve as fertilizer for the invention of history.
“Death of Gen. Warren at Bunker Hill” by John Trumbull, 1786
VUSUAL ARTS. Visual arts came next. Engravings and lithographs appeared both during and after the Revolution. Most the artistry was of the Romantic form. Not that there’s anything wrong with that … except it does allow for further leeways in it’s renderings and interpretations. These popular paintings were later included in various printed form including school textbooks … which then formed a collective “memory”, ipso facto, of the Revolution. Facts were at times treated as an inconvenient truth: Trumbull’s 1818 titled painting “The Declaration of Independence, 4 July 1776” ignored the fact that there was no ceremonial signing on July 4th and, Leutze’s masterpiece (1851) titled “Washington Crossing the Delaware” ignored the fact that the flag he drew was not in existence at that time. Nevertheless, the oral and visual forms filled in the missing pieces left by sparse and incomplete documented evidence.
THE WRITTEN WORD. So, what about documentation? There is no denying that some exceptional men left volume after volume of declarations, diaries, letters, and memoirs.The better known works were;
— In 1788, William Gordon wrote a four volume tome “The History of the Rise, Progress, and Establishment of the Independence of the United States of America”
— in 1789, David Ramsay wrote a two volume “History of the American Revolution”
— In 1805, Mercy Otis Warren wrote “History of the Rise, Progress, and Termination of the American Revolution”
— In 1807, John Marshall wrote “The Life of George Washington”
— All four authors relied heavily on the accuracy of the “Annual Register”, the official publication of the British Parliament which chronicled events in the rebellious colonies as part of its annual news-of-the-world report.
The issue here is more subtle. First, these writings were left behind by a very small segment of the population — which brings into question whether their observations were representative of the whole. Second, a large portion of what was written occurred decades after the fact. Third, other than a few intellectuals and academia, hardly any other Americans read these books. The works were too long, too detailed, and too boring. Americans would prefer the dumbed-down version of history that would follow later. A skewed sampling size plus the generally negative effect of time upon memory should at least serve as a cautionary sign in terms of accepting even written accounts at face value. (Hey … history is hard, and virtually impossible to get 100% correct, no matter who writes it and when!)
Charles Thomson. Thompson is one of our most important Founding Fathers yet, one of the least know. He was a truly brilliant thinker. Reading up on him is well worth the time for any student of American history. Here is a good start.
As Secretary of the Continental Congress he had access to enormous information. Most historians believe that Thomson knew better than any other man the secret history of Congress and the motives which influenced its members. John Jay (first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court) wrote a letter to Thomson in 1783 saying: — “I consider that no Person in the World is so perfectly acquainted with the Rise, Conduct, and Conclusion of the American Revolution, as yourself.” George Washington said that Thomson never missed a session. Thompson took voluminous notes regarding Congressional proceedings, as well as the progression of the Revolution. After he retired from public life he decided to embark on writing an accurate history of the Revolution. But, then he stopped, and later destroyed his manuscript! He later wrote to John Adams;
“I shall not undeceive future generations. I could not tell the truth without giving great offense. Let the world admire our patriots and heroes.” —- Charles Thomson
Those 24 words are quite a powerful punch in the gut. We learn that Thomson believes his generation is deceived, that telling truth would offend Americans, and people should just go on admiring patriots and heroes as erroneously displayed. One ought to stop right now and wonder what truths about the Revolution could have been so awful that it caused even a highly principled man such as Thompson to flee from it!
One might also wonder what the people of that time were supposed to believe. Noah Webster, Mason Locke Weems, and American Textbooks had the answer.
“Every child in America, as soon as he opens his lips, … should rehearse the history of his country, he should lisp the praise of Liberty and of those illustrious heroes and statesmen who have wrought a revolution in his favor.” —– Noah Webster, 1790
Painting by Grant Wood, “Fables“, depicting Weems and his cherry tree story
Mason Weems was an itinerant preacher and traveling book salesman. In other words, he knew how to work a crowd and rile them up. He knew what the reading public wanted, and he knew how to deliver the goods. In 1797 he wrote a letter to Matthew Carey, a Philadelphia publisher and his employer;
“Experience has taught me small quarter of dollar books on subjects calculated to strike the Public Curiosity printed in very large numbers …. would prove an immense revenue … if you get get the life of … men whose courage and abilities, who Patriotism & Exploits, carefully chosen, … the love and admiration of the American people … printed with very interesting frontispieces … without doubt sell an immense number of them.”
And, so, he wrote short biographies of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and others. He gave the public what they wanted; short and easy to read stories, lively illustrated, to-good-to-be-true heroes, virtuous moralizing (he was a preacher), all while delivering God and country at an affordable price. And if he had to lie, well, that was a small price to pay for success. He was he who added the false “cherry tree” story in his 5th edition. It was he who claimed — in order to establish credibility — on the title page of “The Life of George Washington” as “Formerly Rector of Mount-Vernon Parish” … even though there never was such a parish, and he only rarely preached at Pohick Church, which Washington might have attended on occasion years before. Weems set the standard that all others would follow; choose a prominent Revolutionary, build up his virtues, discard anything negative, and above all …. be entertaining. William Gordon would say that reading a Weems book made him feel like he was “in company with a painted harlot“. And few were bothered by this, not even authors of history textbooks, whose main goal was character building and nation building, not necessarily truth telling. One editor in the mid 1800s put it this way;
“What political utility can there be in discovering that Washington was not so wise, or Warren so brave, or Bunker Hill not so heroically contested as has been believed? Away with such skepticism, we say, and with the criticism. Such beliefs have at all events have become real for us by entering into the very soul of our history and forming the style of our national thought. To take them away would now be a baneful disorganizing of the national mind.”
