Most nations have let slip the opportunity, and have been compelled to receive laws from their conquerors (Paine).

Democracy, the republic, voting, the Supreme Court, debate, etc. are no longer foreign concepts -- the great American "experiment" of 1776 still exists, so contemporary readers do not find issues of individual liberty and law to be either controversial or strange. Common Sense was a seminal event in the way the entire framework of the new government, and the Constitution were formed. "In short, Independence is the only BOND that can tie and keep us together" (Paine).

The Constitution, however, remains the seminal document with which the country is governed and laws interpreted. Some even call it a "living" document because it is continually reinterpreted and amended to fit the social, legal, and cultural needs of society -- likely something Paine would only imagine. That a document such of this could have...
[ View Full Essay]