In light of yesterday’s post I’ve developed yet another book idea that I’ll never get around to, but should. Shit Our Founding Fathers Said: intrepid time travelers, with the promise of massive orgies with even better looking women than the 18th century, have lured our founding fathers to the present to see just what they would actually think about the world today. Take this excerpt from ole T.J.
Now, I know I might have mentioned something about the right of men to overthrow their government, but let’s have some context here. I was trying to justify revolting against Britain. Yes, there are some grand ideas there, but you’ve got to realize that we were not very big fans of paying for wars instigated on our behalf or to having no say in how we did so. The truth lies somewhere in that. I can clearly tell that, as a society, Americans have gotten over any and all objections to war spending on their behalf.
Back to my point though, when I said right of men to overthrow their government I was not speaking about when government officials elected by a majority did something you didn’t like. And you call yourselves oppressed; I look at these rallies—which you are allowed to have need I remind you—and I see a mass of white male landowners, so clearly you’ve been able to vote and participate in the political process unhindered. I assume you took care of that slavery thing since I don’t see any negroes about. Good job there, if indeed you did so.
Can you even begin to imagine the places this country wouldn’t have gone if we had behaved like this when we disagreed with Washington and Adams? You would likely either be speaking French or the King’s right now. I believe that, if I am understanding the language correctly, you have a modern day idiom for the point I am trying to make right now. Back in my day we walked to school, uphill, both ways, in the snow.
T.J.
Of course, as far as projects go this would benefit greatly from a vast amount of linguistic and historical research into the founding fathers, which, I sadly do not have time to do at the moment; though, on the linguistic side, I do want to look into the British commoner response to the revolution. So if I do end up doing that project (which I won’t because I don’t have access to the right archives readily available) some of the language clears up a little.