And, the Revolution told partially as a fairy tale begins so early in our history. It is better to conceal the naked truth about an awful bloody civil war and replace it with glamorous tales … often conjured up from mere shreds of evidence, or no evidence at all. Therefore, “give me liberty or give me death” or “the shot heard round the world” is believed to be a true representation of actual occurrences. The frequency of repetition only serves to confirm authenticity.
Such confidence is misplaced. Some of these stories were created even 100 years after the events they supposedly depict. Paul Revere’s ride was virtually unknown until 1861, when Henry Longfellow wrote his poem, and basically distorted every detail. Patrick Henry’s “liberty or death” speech first appeared in print in 1817, forty two years after he supposedly uttered those words. The “shot heard ’round the world‘ wasn’t known as such until 1836, sixty one years after it was fired. And so it goes ….
Why do we believe this version of history?
I’m sure there must be many reasons, most of which do not even register on my radar. So, I’ll just focus on the one that makes the most sense to me. A good story trumps truth every time. This was as true “back then” as it is in today’s Fake News environment. The old Revolutionary stories are almost too good not to be true. It has all the elements of great story-telling: clear simple plot-lines, good vs. evil, heroes and villains, and a conflict that results in a happy ending. Outnumbered and bedraggled colonists defeat Goliath, the mightiest empire on Earth. What’s not to like? Even if the details don’t tell a true history, these imaginations work as a story that reflects what we want to believe about ourselves; a most flattering portrait of what we think it means to be an American. We wax poetic in our nostalgia for an America that was perfect, at least in our beginnings.
Q: Why does it matter if these stories are embellished or, even ever-so-slightly falsified?
Short Answer: False beliefs, no matter how minor, keep you in chains.
1)- It takes away the power of “We the people …” …. and puts it in the hands of a very few Superman-like beings known as “The Founders”, or “The Signers”, or “The Framers”. We like to believe it was the 56 delegates to the Continental Congress who decided to sign the Declaration of Independence. Fact is, the Declaration was approved by thirteen states whose delegates were responding to the wishes of their constituents. The Founders reflected the passions of the people —
2)- We are reduced to following a handful of “leaders” who supposedly know more than we do. As we wait for “them” to act, it discourages ordinary citizens from taking action on their own behalf. It distorts history by making it appear that America was basically founded by a small group of men and their individual heroic acts … when, in fact, it was the result of hundreds of thousands of dedicated, yet disparate, patriots. To exclude them is to distort the entire monumental project they conceived and delivered.
“Discover how a few brave patriots battled a great empire!” —– Introduction in “Eyewitness: The American Revolution”, grade school textbook, 2002
We are teaching our children that Famous Founders MADE the American Revolution. They dreamed ideas, and spoke, and wrote, and preached until they convinced a few others to follow their lead. In other words, history happens as the majority just watches. American history unfolds in a top-down approach and your efforts, the peon, are hardly required. Such utter bullshit! This wouldn’t be so bad except for the fact that our view of history shapes our perception of the political process not only of the past, but also in the present. It’s probably not surprising that Government Schools prefer to teach children to behave like sheep; docile, tranquil, and obedient. always waiting for their shepherd leader to do something.
3)- It turns early Americans in a bland homogeneous goop. But, Northerners and Southerners, free and slaves, whites and blacks, soldiers and civilians, religious and free thinkers … all these and more experienced the war in many different ways. In fact, until the final victory, there was some serious doubt these various groups could ever come together in independence. Revolutions are the work of groups, never individuals. It would be nice to rediscover ALL the forces, not just the magical few, that shaped this nation.
4)- The fanciful Revolution stories as presented today glorify war as a noble experience. “Give me liberty or give me death!” makes everyone feel good about going to war. Looking into “the white of the eyes” is brave and thrilling. Suffering at Valley Forge makes for a touching story and beautiful paintings … but never truly reflects its horrors. We fought. We won. We became more powerful. Such reflection of militaristic values is still with us today.
5)- It changes what should be the true lesson of the Revolution; that of popular sovereignty — that all people, of any nation, are entitled to rule themselves, and that government must be based on the will of the people. But, the lesson of the Revolution seems to be, especially 200+ years later, that Our Nation is better than the rest.
6)- Lastly, it is appalling what the stories leave out. We’ve replaced meat-and-potatoes knowledge with sickly-sweet brain-rotting candy. We left out at least One Big Thin: Revolutionaries were horrified by concentration of power. As one example, the colonists very deeply resented the favors that government granted to business. It was the government’s official sanctioning of the East India Company’s monopoly on tea that resulted in the Boston Tea Party which, in turn, was the spark that ignited the Revolution. Where is that story? Instead, we get made-up minutiae about colonials dressing up as Indians! Another example, they viewed the presence of a standing army during peacetime as the every hallmark of oppression. Also, Patriots always insisted that the national government would never have control over the internal affairs of a state.
Back then …. military, economic, and economic concentrations of power were anathema to the people as these things all presented obstacles to the idea of sovereignty. But, today ….. all these things once considered highly objectionable; military dominance even in peacetime, corporate power in the halls of Congress, and a strong authoritarian government; these are all pretty much accepted. In fact, to speak out against such things is deemed “un-American” in most circles!
