Tea Party vs. Occupation

                    The tea party movement has been working for approximately three years in an effort to save our constitutional republic.  Members of this group became aware very early in the Obama Administration - and even before - that our nation was in danger of being "fundamentally transformed" into a socialist/communist one.  Numerous tea party-supported conservative members of Congress were elected in 2010 because the "silent majority" of Americans woke up.  Conservatives joined together to replace moderates in Congress with good conservative constitutionalists.  These constitutionalists "drew a line in the sand" and slowed the liberal/progressive march toward socialism/communism in spite of the fact that too many liberal Republicans - RINOs - remain in Congress.  Liberals/progressives realize that they cannot win in the arena of ideas and truth; therefore, they resort to dishonesty, cheating, violence, revolution, etc. to move the country in their desired direction.

                    There were numerous tea party events, some of which drew hundreds of thousands of conservatives to Washington, D.C.  They brought their American flags and their families.  All were dressed appropriately, well behaved, and respectful of civil laws and authorities while discussing ways and means to protect our Constitution and to restore the morals and principles of our Founders.  They never "occupied" any place but simply gathered for a few hours at a time.  At every event, tea partiers left the areas as clean - or cleaner - than they found them.  In spite of these facts, the Left and mainstream media maligned and lied about conservatives and even said tea partiers were unpatriotic, racists and terrorists. Now these same folks are saying that the tea party is irrelevant and fading away.  Tea partiers are American patriots who love our country, and we are not going anywhere.  We will continue doing as much as we can for as long as we can to save our American way of life.

                    Realizing the power of the tea party - "We The People" - the left tried from the beginning to stop the efforts of the tea party using tactics straight out of Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals.  Meanwhile they were searching for an equivalent to the tea party.  The Coffee Party was just one of their numerous attempts.  During the same period of time, socialist/communist professors were indoctrinating college students in revolutionary ways. 

                    Mainstream media joined the Left in comparing the Occupy Wall Street mob to law-abiding tea partiers.  The protesters on Wall Street and numerous cities across our nation and other countries are the exact opposite of the tea party.  While tea partiers held United States flags high with love and respect for our country, occupiers walked on the flag to show their disrespect.  Whereas the tea parties were true grass root events with Constitution-loving, freedom-loving, law-abiding patriots participating in events at their own expense, the occupiers are urged by professors and union leaders to join the "revolution," provided food and paid money by left wing organizations, and encouraged in their protest by the Obama Administration, members of Congress, Hollywood stars.  At the same time, they destroy business and property as well as provoke police to attack them.  The occupiers have been joined by members of the Nazi Party and the Communist Party.  My parents and leaders always said that we are judged by the company we keep; therefore, we can judge the Occupy movement by the people who join them and support them.

The unwashed masses have been on Wall Street about a month, and businesses are complaining of demands and theft made by the occupiers.  The protesters are creating a health hazard in the area because they are so unclean - even urinating and defecating in public places.  I saw a picture of a guy with his pants down and leaning against a police car!  (I would link to the picture except for the fact that I want a family-friendly blog.)  Then they had the nerve to protest moving in order that their mess could be cleaned.  They are receiving free food - expensive food like $16 a pound smoked salmon - and even being paid wages to occupy the area.  The occupiers are not even close to be like the tea partiers!

Phillip Dennis has more on this subject as well as pictures comparing the separateevents. 

Ann Coulter has a different name for the occupiers; she calls them the flea party.  See her article here.  

More pictures of Occupy Wall Street protesters are here.  

 

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin, great patriot as well as signer of the Declaration of Independence, was born on January 17, 1706, in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was a "true Puritan" who emigrated from England in 1682. Soon after arriving in America, he married a native of Boston named Miss. Folger. His father's occupation was in the "business of a soap-boiler and tallow-chandler."

Benjamin's parents wanted him to become a minister of the gospel. They began his education to be a minister but did not have the financial means for the necessary education. Benjamin attended a common school for a few years and then started working with his father. He did not enjoy his father's business and started working for a cutler; however, he couldn't afford the fee for an apprenticeship and went to work for his brother who was a printer. He continued working for his brother and became "quite proficient" while at the same time being very studious.

When he was seventeen years old, Benjamin left the employment of his brother and sailed to New York City. He couldn't find any work in that city so he continued on foot to Philadelphia. He knew no one in that city and had only one dollar in his pocket. He arrived on a Sunday morning and wandered around Philadelphia "until he came to a Quaker meeting, where he entered, sat down, went to sleep, and slept soundly until worship was closed…." Apparently, the Quakers had compassion on the young man, "With his spare clothing in his pocket, and a loaf of bread under each arm…."

Benjamin soon found employment in a Philadelphia printing establishment, and his employers noticed and appreciated his "industry and studious habits." Benjamin wrote a letter to a friend in New Castle, Delaware, giving a "graphic account" of his trip from Boston to Philadelphia. The letter was shown to Governor Keith. The governor became interested in the young journeyman printer and invited him to his mansion. A friendship developed between Franklin and Governor Keith; the governor advised Benjamin to go into business for himself and offered his patronage.

