To be honest, I can’t be sure what Thomas Jefferson or Thomas Paine would have thought of the actions on 1/6/21. Jefferson, of course, said “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants,” and neither was opposed to actions of force directed towards a legal authority. Both agreed with Dennis that “supreme executive power must derive from a mandate from the masses,” or at least “government by consent of the governed.” But when 55% of the population consents and the other 45% vehemently does not consent, what actions may the 45% take?
I got to this point after reading Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of the United States,” wherein smaller groups took stronger actions, but for causes with which I agreed. I never agreed with the cause of the January 6 participants (and still don’t), but I’m no longer sure I can condemn their methods out of hand.
To be honest, I can’t be sure what Thomas Jefferson or Thomas Paine would have thought of the actions on 1/6/21. Jefferson, of course, said “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants,” and neither was opposed to actions of force directed towards a legal authority. Both agreed with Dennis that “supreme executive power must derive from a mandate from the masses,” or at least “government by consent of the governed.” But when 55% of the population consents and the other 45% vehemently does not consent, what actions may the 45% take?
I got to this point after reading Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of the United States,” wherein smaller groups took stronger actions, but for causes with which I agreed. I never agreed with the cause of the January 6 participants (and still don’t), but I’m no longer sure I can condemn their methods out of hand.