Think about it. It should be no wonder that the official Fairy Tale narrative about our nation’s founding is taught in schools and repeated endlessly into adulthood. Such a narrative threatens NONE of the institutions of power!! It inspires no people … at least not to radical ideas. It bores most to tears. It teaches all to revere their “leaders” for they know best.
The truly remarkable, unique, amazing, world changing American Revolution is white-washed, watered-down, and whittled-away until it is nothing but a nice bedtime story. Yet, this Fairy Tale rendition serves the modern American military/economic/political elites a purpose ; it more or less insures that a Second American Revolution, however much needed, will never again occur on American soil.
An exasperated Tory leader in England said of the Americans;
“Government has now devolved upon the people, and they seem to be for using it.”
Pray to God for yet one more moment in American history such as that!!!
The End.
[Note: Depending on time available to me, and the interest shown in such things, Part 2 will focus on 7 to 10 actual Revolutionary War events not properly reported in history books. An October time-frame is probably the earliest completion date.]
I’m a Rebel and I love the story of our Founding Fathers but they left a loophole in the Constitution that our own Tyrants ripped open clear across the continent slaughtering Indians and Southerners, and NeoCons now the World.
General welfare.
That part of history written by the victorious Northern bankers, industrialists, and politicians has been accepted for the last 153 years. However, if another revolution occurs, and after the cities are burned and the people there in that part of the country die in great piles, it will be rewritten again. Any next revolution will be between the people in the big cities and the people who live in between. Whoever loses access to the resources will be the ones who lose.
I don’t think closing newspapers and invading the south can be considered a loophole.
The Apostle John describes a beast that once was, now is not (circa 100 AD), and yet will come again. This perfectly fits the rebirth of democracy that the Founders instituted, which had been unseen in the world since ancient Greece self-destructed with the idea. It’s a deception. One that we are told would deceive even the “elect” (Christian believers), which it did.
Democracy completely fits the description of an anti-Christ deceiver who is first loved and embraced as something good, and then “turns” on its subjects. That bad vibe we are all feeling about what is happening in the Western World is the revelation that we were deceived by the idea of democracy. And it will surely only be ‘over the cliff’ going forward.
Article V provides an avenue for a “second coming” of sorts. I am coming around to the belief we must have a convention of the states to sort out the BS which rogue courts and bureaucrats have done to us. It is the unused safety valve. If we fail to do it, future historians will shake their heads in wonder that we had such a prominently placed constitutional option which we never tried.
The problem with that idea is it could be hijacked like when we ended up with the Constitution instead of fixing the U.S. Confederacy. And the government gets to pick who attends, not the people. There are too many people out there that want drastic changes in the Constitution, like taking away the 2A.
Who downvoted that? Great comment, Vic
Thank you, Starfcker. That’s definitely a comment coming from you.
Those people who lived in the time of the Revolution were in dire straights. That Revolution only happened because enough of the population, probably 10%, could not go on living with no hope of living better lives. There was nothing sweet or pretty about it. They knew if they lost they would all be hanged and all of the citizens would be treated like the Irish were by Oliver Cromwell and the rest of the people in the British Government afterwards. They did what they had to do to run the British out. Afterwards what was there to say? They won after losing most of the battles, and they ran off a large part of the white population who overtly sided with the British. The Indians, who sided with the English Army, couldn’t leave, so they were exterminated. The winners write the history. End of story.
We are living in similar times. Never say another Revolution can’t happen again. However, when it does the people who lose it will leave. But many will die, and probably in the tens of millions.
If it weren’t for the French , we’d be British.
The French did save us! It’s funny that England and France were historical enemies considering that the post 1066 English people came out the French. French was the language spoken in the King’s Court for around 300 years.The modern English language came out of Norman French, and only very recently. The English language spoken in the time of a young Henry VIII in the early 1500’s sounds nothing like the English in the time of Shakespeare a hundred years later. Listen to this poem from that era:
Don’t forget William the Conqueror was a Norman and a descendant of the Vikings. The English language is actually an mixture of Old English and Norman French. The elite after the 1066 conquest spoke Norman French but the common people spoke Old English.
DS,
True enough…and if it wasn’t for U.S. – the French would be goose stepping Germans…twice over…”Lafayette we are here!” (Then Nixon mumbled…”Oh shit…de Gaulle wants his gold back!”
Can only paraphrase but an article posted at the current Woodpile Report stated…….western civilization is the only one with a legacy of cultural institutions such as universities and laboratories. The pinnacle of others’ consisted of stone altars to cut out people’s heart and sacrificing virgins by throwing them into volcanos. That is, of course, if you weren’t eaten.
My contention is that Trump was brought to the fore by anti establishment groups. Once he threw his hat in the ring these forces coalesced and knowing in their gut this was the last chance to buy time they will never stop being loyal. This is the end game/end times.
GP,I agree to a bit,with the trial and guilty verdict of Mannafort looks a bit grim though still had nothing to do with the Russkies!
I will say I liked this article and if next article to properly report events lets start with most fighting on Breeds Hill,not Bunker.I am a stickler on this as family in past had a farm there at time/owned a good chunk of it and left as was too fucked up after battle,easier to start a new farm a little ways off.While I grew up with relative wealth or as some say”white privilege”would have been a whole nother level up of wealth if the family kept the land long term.
