Harvey J. Kaye and I discuss Paine’s relevance to today’s struggles.
Thomas Paine declared that no human being was born to rule another—and America’s elites buried him for that heresy. The crowns have changed hands, but the thrones remain: in boardrooms, news networks, and campaign war chests. As “No Kings” demonstrations rise across the country, scholar Harvey J. Kaye and I revisit Paine’s radical message: that democracy means more than overthrowing tyrants and monarchs. It means refusing to bow to oligarchs or their political servants and rejecting the myths that keep them both in power.
I repeated the following quote from Paine in our conversation but couldn’t remember where I read it: “Where knowledge is a duty, ignorance is a crime.”
It’s from “Public Good,” the full title of which is
Public good, being an examination into the claim of Virginia to the vacant western territory, and of the right of the United States to the same. : To which is added, proposals for laying off a new state, to be applied as a fund for carrying on the war, or redeeming the national debt.
No wonder I couldn’t remember.
Admittedly, “Public Good” is one of Paine’s deep cuts. I came across it while researching something I have yet to write about American political thought.
Here are some other Paine quotes I admire:
“An army of principles will penetrate where an army of soldiers cannot.”
— Agrarian Justice“The moral principle of revolutions is to instruct, not to destroy.”
— First Principles of Government“He who dares not offend cannot be honest.”
(Humbling admission: I got that last one from Wikipedia.)
Harvey’s book on the subject is “Thomas Paine and the Promise of America.” It can be purchased at Bookshop.org and other fine independent booksellers.
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