Historic Old Northeast Neighborhood Association

Prior to the battle of Lexington in 1775, the local militia, called to arms by Paul Revere, drew themselves up on the local Green, and quickly found themselves outnumbered 800 to about 20. The lobsterbacks had snuck out of Boston, in force, to pull a surprise attach on the outnumbered minutemen.

After the first shot was fired, the bloody lobsterbacks fired at the Americans and advanced with bayonets. No declaration of war had been made. No foreign power had invaded. No event had happened to cause brother to fire on brother. But there it was! The shot that was heard around the world!

Next, the lobsterbacks marched on Concord and there the militia were waiting and they fired first. The Americans came from all sides. They fired on and harassed the enemy until they turned and ran, killing and wounding almost three hundred of the eight hundred soldiers. They ran back to Boston, being harrassed all the way, without gaining anything that they had originally sought in the countryside. They retreated to inside the confines of what they thought would be safety. They were wrong.

An incensed populace arose, marched and surrounded Boston and held the enemy in check. The lobsterbacks were surrounded.

It was some time, but not too long, when the American forces now under the leadership of one great general, brought up the big guns hauled in over the mountains from Fort Ticonderoga. Once the siege began the outcome was certain and the bloody lobsterbacks abandoned Boston. And the New England rabble, as the bloody lobsterbacks loved to call them, rushed into Boston and liberated the city and all of its inhabitants.

In that city, on that day, liberty and justice were had. Delivered in the only way that it could be. By force of arms.

Now some of you might be thinking that I am recanting a brief history lesson and you would be right.

And, some of you might be thinking that I am telling a story, making an anology concerning North Shore, and you too would be correct.

I say every dog has its day. And that day gets closer with every passing moment.

Paul has made his midnight ride. The call to arms has been made. The farmers and honest merchants are approaching the local Green. Soon, our shot will be heard. And nothing will be the same again.

By Steven D. Lange

Anarchy

Anarchists have never won a war. They have unique opinions and rally a large crowd--but they are such free-thinkers and can convince, but not sustain cohesiveness. The colonial Americans, if you recall were ancestors of British descendants. The American Revolution was an act of anarchy. Subsequently, you had secession and total chaos again.

Then, in 1865, the Confederates lost the war. Self engrossed, they had the spirit to win, but would not compromise in any way.

In the thirties, anarchists and syndicalists created havoc around the world. Most, with great ideas for a perfect society, ended in up in jail, dead, or changing people, places and things.

In 1945, Hitler lost the war. You can convince some of the people some of the time.

In the '60's, we lost a President and a religious leader, but the segregationists, the anarchists, lost.

Then, in the '70's, there was the ''Age of Aquarius''. We all began to think for ourselves. Jean Paul Sartre told us ''God is Dead'', ''live for the moment''--for personal success and happiness--self aggrandizement.

After 20 years of existentialism and narcissism,in the '90's, Robert Redfield became an instant success with the ''Celestine Prophecy'' philosophy. We are all connected, according to Redfield, in a spiritual realm where we can help the spirit grow with positive actions and thoughts and grow with it--or remain static, resistant and impede growth. The whole is equal to, and as strong as, the sum of its parts!

Kate






Kate

Thanks Kate!!!

That was great! And remember, history always repeats itself.

No Way

Kate, to save time and to focus where my interest lie, I will address only the first paragraph of your response posting.

First of all, the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies and the developing western territories were Brittish, and French, and Spanish, and German, and Dutch, Irish, Swedish, and so on. A real mix of people. They were not totally Brittish. They had been coming to America for approximately 175 years before the American revolution. Mind you it was not called the American Anarchy or any such similar name. When people immigrated to America to what were then Brittish held colonies, two basic tenants were the basic assurances given to anyone who settled and worked.

First, that as so far as local conditions warranted, each man was a free man and that these free men would be allowed the right to govern themselves in local matters. Hence, the House of Burgesses in Virginia and other similar local govermental bodies all over the other colonies which had all been in existance and operation for decades.

Second, that the Americans would tax themselves.

It was the English Paraliment, backed eventually by the King, that instituted the Stamp Act, the Intolerable Acts and eventually the Townsend Duties (a series of taxes on paint, metals, liquors, ale, wine, etc.)

For over twelve years the Americans petitioned Paraliment and the Royal Governors to retract these two transcretions, these two fundamental changes in the way that they had always governed themselves. After all, the Americans for almost 175 years, ever since Jamestown, had goverened themselves and taxed themselves. It was not Americans who shot Brittish in the Boston Massacre killing five or six citizens. It was not Americans who marched professional soldiers on farmers and merchants at Lexington Green (killing 10 Americans) and Concord to take private stores of armaments. It was the Brittish.

Lastly, when the King directed his Royal Governors to dissolve the local American governments, the way to solving problems through discussion was ended. The King and Parliment were no longer interested in hearing the concerns or complaints from the Americans.

And finally, it was not America who sent troops to shut up Boston as if it were a foreign port in order to strangle all of its citizens into submission at the end of a gun. It was the Brittish.

I could go on but you can see where I am coming from. The Brittish acted brutally on their own subjects over and over again for years, using stronger measures at each step along the way until no other option but armed resistance was left.

So, I do not view our founding mothers and fathers as anarchists. I view them as the greatest collective of free thinking citizens the world has ever known. They were not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. But what they did no one else had ever done. And, no one has done since.

These people wrote beautiful documents. Wrote beautiful words. They wrote the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, The Bill of Rights, the American Crisis pamplet and Common Sense (the last two by Thomas Paine).

These works still inspire. Not exactly the deeds of anarchists is it?

So, they were not anarchists. They were successful revolutionaries. The most successful ones ever.

Now, in closting, I missed some of your point in your posting. Are you suggesting that I too am an anarchist? Could you be a little clearer? I am not altogther sure I got your true message.

By Steven D. Lange