Read what Ben Franklin wrote about the real reasons for the revolutionary war.You can Google them but in his opinion it had alot to do with the country not being able to issue it’s own money. Then having to paid taxes to England.
The more I learn about the wars the more I see countries fighting over who will control the money and the type of financial system that will be .All this other stuff is important but it seems to always be about who will control the money when you dig and get to the real reason.
“I will say I liked this article and if next article to properly report events lets start with most fighting on Breeds Hill,not Bunker.”
Nice comment. Yes, Bunker/Breeds Hill would absolutely be one of the misrepresented stories.
Other ideas on the radar:
1) Why the war was fought from a BRITISH point of view. (Is the British point of view more correct? Not at all! But, if you only look at history from ONE perspective, aren’t we just reading propaganda?
2) British cruelty vs American virtuosity.
3) Paul Revere’s famous ride.
4) Boston Tea Party
5) July 4th (going much deeper than just the known fact that nothing was signed on that day)
6) Jefferson’s actual role in drafting the Constitution.
7) The myth of Molly Pitcher, and why she was created out of thin air.
Cool beans. I look forward to it.
.
Edit: I meant to hit the thumbs up but hit reply instead and it wouldn’t let me get out of it.
Stuck, rewriting history is one of the key pieces of destroying a civilization. Every civilization has its founding mythology, no question. Accurate, embellished, alright made up, whatever. But it’s still the building blocks for the traditions and customs that become the fabric of that society. There’s never been a better place to live in the history of the world and the United States that you and I grew up in. We were very fortunate. A bad day for us was never very bad. What purpose does tearing at that fabric serve?
Because the truth matters. The generation after the glorified founding fathers were so sick of hearing about them and their virtues, they started acting like 1960s hippies (not exactly, but you know what I mean.)
We can only stand on rocks. Fabric doesn’t hold up well.
“What purpose does tearing at that fabric serve?”
Ummm, what purpose does truth serve?” (Thank you, Vixen Vic)
Presenting a mythical history has it’s consequences. It minimizes what the colonists accomplished. It turns us into passive observers. The history of the Revolution is GREAT … myth makes the history too small.
I explained all this. It is clear to me that you did NOT read the 6 reasons I gave at the end of the article.
Just to be clear to you, and anyone else …. MY GOAL WITH PARTS 1&2 IS NOT TO TEAR DOWN AMERICA!!!
“No one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.” I’m just supplying a new wineskin.
Myself and many others are just waiting for someone to actually TELL the truth. That would be a refreshing change.
Stucky- I may have missed your reply, but do you write articles for the propagada sites, Saker/Russia Today? You never answered. Just wondering.
99% of the time I answer questions directed at me … as long as I see them.
I saw your question the first time. I didn’t answer because I found it to be insulting. Folks who insult me usually get reamed a new asshole. But, you are a friend so, I let it slide.
It’s insulting because you are associating my writing with propaganda. Huh!
IMHO, neither The Saker nor RT is propaganda.
I’m still not going to answer the question.
Fine, I think you just satisfied our curiosity.
As an example of the truth being needed, just look at what the mythmakers have created since the War Between the States. The majority of people think Lincoln was a hero and a saint. People believe Lincoln freed the slaves. They think slavery is the one and only reason for the war. And look at what that is doing to society today.
There you go again, Stuck, slaying all of our sacred cows. That was great; epically enjoyable and informative all at once.
Personally, I would love to read your Part 2 regarding the 7 -10 misrepresented Revolutionary War events.
I’ve often wondered if history isn’t merely the result of various individuals taking allegorical “Polaroid photos”, as it were, followed by analysis, discussions, and debates over microcosmic facsimiles. Another way to look at it would be like a bunch of kids playing tag with flashlights on a moonless night. They could only record what they saw with their own lights, which would represent a mere fraction of all that actually happened; and even those stories would be colored by perspective and inaccurate reiterations.
Have you ever noticed how, over time, even recollections of the events of our own lives tend to shape-shift? We tend to exaggerate the good times and downplay the negatives; and in some cases, vice versa. In accordance with your magnificent perspectives above, perhaps this is why we tend to recall George Washington, Ben Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, and even Adam and Eve as cartoon characters of sorts.
I’ve also always found it interesting how the reputations of the actual people who lived in the American Old West grew into legends. It’s as if the imaginations of folks back then augmented and embellished the stories with each retelling. If tall tales were cake, then bullshit was the yeast that gave it rise, and our own needs for palliative comfort and/or entertainment are the sweet sugary bites that we relish and can’t wait to share.
It really is true that lies travel the world twice while the truth ties its shoes.
Looking forward to Part Deux
“There you go again, Stuck, slaying all of our sacred cows. That was great; especially enjoyable and informative all at once.”
THANK YOU kindly, saith Herr StuchenSlayer!!
=================================== =
“I’ve often wondered if history isn’t merely the result of various individuals taking allegorical “Polaroid photos”, as it were, followed by analysis, discussions, and debates over microcosmic facsimiles.
Indeed, that and more! As I said in the article … writing history is HARD.
I think one of the huge challenges to even the most brilliant unbiased historian is that they know how the story ends. Knowing the conclusion of a matter must, I would think, color how events leading to that conclusion are portrayed. Knowing the outcome makes it too tempting to lionize or demonize …. hence, the victors write biased histories. Had the British won, we’d be reading about a traitorous terrorist named George Washington. But, we won, so pretty much every story about him is heroic. Two extremes … both wrong, in part.
