Paul Revere just rode down my street. Again. I'm not kidding--the real Paul rode down my street on April 18, 1775. And every year a
historical re-enactor rides down the route again.
Revere calls out to the citizens "The Regulars are coming out", referring to the Redcoats who had been mobilized from Boston, and who were marching towards Concord. General Gage's mission was to "strike at the heart of the rebel movement and cripple it with quick, clean blows before its large numbers could be mustered against his little army." [
David Hackett Fischer, Paul Revere's Ride 1994. p. 78]
Just in front of my house "Paul" hands a letter from the mayor of my city (Somerville) to the mayor of the next town (Medford). And off he goes (as other riders did as well that night) to warn more citizens throughout the countryside that their liberty was at risk. Also note: Revere did not say "The British are Coming!". Revere and the residents of Massachusetts thought they were British. It is very important to remember that the Founders were fighting against their own government, which was mistreating and oppressing them.
Paul Revere, 2005.
I so enjoyed bellatrys' excellent diary the other day, which put some of our current cultural struggles into historical perspective and context. And bellatrys states--and I completely agree--that "past and present flow together, echo and recur, and even when we do not realize it shapes our days and lives." As we can learn from the mistakes of the past, we can learn from the successes of the past as well.
What can we learn today? Paul Revere was a messenger. Paul Revere was also a "connector". In Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point", Gladwell identifies certain individuals as "people with a special gift for bringing people together". [The Tipping Point, p. 38] Gladwell spends much time on Paul Revere and his "connector" characteristics. Revere was a member of a number of local social groups in Boston that were key to organizing the resistance.
David Hackett Fischer describes the revolutionary movement in New England thus:
"The revolutionary movement in New England had many leaders, but no commander. Nobody was truly in charge. This was a source of weakness in some ways. The system was highly inefficient. Its efforts were scattered and diffuse. Individuals demanded a reason for acting, before they acted at all. They wrangled incessantly in congresses, conventions, committees and town meetings. But by those clumsy processes, many autonomous New England minds were enlisted in a common effort--a source of energy, initiative, and intellectual strength for this popular movement." [Fischer, Paul Revere's Ride, p. 80-81]
So my premise is this: Like Paul Revere, DailyKos is both the messenger and a connector. And the Democratic party is a bit like those revolutionaries, trying to convince fellow New Englanders! We won't be needing the horses, but we do need to get the message out to the countryside. Our liberty is at risk. The DailyKos community offers "energy, initiative, and intellectual strength". We need to get the message out to build a "popular movement". We need to reach the autonomous minds.
And we can succeed, just as the Founding Fathers and Mothers did. It won't always be easy, and we won't win every battle. But dammit, the Theocrats and NeoCons will NOT take the Founders and their principles away from me. And they will not take the Constitution away from me.