...stuck a feather in his cap and called it....

I just finished reading "Paul Rever" by....uh, someone. Hmm....if you're interested, I'll look it up...otherwise, deal with my laziness.

I found it pretty interesting; my friend Dave uses portions of it in his high school class, and I thought it did a really good job of putting common assumptions and popular views of historical events into a factual context. It was fascinating to see how events really played out in the weeks leading up to, and the few days after Revere's infamous ride. (Hmm...note to self: Look up "famous" and "infamous" to determine if you're actually using them correctly....)

The lesson that I gleaned from this book was somewhat of a paradigm shifter. It became apparent to me, through reading this text, that my understanding of the American Revolution was...well, incomplete at best. The thing that I've always felt was the underlying "theme" of the founding of our county was the rugged individualism that was the cornerstone of my "republican party affiliation" from high school. I mean, Paul Revere rides solo throughout the New England countryside, alerting everyone to the presense of the Redcoats; individual minutemen were their own commanders, as they ambushed and flustered the British "Regulars" with their irreverent and uncommon tactics. These were the ideas I USED to have....

First of all, Paul Revere had a partner. He was somewhat less successful in his ride, but William Dawes (anyone, anyone?) performed the same function that Revere did....the difference? He didn't have a poem entitled, "The Midnight Ride of William Dawes".

Furthermore, the success of Revere's ride hinged on the sense of community and the ability of the New England people to work together for a common goal.

And, as far as the minutemen working on their own? It was, again, an example of people coming together to work for a common goal that made it not so much an "army of one", but a highly disciplined and well-oiled machinery of differing parts working in symphony.

Happy belated Independence Day, everyone!

Thanks for reading...

Tommy