This article appeared on the Volokh Conspiracy. Apparently there is an argument that says that the American Revolution was a mistake. I guess by extension the Declaration of Independence and later the Constitution and Bill of Rights were also ill conceived. The author, ILYA SOMIN, a law professor, takes issue with this stance and pretty much demolishes the argument. I just had to add my two cents.
I am not a fan of alternate history. Opportunists and the ignorant grab bits and pieces of history that suit them and discard facts that don’t fit. Above is Washington crossing the Delaware. For those not familiar with the reason for the journey, the crossing had nothing to do with “All you can eat pancakes at IHOP.”
When one plays fast and loose with the facts, shit like this is the result.
Here is a description of the attack, described in Wikipedia.
Main article: Battle of Trenton
On the morning of December 26, as soon as the army was ready, Washington ordered it split into two columns, one under the command of himself and General Greene, the second under General Sullivan. The Sullivan column would take River Road from Bear Tavern to Trenton while Washington’s column would follow Pennington Road, a parallel route that lay a few miles inland from the river. Only three Americans were killed and six wounded, while 22 Hessians were killed with 98 wounded.[35] The Americans captured 1,000 prisoners and seized muskets, powder, and artillery.
Washington won a major battle with an very few casualties. I guess when you fight your wars from an arm chair even one injury is too much.
Professor ILYA SOMIN puts paid to the whole silly idea with the following observation.
Ideally, people should evaluate political ideas purely on the basis of logic and evidence. But, in reality, many are often attracted to a seeming winner. Military victory often increases the attractiveness of an ideology, and defeat reduces it. Think of how fascism’s appeal plummeted after the defeat of Hitler and Mussolini, and communism’s appeal increased after the Bolshevik triumph in the Russian Civil War and Stalin’s successes in World War II. The American Revolution similarly gave a boost to Enlightenment liberalism around the world. A British victory would have had the opposite effect. The impact would have been felt on both sides of the Atlantic.
Stalin, Mao, and Ho Chi Minh killed millions as did Hitler and Mussolini in the name of political philosophies that differ only in the spelling. Stalin, Mao and Ho Chi Minh won their wars, so they are great guys. Hitler and Mussolini lost and everything associated with them is infamous. The only distinction I see are winners and losers.
The American revolution introduced a whole new way of thinking. Concepts that had never been tried were implemented. The world stood by and watched. The French tried it but something was lost in translation, resulting in a blood bath. The Spanish blew it off and lost a South American empire. None of this would have happened without the American example.