My takeaway is this … if you want accurate history, you have to; 1) wipe your brain clean of what you think you know, and, 2) read many historians’ works.
Few are up to this task. Not only is writing history hard … studying it, if done vigorously, should be hard as well.
For example, sorry t bring this up but it is a good example — take the Holocaust history. How many people can “wipe their brain” of bias or preconceived opinion? One emotional side says; “You fucken denier, it’s a FACT that 6 million died!!”. Another emotional side says; “You fucken Joo lover!!”. Will either side read “many historian’s works”? Pretty doubtful. So, history suffers. And so do we.
when you had the incident where you put your hands on the cop, Hardscrabble noted you are hardwired to detest authority of any sort. That’s begun to bleed into detesting leadership. Nothing ever happens without leadership. Nothing. It takes stones to stand up and say I’ll be responsible for this. I admire people like that. I don’t claw at them. look at the article posted today by Walter Williams. Bad man, good President. No, you dumb fucking negro. Doing great things is what makes men great. There is no separation of men and their actions. Little affirmative action pieces of shit like Williams are too dumb to realize that.
“when you had the incident where you put your hands on the cop, Hardscrabble noted you are hardwired to detest authority of any sort. That’s begun to bleed into detesting leadership.”
Thank you for commenting. But, maybe your strong suit is talking about Tesla?
Because I really really don’t know what the fuck you are talking about.
The Founding Fathers …. THEY … and the colonists they led were the greatest generation. There is nothing to detest. I respect them all.
Nice answer. and I certainly think you should do part 2. Anything that generates discussion without veering into stupid is always good. And you are one of the best at that. And thanks for taking note of my almost supernatural powers at analyzing Tesla
“And thanks for taking note of my almost supernatural powers at analyzing Tesla”
lol lol lol
I might buy you this shirt for Christmas
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That’s why I like to read the primary documents from people who kept journals and diaries during the time periods. Though it’s only a snapshot in time, it gives good information.
” I would love to read your Part 2 regarding the 7 -10 misrepresented Revolutionary War events.”
It will take 3-4 hours to research, write, and edit each story … times 10 stories … equals 30 – 40 hours.
There is a paucity of commentary here on Part I. Sure, I take some heat for being a thumbs whore, … but, I’m not sure I want to spend 40 hours writing about something that so few find interesting. As goose writes below, there are books out there that people can read.
I think my next article will be about human shit. Really. I picked up a free book from the Library about that very topic (simply amazing the topics authors can write about!!) ) and it’s pretty interesting (really). I can crank out a summary in 2-3 hours and get 100+ comments. That’s the kind of a good return on investment that I’m talking about!
I get that, Stuck. However, I tend to consider the readers of TBP as the “remnant”. Flash once posted a link to an article on one of my now-long-forgotten posts which included an assessment that I appreciated. It reminded me of why I keep posting even after those sub 30-comment-count essays and articles:
So whether you choose to regale us by means of historical exaggerations, human shit, Noah’s Ark, ancient castles, machines of war, clubbed raccoons, or copfuks – I’m in; because all in all, I am glad to be counted among your company as the world burns.
I will give Stucky as many thumbs ups as I can on the computers available to Maggie, Agnes or any other moniker I can create.
Thumbs are harder to manipulate since TMWNN upgraded the place.
However, I am being released from hospital today, so should have plenty of time to bump the comment count with my blogbuddies.
EDIT. 5732387945
The movie manager would NOT take that chair apart. Call until it dies.
Maggie, I didn’t realize you had been in the hospital. Hope all is well with you.
Text it too. It will receive texts and blurp chirp long after it runs out of ringing juice. LOL
Uncola, I was so damned deeply despondent. Really. But, the wisdom in your post has lifted me up!
Thank You. I’ll do Part 2.
Also, to Maggie below. Thanks for your support.
Stucky, if MY Nick gets me settled at home in from of the PC today, I’ll get this marvelous little article to a hundred all by myself, if EC won’t try and help.
Where is Coyote? Are his panties wadded again?
Did you see his bikini dance?
Stucky
Please do Part Two. As for the comments count, well, I did have a long one written but deleted it. Seems I was having a hard time tying it all together. Didn’t work..
Will give it another try tonight.
It was two videos and for some reason I thought it wise to try and mesh them together.
A big ask especially at work.
I couldn’t quite get ‘er done.
Anyways gotta say I appreciate your essay. It is making me think.
Good or bad is of course open to some debate.
Couldn’t help but struck by similarities to past creation myths.
Would write moar but can’t.
Too many minnows swimming in my head..
Still…
Why do most prefer the walls of their caves be painted in black and white?
Why is it important that the truth gets buried with the Martyrs?
And only later do the Prophets show up and turn everyone into Saints…
Anyhoo…
As always
Yours in Odin,
RiNS
“As for the comments count, well, I did have a long one written but deleted it.”
GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!
Interesting comment about the similarity to creation myths. Interesting article — “How Creation Myths Define Culture”.
https://owlcation.com/social-sciences/Creation-Myths-The-How-When-and-Why-that-Define-Culture
If you write Part 2. This fool will promise to put that thought all together in a post. But today as said above there are just too many minnows swimming about…
Another thing to think about: how many people actually read versus comment? Maybe 1%?
I know I have read articles here that I really enjoyed but I never commented.
Every so often we see commenters not seen before and you wonder how long they were lurking. I read here for years before I discovered the teeming underworld down here in the comments sections.
