Why Do The Colonists Have A Common Sense

Common sense is the ability to imagine the consequences of actions and prevent humans from making irrational decisions. During the time of the American Revolution, colonists were forced to use common sense in order to defend not only themselves, but also the land that they called home. The call for independence came to the colonists out of necessity of gaining back their rights and establishing a government that worked to fulfill their needs. Looking back on the history of the American colonies, it is clear that the colonists’ movement for independence was in fact “common sense.” For many years, Britain had been enforcing oppressive taxes, such as the Stamp Act, on numerous goods and materials produced and sold throughout the colonies. These
They eventually coined the motto, “No taxation without representation.” The colonists believed that taxation without representation was equivalent to the denial of their basic rights as citizens. According to founding father and former president Thomas Jefferson, “people being oppressed have a moral obligation to rebel against their oppressors.” Prior to the American Revolution, the colonists of early America were immensely oppressed by the British government. The British limited the colonists’ freedom of speech, punishing anyone who refused to pay taxes or follow unjust laws. The British government took near complete control over the colonists’ every action, limiting the life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness of the colonists. It was around this point in history that Thomas Paine, an English-born American political philosopher, wrote his revolutionary pamphlet titled, Common Sense. In Common Sense, Paine urges the colonists to think critically about their relationship with the British government. Paine’s writing makes a clear case for independence and points blame toward Britain for all the conflict in the