It seems there was a miscommunication, because Britain was treating the Americans different from other British and also wanted to keep major control in anyway, like restricting trade from any other country (like France and Spain). The whole time Britain was treating America like this, America believed their relationship to have stayed the same since settlers first came to the new world. It was appearing to be like an ugly teenage breakup where both the boy and girl have different titles of where they think the relationship is at the
The British treated Americans indifferently when they were actually the same country. Although the economy and diplomatic relations were significantly changed, the most important factor contributing was the political system. The colonies were not allowed to let their own economy flourish. The British set laws such as the Navigation Acts and rejected Mercantilism to restrict the American economy and help the
As James Madison stated, “whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country and whose patriotism and love of justice will be least likely to sacrifice it to temporary or partial consideration.”[viii] They understood that the unruly masses responsible for the Boston Tea Party could spark a revolution[ix], however the frenzied approach would not serve well as a functional government. They understood that “democratic governing is not the same as democratic discourse”[x]. Boucher was correct, absolute democracy is not practical. This is why a representative democracy, where all voices are heard, but where decisions are made rationally, reflecting the views of the general public, is a logical solution for a functional government representing the will of the people. A representative democracy is a form of democracy whose foundation is built on common sense.
King George didn't allow the colonies to make their own laws, which is an evident sign of him "using" the colonies. King George only cared about the welfare of his own country of Great Britain, not of his oversea colonies. As long as the colonies continued to provide revenue to it's mother country, George was satisfied. In order to do this he employed laws like the Navigation act, which prohibited trade with countries other than Great britain, and the Stamp Act which put taxes on almost everything the colonist bought. These laws, along with many others, upset the colonist to the breaking point in 1776 when they created the Declaration of Independance.
American citizens and politicians alike began calling the conflict the “second war of independence.” The political standpoint of entering the war was to preserve the rights of sailors and would-be American immigrants from British impressments. The US also wanted to prove that big brother Britain could not tell them who they could and could not trade with anymore (meaning France). This was an easy pill for the American public to swallow because of continued tensions with Britain after the Revolution and the rise of the anti-Britain, Democratic-Republican Administration and
The colonies could not compete with British manufacturing as they only produced raw goods of the products. The British also enacted the Navigation Acts to ensure a proper trade balance. Explain the Navigation Acts. This navigation caused the colonies to become upset with the British. The colonies were in a predicament where they wanted to control their own economic issues but could not because of the strict British control.
Major differences in political culture included the lack of a strong aristocratic class in America, the growing diversity and factional conflicts in different regions of the colonies, and the American view that members of their representative assemblies had the right to make changes in local constitutions. Americans had a long record of disobeying and rejecting acts of parliament. They thought the British discarded this common heritage of liberty that kept the empire together and felt there was a conspiracy to destroy it on both sides of the coin. Before the seven years war, the colonists had set up their own political arena though they were similar to England. When the war was over that is when the issue of taxation without representation started.
Government has its origins in the evil of man and is therefore a necessary evil at best.” He goes on to say that “government's sole purpose is to protect life, liberty and property, and that a government should be judged solely on the basis of the extent to which it accomplishes this goal.” Basically, Paine is stating to the common people that they have the opportunity to form their own representation of government and do it in a way that truly represents their wants and needs. He is also knocking the form of government the British have and elaborating on why they need to separate due to their own needs for America. Paine would later go into more depth of the style of government Great Britain rules with. The second and perhaps most important key point Paine was trying to explain was the Monarchy rule
Machiavelli understood that obtaining such a government could not be done without separating political morality and personal morality. The Prince became this ideology of a totalitarian government that rules and acts immorally. As opposed to all previous political writings, the predominant view of Machiavelli is that the ends justify the means. Good and evil become relative to the state system, not absolute concepts that the state needed to adhere to. Efficiency took the place of good.
He cites the existence of unjust laws and declares that we as citizens should not be obligated to follow them. The basis for this argument is that the government is run by a majority with the most power, not the most valid perspective. This is the reason why Thoreau advises citizens to follow what they believe to be right and not embrace what the government says. Thoreau states that is not a man’s duty to pledge to eradicate all wrongs from his country but that it is one’s duty to “wash his hands” of it and to not support the wrong in anyway (page 183 para13). He continues to tell a story of how he used this method to protest the Mexican American War which was being waged at the time the essay was written.