I Love Real Americans

[vicente]

One of the first Americans was Thomas Paine.

The writings of Thomas Paine, the Father of the American Revolution and person who coined the term United States of America, had a great affect on Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, George Washington, etc.

"a statue of gold should be erected of Thomas Paine in every city of the earth." Napoleon Bonaparte, 1800

Only three statues to the 'Father of the American Revolution' have been erected in the entire Nation. Not even Washington, D.C. has one.
Morristown, NJ Dedicated on July 4, 1950
Bordentown, NJ Statue Unveiled June 7, 1997
New Rochelle, New York (broken)

"Washington's sword would have been yielded in vain had it not been supported by the pen of Paine" James Monroe

"All national institutions of churches appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit." Thomas Paine

"It has often been said that anything may be proved from the Bible; but before anything can be admitted as proved by the Bible, the Bible itself must be proved to be true; for if the Bible be not true, or the truth of it be doubtful, it ceases to have authority, and cannot be admitted as proof of anything." Thomas Paine

"The most detestable wickedness, the most horrid cruelties, and the greatest miseries that have afflicted the human race have had their origin in this thing called revelation, or revealed religion." Thomas Paine

"Yet this is trash that the Church imposes upon the world as the Word of God; this is the collection of lies and contradictions called the Holy Bible! this is the rubbish called Revealed Religion!" Thomas Paine

"The Christian system of religion is an outrage on common sense." Thomas Paine

[NeverMind]

okay thats just cool. what a good guy.
I honestly had never heard of him before.

[venom mama]

Originally posted by NeverMind@Feb 9 2005, 03:14 AM
okay thats just cool. what a good guy.
I honestly had never heard of him before.
really?


wow. doesn't say much for our school system.

[vicente]

wow. doesn't say much for our school system.


I disagree (as I suspect you'll agree),...it says volumns about (the Christianization of) our school system.

Often, what's not said is as important of what is said.

:)

[wacawacany]

im a sophomore in high school and i basically only recognized his name from just a few minutes of lecture...not a good thing.

[NeverMind]

Yeah but has the inadequacy of the public school system ever been in question?
My parents are now (since last year) paying $15000 a year for me to go to a private school. They obviously think I'm getting a much better education now.

American History is next year.
I took 20th Century History last year
this year is Western Civiliation.

[Thomas Knierim]

Thomas Paine is not well known outside the U.S. To be frank I only learned about his writings a few years ago. The more I was taken with his great intelligence, humanism, and outspokenness, especially in these two works:

Common Sense
The Rights of Men

You can find the texts at http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/ .

Thomas

[scameter]

My personal favorite, and who I believe is the only true American, is Henry David Thoreau, to which bore the amazing spirit and natural curiosity and appreciation for exploration and of the rather uniquely American desire for wildness and independance. "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to suck all the marrow out of life and be the better for it; to put to route all that was not life, and to not when I come to die, discover that I had not lived." "That government is best which governs least. That government is best which governs not at all." :)