For example, Mobius (above). I don’t recall seeing his moniker or avatar before. And yet he’s probably one of just a handful of people throughout the entire world, besides me, who uses the term “cool beans”.
That’s got to be some kind of sign.
Stucky, there are also people out there reading that are lurkers, so you’re probably getting more readers than you know.
Whiteheads Battle field America picks up where this leaves off.
The United States of America, like every nation, is founded on myth. It is maintained on myth. The myth endures even as the nation changes into something antithetical to the founding myths, so new myths (basically that all the old myths and mythmakers were evil and illegitimate) are tested out to see if they will stick and endure, much as the old ones were tested out.
The old USA is gone. The myths will not long last. What comes next? Our great grandchildren will decide.
Where was the part about the Hidden Hand/ Freemason influence and lever pulling? Your account of the Boston Tea Party was lacking in the same way. Our history books should be moved to the fiction section of the library, you were at least heading in the right direction. Thanks for the article.
Bingo!
+1000?
“Your account of the Boston Tea Party was lacking in the same way.”
What “account”?? I did not give an account. I merely mentioned it.
Part I is about HOW we arrived at America’s history as it is told today, the great difficulty of writing history, etc.. A more complete “account” will be given in Part 2, if I do it.
ok hairsplitter, you mentioned it. You write a article stating that the historical accounts were BS, then you give a BS reason for the BTP. Many of us here are educated as to the whys and what fors of how the BTP production went down.
The people here who understand the true ways of the world and how history is conjured can spot ADDITIONAL BS a mile away. IF part 2 is BS, we will point it out. I was being kind in my comment. Perhaps you should not use establishment embellished material to point out establishment embellished material.
“You write a article stating that the historical accounts were BS, ”
Nope. I said “myth”. Myth is not the same as bullshit.
I only used “bullshit” once. That was regarding how schools teach Revolutionary history … making is all seem like it all came about because of a handful of men …. even provided a quote from a 2002 textbook.
========================================= =
” ….. then you give a BS reason for the BTP. ”
Did I? Is it “BS” because it doesn’t follow the traditional script you’ve been taught? If so, you’re really going to hate every single story in Part II. Try keeping your mind open to new thoughts.
DidI?______Stucky
Yes, you did.
Ladies and Gentlemen………Stucky tap dancing around the questions:
Whatever.
PLEASE, do NOT read Part 2. Just trying to save you some time.
You already know your history, inside out. You know what you know and what you know is all that needs to be known, now and forever more. So, why bother reading anything different?
Fantasy, MYTH…..whatever ,is just fantasy. Let’s just stick with the first lies about the founding of our country and save everybody some time. Stop with the butthurt already.
If I did it.
EC- You are not the only one in the barrel, same /same happened to me almost a week ago. Bad vibes in sociopathic kind of way. UNHINGED?
Do you wonder if the management is noticing?
If I were to do it, actually. That is passive.
Were I to do it is the most engaging, in my expert opining thought.
Check out the brain on Maggie!
The retelling as a fairy tale does so much more than meets the eyes…
I would argue, it provides a “common” understanding and promotion of certain individual values at the social level. The retelling of the stories in a specific way like good guys vs. bad guys is a direct factor in the development of American nationalism, the publically sold idea of Manifest Destiny, and American Exceptionalism…the remaining older generations of Americans, who spent most of their lives without internet search engines and open source country still largely cling to these notions, that the Constitution still rules this land and not maritime law…UCC…
what about the War of 1812 or the difference between
The United States
Or
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA?
I blame public education for the levels of deceptions promoted to generations of us. We are too trusting and our niavity and gullibility has and will continue to be used against us.
The public school system, textbook companies, and state/federal education statutes and codes are the means to promote historical events from one way or another.
Like the Boston Massacre,
How many people died?
But it was taught that it was a massacre because the good guys were gunned down by the terrible redcoats…
Yet, in these same textbooks, true massacres of native Americans by union or government soldiers are always referred to as battles.
Massacres elicit more of an emotional response like all effective propaganda does.
Let the real shit throwing commence by all those “patriots” out there who think I’m unamerican for pointing out the hypocrisy in the history we’ve been taught.
Plato..
Now that you mention it, I haven’t heard from those hopeless Romantics like 472 & sss who could find the beauty in our mass murders.
Flea,
I was working in a 5th or 5rh grade class a few months back and they were supposed to be developing some content on the American revolution.
The assignment was framed so that they had to pick either a “soldier” or a “civilian”…once they picked their label they had to write from that perspective.
All kinds of red flags went off in my head as I read this horseshit propaganda assignment …im sure the seeds being planted by this corporate curriculum will undoubtly sprout and be watered later in high school with whatever bullshit talking points the teachers will be micromanaged to discuss…
Citizen wasn’t even a legally define term until after the 14th amendment was ratified and later interpreted…
Citizens I guess are those people who don’t need to know what’s going on from their government, right? You know, the ones without security clearances hahaha,
The label (citizen) shows ownership by the Corporation Of The United States, Plato. Be very careful, if they ask and you SAY (citizen) then your fate will fall under corporate law.
Plato, common law trumps corporate. You have been trained to BE a citizen.
BL
You are correct since I went to public school in California my whole life.
This is why I still do what I do…trying to vanquish ignorance to this deception one individual at a time.
To me, understanding what you and I seem to know puts everything else through the right set of filters and let’s me side step alot of the propaganda being targeted to our brothers and sisters.
