Paine published "Common Sense" in February, 1776. When reading about that time period, one can almost feel the energy swirling and groaning as the American colonists were about to change from obedient subjects into revolutionary rabble-rousers.

George Washington said Mr. Paine's writings were as important as food during the famous hard winter at Valley Forge. This particular winter was when men were sleeping in the New Jersey snow without blankets, all on account of gaining a mysterious thing called "independence."

Thomas Paine was the first person to use the phrase "The United States of America." His words gave shape and form to what were only mystical and far-fetched sorts of ideas: the freedom to assemble without fear; the freedom to go to the church of one's choice — as well as the freedom to not go if one didn't want to; and the freedom to have and express opinions without fear of going to jail.

It all sounds quaint nowadays, when freedom of speech is something we've given away to the Politically Correct Thought Police, when freedom of assembly is something we think we don't need because of television, and when many of the churches are rendering themselves irrelevant with bizarre behavior.

You don't hear much about Thomas Paine. Nobody quotes him. This seems odd in one sense, because his words were very much part of the original American formula. But nobody cares about history, because apparently people absolutely love to repeat tragic mistakes. The problem with history is how that pesky rascal so plainly shows what can happen. And when you have a group of people bent on running off a cliff, they sure don't want any road signs warning them about that cliff.

One thing Thomas Paine wrote about intrigued me. He described the American population at the time as being roughly divided into thirds. It is interesting to consider how Paine's description plays out today.

One third of the people didn't give a rip about Independence. They wanted to remain British subjects.

Another third of the people were the ones who really cared, who fought, bled, and died. These people made coats, hauled flour, carried rifles, slept in the snow. Freedom was something they were willing to pay for. These are the ones who first gave us our country's freedoms.

The last third changed based on who they were with. If a Colonial volunteer was in the store, then by God, the shopkeeper was an ardent patriot. If a British Governor came in, then by Jove, they were loyal British subjects. Thomas Paine said the only reason these gutless weenies weren't hung for treason is that they never actually did anything. They never had any ideas, but always had complaints. They were the babblers, backslappers, flatterers and party-goers, living proof that talk is the cheapest commodity.

(Editor’s Note: Reach David Clark at dclark@outofthesky.com, or write him at P.O. Box 148, Cochran, Ga. 31014.).