Editor's note: This is being republished from 4 years ago. I figure Sen. Sampson is the same staunch supporter of liberty and individual rights and responsibility he has always been, what was true four years ago is true, today.
Well said, Rob. Good luck!
By CT State Senator Rob Sampson (R-16)These last couple weeks of the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak have impacted us all in a big way and will no doubt leave indelible marks on the future of our great country. My sense is that the word “crisis” has been used more often in recent days than in my whole life before now.
As an American patriot and a lover of history, what comes to mind immediately when I hear “crisis” or even more specifically – “an American crisis,” is the work of one of America’s less appreciated founding fathers, Thomas Paine. Paine was an imperfect character (as we all are) and many would argue he miscalculated many of his life decisions. Nonetheless, he should still be regarded as one of the key heroes – and instigators of the American revolution. John Adams said of him “Without the pen of the author of Common Sense, the sword of Washington would have been raised in vain”.
I read something recently that suggested that every 80 years, America faces a crisis that requires a new hero generation.
This immediately made me wonder who the heroes and patriots of this American crisis might be. It is a different type of crisis but with some striking similarities. The American revolution was not about a virus but rather an awakening of the human spirit as a result of oppressive rule. The British colonists were a special breed, pioneers and their descendants – people with a passion for freedom, individual strength of resolve, and a potentially enhanced predisposition for rebellion.
King George provoked their independent nature with his repeated disregard for the individual British colonists, failing to respond to their desire to pass laws to govern the colonies, cutting off trade, imposing punitive taxes, and ultimately committing acts “which may define a tyrant.” In response to that tyranny, the spirit of freedom, as a fire, swelled from mere sparks to a blaze! The rest of course, is our history.