Ah yes, the 5rh grade, I remember those days well.
So you said “civilian”, but then went on to expound on “citizen”.
Are your lesson plans this sloppy?
RDawg
ci·vil·ian
səˈvilyən/Submit
noun
plural noun: civilians
a person not in the armed services or the police force.
synonyms: noncombatant,
ordinary citizen, private citizen;
Next time I will spell out the C O N N E C T I O N
For you….no worries…
Lesson plans? C’mon man, typing from a phone has its challenges…
Especially with Big Fingers!
Okay, Platonic… and seriously, let’s keep it platonic for now until I decide if I like you or if I should thump you.
What the hell? 5th or 5rh grade class?
Platonic means there’s already some love there, it’s just that it’s not physical (see Yohimbo).
I wish I’d saved the Coyote Ugly Gif I found of that weirdo in the bikini. That was saveable but I was in hospital at the time so didn’t save the link. LOL
” Lastly, it is appalling what the stories leave out. We’ve replaced meat-and-potatoes knowledge with sickly-sweet brain-rotting candy. ”
I don’t know how much time I spent sleeping in “Social Studies” which is where they lumped American History in all the grades up through 9 when I was in school. Bueller? Bueller? Anyone? Yawn.
Question: What would you you include in American History for the lower grades if you were the one deciding on the curriculum?
Tell the truth? Water it down a bit and add more detail as they got older? We don’t even know what the truth is, now do we?
There is an array of books written upon which a reasonable idea of the times, the passions, and the values of those who were all subjects of King George can inform a person interested in understanding how the prior decades provoked an eight year war.
“Paul Revere’s Ride” -David Hackett Fischer
“American Spring” -Walter R. Borneman
“The Lexington-Concord Battle Road” -Minuteman National Park
“The Battle Road” -Charles H. Bradford
There are affidavits taken shortly after 19 April 1775, Paul Revere himself gave his account of the action that day, John Adams rode several days after the battle along “Battle Road” and left us with these words, “”Posterity, you will never know how much it cost the present generation to preserve your freedom. I hope you will make good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in heaven that ever I took half the pains to preserve it.”
Thomas Jefferson, in his Prophesy written during the War for Independence, foretold the future- “THE SPIRIT of the times may alter, will alter. Our rulers will become corrupt, our people careless. A single zealot may become persecutor, and better men be his victims. It can never be too often repeated that the time for fixing essential right, on a legal basis, is while our rulers are honest, ourselves united. From the conclusion of this war we shall be going down hill. It will not then be necessary to resort every moment to the people for support. They will be forgotten, therefore, and their rights disregarded. They will forget themselves in the sole faculty of making money, and will never think of uniting to effect a due respect for their rights. The shackles, therefore, which shall not be knocked off at the conclusion of this war, will be heavier and heavier, till our rights shall revive or expire in a convulsion.”
One question: What did Captain Isaac Davis tell his wife Hannah as he left home on 19 April 1775?
pray tell
“Take good care of the children.”
Did she? In early college years, I took an AmHistory course taught by a very odd pr0fessor who supported history propaganda with actual letters and stories from the real people. It was fascinating.
Like you are.
First, MagMag (Magnificient Maggie) thank you for the yeoman’s work at getting this to the century mark.
Don’t know the answer to your question … and I spent almost an hour looking. But, Hannah had a hard life. Read this … it’s so sad …. seems our government treated veterans/kin badly early on in our history;
“Isaac’s widow Hannah married twice more, both husbands also preceding her in death. In 1818, when she was 71 years old and impoverished, she sought a pension from the federal government. Her first attempt failed, and it was not until more than twenty years later that Hannah, then in her nineties, finally was granted a pension.”
http://www.historynet.com/american-revolutionary-war-minuteman-isaac-davis-was-shot-during-the-battle-of-concord.htm
It is just crap, isn’t it? By the way, did you Amen the idea of me having a big thumb to vote with while recuperating the next few days? It could be a temporary thumb, giving me the ability to let the world know I am here, albeit less ambulated than normal.
Goose here, again. Stucky and Maggie, thank you for replies to the Isaac Davis question. The statue at the North Bridge on Battle Road represents Isaac Davis, musket in his right hand and his plow in his left–the embattled Farmers. Another question: What did the British Regulars do after they fired without orders on the advancing Colonials at the North Bridge?
Stucky, that was an extremely interesting article. I look forward to part 2.
Haven’t read this piece yet other than the first sentence which prompted me to comment. The Pilgrims were not the beginning of our history. Jamestown was settled in 1607. Yes it didn’t work out and was abandoned, but it came before the Pilgrims and was closer to the beginning of our history. I believe in the Civil War aftermath, Jamestown’s importance was intentionally minimized to sell the Pilgrim myth since it was in the south.
Also, don’t forget St. Augustine which was settled way back in 1565, but gets no credit because it was the Spanish and not the English that settled there.
Looking forward to reading the rest.
Ok, read it. Looking forward to the next installment Stuckmeister. I’m glad you called out the Paul Revere myth. Off to go look at your link to Charles Thomsen now. Thanks!
And, TJF, people forget about the Spanish in California, too. Lots of priests trying to convert the natives.