Franklin traveled to London as part of their plan and found that he needed to obtain employment to supplement the inadequate patronage. He started working as a journeyman printer in one of the main offices there and won many friends because of his "industry, studiousness, punctuality, and frugality." An interesting note about this particular job is that the printing press used by Franklin was put in the National Museum in Washington, D.C.
Benjamin planned to use some of his hard-earned money for a trip to the Continent and was about to depart on the venture when he was given another offer. A friend in the mercantile business was about to sail for America and asked Franklin to accompany him as a clerk. He accepted the offer and sailed for home in July, 1726.

Franklin was facing "the prospect of prosperity and wealth" with his new employer, but he was left without a job when his friend died. Franklin went back to work for his old employer but soon formed a partnership with another printer. He gained "friends, public confidence, and a successful business" in Philadelphia because of "his character, habits, and talents.

In 1730 Franklin married a young widow, whose maiden name was Deborah Read. He asked her to marry him before he went to London, but she married another man. While Benjamin was in London, her husband died. Benjamin and Deborah resumed their friendship upon his return home; they married and became the parents of a son and a daughter.

Franklin started his useful and famous annual known as Poor Richard's Almanac in 1732. This publication circulated widely in the Colonies and in England, and it was translated into several European languages. About the same time that he discontinued the almanac, Franklin started printing a newspaper that "became the most popular one in the Colonies."

Benjamin continued to be studious and gained "knowledge of the Latin, French, Spanish, and Italian languages." He started a literary club that eventually became the Philadelphia Library. He wrote essays on popular subjects and printed them in pamphlets. The pamphlets were widely read and gained popularity for Franklin. His business increased, making him comfortable financially in just a few years.

In 1734 Franklin was appointed as government printer for Pennsylvania, and in 1736 he was appointed to be the Clerk of the General Assembly. He became the postmaster of Philadelphia the next year. His income from these offices as well as from his business made it possible for him to enjoy more leisure time, which he used for philosophical pursuits and to work for more public good.

Franklin organized fire companies in Philadelphia, the first in America. He "devised" a way to pave the streets as well as a way to use gas to light the city. When he noticed that military discipline in Pennsylvania had been neglected, he gained a thorough knowledge about military tactics and then began to teach others what he had learned. He started the "American Philosophical Society," the "Pennsylvania Hospital," and the "Pennsylvania University." In 1742 he published a paper on how to improve chimneys, and he invented the Franklin stove, giving the invention to the public.

In 1741 he started publishing the "General Magazine and Historical Chronicle, for the British Plantations" and had wide circulation of it. He was elected to the General Assembly in 1744 and was re-elected annually for the next ten years. It was about this time that he started experimenting with electricity and discovered "the identity of lightning and the electrical spark of a machine." These discoveries made him famous all around the world.

Franklin continued to serve the public in various positions. In 1753 he was appointed as an Indian commissioner. In 1754 he was a delegate from Pennsylvania to a convention to consult about the general welfare and security against the French. He proposed a plan containing "all the essential features of the present Constitution," but his plan was rejected because it contained too much "democracy" and too many freedoms. About this same time he was appointed to be the deputy Postmaster General and was also "active in improving the military affairs of the colony."

Benjamin traveled to London in 1757 to represent Pennsylvania on government business and remained there for five years, making "many valuable acquaintances there." He went to London again in 1764 on government business and was still there when the Stamp Act was passed. He protested "loudly and boldly" against it. Because he was well respected in London and represented several of the Colonies, "he did much to arrest for a long time the blow that finally severed the Colonies from the mother country."

When Franklin realized that there was nothing more he could do to avoid war, he returned home in 1775 and was immediately elected to be a delegate to the General Congress. He was re-elected to the General Congress in 1776 and was a member of the "committee appointed to draft a Declaration of Independence." He voted for the adoption of the Declaration and then signed it on August 2, 1776.

Franklin was one of three commissioners that met with Lord Howe to discuss the possibility of peace between the Colonies and Great Britain. Reconciliation proved to be impossible, and the Revolutionary War commenced. About this same time Pennsylvania organized into a state, and Franklin was chosen to be its first president.

When Franklin was 70 years old, he was appointed by Congress as a commissioner to the Court of France to negotiate a treaty of alliance between the Colonies and France. He accepted the appointment and sailed to France in October 1776. Franklin was "received with distinguished honors," and "strong expressions of sympathy in behalf of his country were made." France was cautious and did not enter into formal negotiations until after they received the news that Burgoyne had been captured. Franklin signed a formal treaty with the French Minister in February 1778. France acknowledged the independence of America and "openly espoused her cause." Congress gave Franklin almost unlimited power, and he discharged his duties with such "fidelity and skill" that he was admired by Europeans. Franklin was still in France when Great Britain yielded their cause and agreed to negotiate a peace treaty on the basis of independence for the Americans. Franklin had the honor and pleasure of signing the peace treaty.

Franklin requested Congress to allow him to return home to his family and he returned home in 1785 after Thomas Jefferson arrived to succeed him. Americans greeted him with great joy and respect from the "most distinguished individuals" and many public bodies in the new nation. Even though he was 80 years old, he was elected to be president of Pennsylvania and held that office for three years.

