Since Thomas Jefferson's birthday is tomorrow, I thought I would give some quotes on what he would have thought about the Tea Party Movement....
"Difference of opinion leads to enquiry, and enquiry to truth; and
that, I am sure, is the ultimate and sincere object of us both. We both
value too much the freedom of opinion sanctioned by our Constitution,
not to cherish its exercise even where in opposition to ourselves."
--Thomas Jefferson
"Men, according to their constitutions and the circumstances in which
they are placed, differ honestly in opinion. Some are whigs, liberals,
democrats, call them what you please. Others are tories, serviles,
aristocrats, etc." --Thomas Jefferson
"In every country where man is free to think and to speak, differences
of opinion will arise from difference of perception."
--Thomas Jefferson
"[It is] the people, to whom all authority belongs." --Thomas Jefferson
"The ultimate arbiter is the people of the Union." --Thomas Jefferson
"The force of public opinion cannot be resisted when permitted freely
to be expressed. The agitation it produces must be submitted to."
--Thomas Jefferson
"I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every
form of tyranny over the mind of man."
"What county can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned
from time to time that its people preserve the spirit of resistance."
Thomas Jefferson
"Taxes on consumption, like those on capital or income, to be
just, must be uniform." --Thomas Jefferson to Samuel Smith, 1823.
"Excessive taxation... will carry reason and reflection to every
man's door, and particularly in the hour of election." --Thomas
Jefferson to John Taylor, 1798.
jefferson would be utterly disgusted by the tea party movement. too bad you don't quite get that.
ReplyDeleteWhat an intellectual and well thought out comment.
ReplyDeleteI will agree with you that Jefferson would have supported their right to free expression.
ReplyDeleteBeyond that, your selective quotes offer little. Resurrecting historical figures to defend your cause reveals the weakness of your position on its own merits. Why not appeal to reason? Or do you believe that the Founders achieved a state of infallibility that exempts their ideas from critical review?
Perhaps, we should follow our Founders' views on voting for women, blacks, and the unpropertied? What would they have thought of our national parks? Our professional military? The FCC? EPA? FDA?... ad infinitum
We have progressed beyond the eighteenth-century Enlightenment thinking of our Founders in many respects. I suppose this is to be expected. After all we no longer accept Franklin’s ideas about earthquakes, eh?
Simplistic calls to emulate our Founders show both unawareness of their limitations and a misreading of their real contributions. All perspectives are historically contextual. Nostalgia does not substitute for the serious debate of ideas.
I hope this post passes your screening process. You seem like an honest guy, even if I do disagree with your positions.