May the Truth set us free
http://www.silverbearcafe.com/private/08.18/endthefed.html
What is not stated is that America was unique among the nations of the world having never been divided into components of a monarchy that had evolved over centuries with the fiefdoms and caste system that existed in Europe for over a thousand years. The colonies were essentially an outpost of civilization and an economic engine. The revolution developed as the colonists saw the prosperity that they had and the lack of British support in defending the frontier. The people who were subjects of the crown saw that their fate was in their own hands. To tithe taxes to the crown seemed to be folly at this point and as the result of a myriad of skirmishes with the British authorities and their military, a group of colonial representatives met in Philadelphia and declared our independence.
You can research and discover many of the darker sides of our history if you leave the government run classroom and start reading the accounts and histories described. Even so, despite any thoughts to the contrary, our founding was a miracle of sorts and would not have happened if Britain had not been at war with France. Our independence was as much a decision by the crown to ‘ignore’ the squabbling colonists; at least until 1812.
No war is noble. You cannot glorify the taking of lives and the destruction of property. You can honor those who served as being noble. The courses they took in battle were not up to them but up to the strategists who led them.
In the end, it is the cause that is noble. To seek and attain freedom is noble. Every human cries out to be free in one way or another. We are born as free people into societies that may or may not be free. We grow up in these societies and eventually take on the mantle of adulthood and it is then when we are able to make the choice to challenge the status quo and achieve a freedom that we do not have at present or to remain subject to the system at hand.
Politics is the ‘salesmanship’ of government and policy ideas. All politicians are essentially used car salesman as they seek to convince us that the deal they offer is the best never really admitting or even acknowledging the facts as they are. We inherently do not trust used car salesman and we should treat our elected officials with the same skepticism and disregard. Only then can we form opinions with open eyes and open minds.
Glenda,
Great post and greater paragraph,
“No war is noble. You cannot glorify the taking of lives and the destruction of property. You can honor those who served as being noble. The courses they took in battle were not up to them but up to the strategists who led them.”
I was asked to give a speech recently in front of 650 people 74 of whom were awarded Purple Hearts in 5 wars…a few were horrifically wounded…a few strapped in wheel chairs (young and old).
I opened with this speaking in a low intense rising guttural growl until I reached the last two lines…then I softened my voice…almost whispering:
– War is chaos and insanity
– Its inconceivable horror over and over and over and over
– It is a violent arena filled with death and unimaginable human gore
– It is the most intense crucible fallen man has created
– War will grind you down to a nub and it will change you forever
– General Sherman described it perfectly…WAR IS HELL!
– God did not make us to do what we do to one another in war
– But…One day all WARS will end…when the PRINCE of PEACE returns
I could tell by the open mouths, wide eyes and cringes…I had their attention…
Great comment, Glenda.
Thank you. I’m always looking for more accurate history to share with my grands. Looking forward to Part 2.
Accurate accounts of the Revolutionary War period of American and world history abound as do accurate portrayals of innumerable significant (and some not-so-significant) figures of the same. IMO the “mythical representations” of both tend in general to be reasonably accurate, particularly as regards the “Founders” who, as a group, were indeed an extraordinary collection of intellects -“Giants” if you will, particularly as contrasted w/ the malevolent “pygmies” of the contemporary era.
The Founders — yes, they were remarkable men — wouldn’t have accomplished jack shit apart from the thousands upon thousands of “malevolent pygmies”. Your characterization of colonials in such a fashion is contemptible.
I have run out of steam, you Paul Bunyan lumberjack looking thing. How about you remind me tomorrow to share the story of Wyntur, the Catering service wench at the hospital and how very quick and sharp of tongue this shamefaced woman can be. I wouldn’t treat my rabbits that badly… maybe Simon, though we have ALL grown to dislike and distrust Simon, the Pig of a Goat.
As I told the nurse later when I conveyed my deepest apologies to Wyntur, who was better than Marche, who was, at least born in March, in spite of my being ashamed of myself for sending her off to a safe space, it was a damn fine line and well delivered.
“You know life is really a bitch when you act like one and you turn out to be flat out wrong.”
I sent her fleeing to find my grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup. Not proud, but at least glad it was a great line.
Thank you Stucky. This was a superb essay. History is indeed quite malleable. Concerning my own family history, my brother’s credo would seem to be, never let the truth get in the way of a good story.
I particularly liked this part. “We are reduced to following a handful of “leaders” who supposedly know more than we do. As we wait for “them” to act, it discourages ordinary citizens from taking action on their own behalf.”
That sums it up in a nutshell, where we are as a people today. It drives me crazy every time I hear intelligent people bemoaning the lack of quality leadership, or following some sainted politician as if they are the messiah. True self reliance of thought and action is an extinct behavior.
And the Herbert Hoover story, if you will remind me. Great fodder for the starter.
So what? Not interested? I may be off on chauffeured rounds this a.m. I call it visiting the imps in style.
Goats to set to forage, one very happy Pyrenese now gainfully employed doing what she is meant to do… bully and humiliate the ram so as to be able to fight by his side when the coyotes come.
Big Jacob has been protecting me from all the predators.
And five very large rabbits who will meet the stew pot soon. And one Bunny Who Lived/Flew with the telltale talon holes in head and chest. Survivor Rabbit. Who the hell would eat that?
Our animals are always happiest when they are fulfilling their purpose in life. Works well with children, I hear.
Ninety seven. Who’d a thunk it?
These are actually quite important posts, in the grand schema. I think the way propaganda is created and spread, like manure, is an important part of the growing process.
And now, you know who tries to beat me to the prize, the ornery little critter.
100. I would have won but I got the pink ribbon of posting too quickly.
Well, I hadda make sure I got the last word.