The American Revolution

[joespaniel]

No, I mistyped it once (fatheds), started to correct it, then changed it again to 'fatheads'.

Im still chuckling about it. It must be late, Im going to bed.

 

[Andu Indorin]

Vrylakas: You covered most of the essential points quite well ; just wanted to elaborate on one of your points ...

Originally posted by Vrylakas
His chief minister, the pathetic Lord North, was about as gutless and brainless as a politician can be. ...

In fact, Lord North and his King and cohorts were actually trying to implement the policies of mercantilism; i.e., making the colonies not only pay for themselves, but also be a profit for Great Britain's treasury. Of course, since Americans were accustomed to over a century of self-governance and noninterference from the home country, it is not surprising that increased "interference" from the other side of the Atlantic should provoke a resentful response from the colonists. The War for Independence, in essense, started as a conservative revolution to preserve the status quo, rather than a radical revolution to change the nature of American colonies.

The irony is that while the English government was attempting to implement -- and rather poorly -- a mercantilist policy, a gentleman in Scotland by the name of Adam Smith was composing his Wealth of Nations that demonstrated just how absurd mercantilism can be as a government policy.