He attended the Congress held in Philadelphia in 1787 and helped to frame the Constitution of the United States. This was his last public duty. After suffering with "gout and stone" for many years, he died on April 17, 1790, in his 84th year of age. His death was mourned by Americans and "a vast concourse of people followed his body to the grave." His death was also mourned by "the whole civilized world." "Congress directed a universal mourning throughout the United States for thirty days. In France, and indeed throughout Europe, the news of his death was received with profound grief…."

Facts and quotes are from Lives of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, pp. 104-111.

Robert Morris

Robert Morris, one of the greatest of patriots and future signer of the Declaration of Independence, was born in January 1733 in Lancashire, England. His father was a Liverpool merchant who engaged extensively in trading with the American colonists. His father moved to America when Robert was a very young child, leaving him in the care of his grandmother and moved to America. He settled on the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay in a place called Oxford. Robert was thirteen years old when his father finally brought him to America.

Robert went to school in Philadelphia, but he apparently knew nearly as much as his teacher. At fifteen years of age he started working in a counting room for one of the leading merchants in Philadelphia, Mr. Charles Willing. He became an orphan about this same time when his father passed away from an infection on his arm. He died several days after being hit by the "wad" fired from one of the guns on one of his ships. I found no mention of his mother.
Mr. Willing liked Robert and "gave him every advantage his business afforded." By the time Mr. Willing passed away, Robert had become a merchant. He started a mercantile business with a Mr. Thomas Willing in 1754, and the firm soon became very successful and prosperous. Even though the Stamp Act, the Tea Act, and non-importation agreements caused them to lose much business, they "cheerfully" supported the regulations and did everything they could to convince other merchants to do the same.

Robert married Mary White of Pennsylvania in 1769. They were married and had "uninterrupted domestic happiness" for 37 years before his death.

The British attack at Lexington caused great indignation among the colonists, and "extinguished all hope of reconciliation" with England. Robert then became involved in public affairs, and he was elected by the Pennsylvania legislature as a delegate to the General Congress in November 1775. His talents as a businessman were quickly recognized. He became a member of a "secret committee" (responsible for managing the financial affairs of the government) as well as a "committee to devise ways and means for providing a naval armament." He was assigned by Congress in the spring of 1776 to "negotiate bills of exchange, and to take other measures to procure money for the Government."

He was elected for a second term in Congress on July 18, 1776, fourteen days after the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, and he signed the document on August 2, 1776. He continued to labor diligently in Congress with the confidence that the patriots would finally achieve peace and independence. He was so confident in the final victory that he personally loaned $10,000.00 to General George Washington after he and his half-starved, half-naked soldiers retreated across New Jersey in late 1776. Robert financial support helped Washington to recruit and pay the soldiers who later crossed the Delaware River and achieved victory in the battle at Trenton.

There were numerous other times when the government was unable to procure finances that Robert arranged for the money on his own good name and character and then applied the money for public benefit. In the darkest period of the war in 1781, Robert joined with other citizens to organize a new bank in Philadelphia. The purpose of the new bank was to issue paper money that the public could accept with confidence because the "government bills were becoming almost worthless." The plan had the desired effect and greatly helped the cause of liberty.
During that same year, Congress convinced Robert to accept an appointment to be general financial agent of the United States. Today we call the position the Secretary of the Treasury. Robert was probably the only man in country who had the business talents and extensive ability to get credit, either domestic or foreign. Congress recognized his great abilities and urgently solicited his help. Congress at the time could not obtain loans for even one thousand dollars, but Robert could get loans on his own credit for tens of thousands. The Bank of North America became a successful operation, and the patriotic service of Robert Morris probably kept the Continental Army in business.

Robert was able to raise great amounts of money to support the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Because of his abilities, he became known as "the financier of the American Revolution." In fact, it has been stated that: "If it were not demonstrable by official records, posterity would hardly be made to believe that the campaign of 1781, which resulted in the capture of Cornwallis, and virtually closed the Revolutionary War, was sustained wholly on the credit of an individual merchant." It is stated that George Washington had only to tell Robert Morris how much money he needed, and Morris raised the money on his own responsibility.

After the Revolutionary War was over and peace established, Robert served two terms in the legislature of Pennsylvania. He attended almost every session of the Constitutional Congress of 1787 but played a minor part there. He was one of only six people who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution.

Robert was elected as a Senator for Pennsylvania to the first meeting of Congress under the new government. When President George Washington was selecting members of his Cabinet, he was very anxious to have Robert as the Secretary of the Treasury, but Morris declined. When Washington asked for suggestions for the position, Morris immediately mentioned Alexander Hamilton.

Morris served another term in the U.S. Senate and then retired from public life. By the time he left the Senate, he had invested heavily in the unsettled land throughout the new nation. His credit however collapsed by the late 1790's, and he was sent to debtor's prison in 1798. He was released from prison in 1801 and spent his remaining years in poverty. His financial situation bothered him a great deal. He also suffered from asthma. He died on May 8, 1806 at age 72.

Facts are from Lives of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence, pp. 93-98, and World Book Encyclopedia, Vol. 13, p. 817. Quotes are from Signers.