S1E6 / THE AGE OF UNREASON
He had Washington’s ear and Franklin’s admiration. He inspired Adams and Jefferson, and his pamphlets Common Sense and An American Crisis helped mobilize 13 colonies toward their independence. SO WHY IS THOMAS PAINE THE INVISIBLE MAN AMONG AMERICA’S FOUNDING FATHERS? MIGHT IT HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH HIS RELIGIOUS BELIEFS?
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June 8 is Thomas Paine Day on the American calendar, and we at Unreasonable are ready to celebrate!
So who here can tell us why this ostensible founding father is an important figure in American history? Hands.
Crickets.
And why ostensible? Paine was a thinker, writer, inventor and publisher. His pamphlets were best-sellers. Though his ideas, from how an American democracy might be structured to religion’s place in society, are imprinted throughout the Constitution and Bill of Rights, he was not present at its signing. Compared to many of his cohort, he’s all but absent from the history books.
He was, arguably, the most forward-thinking of the founders. He spoke from the perspective not of a wealthy slaveowner, but of the common man. His ideas are not only relevant today, but more urgent than ever, especially given the state of our union devolved by alternate facts, conspiracy theories, provocatively nonsensical sound bites, and short attention spans.
Our special guest Margaret Downey, founder of the Thomas Paine Memorial Association, helps us better understand the man in full.
Margaret Downey
