Advocating Revolution

IN THE ELECTION OF 1800, Vice President Thomas Jefferson ran against incumbant John Adams. The two men despised each other, and hadn't spoken to each other cordially since the outset of the Washingtion administration. Much later, late in their lives, they would become friends. The two slandered each other mercilessly. Adams accused Jefferson of having the audacity to support the French Revolution, which indeed Jefferson had. In those days it was considered impolite, in poor form for presidential candidates to either slander each other or to taut their own virtues; campaigning was done by proxy. Tha Adams people dug up as much dirt as possible, which was considerable. They portrayed Jefferson as an adulterer and an atheist. Indeed he was the former, but his religion was more deistic than atheistic, although most folks at the time saw little if any difference. Jefferson's slander team headed by the newspaper smear merchant John Calendar, to whom Jefferson had agreed to pay the then hefty sum of fifty dollors for his services. labeled Adams a "tyrant", which to the ultra democratic Jefferson was the worst of all possible insults. We see by this that vicious campaigning is not a modern invention. The close election went to the House of Representatives, and on the seventy sixth ballot, Jefferson preaviled. Adams and his wife Abigail left the Capitol City without either congratulating the winner or attending his inauguration. We see that Donald Trump did not invent bad manners, although he certainly the to a new level. ON he way back to Braintree, Massachusetts, Abagail asked her husband: "My darling, why did you allow him to do this to you?" His reply: "Dearest one, if he wants it that badly, let him have it." Soon after Jefferson movedinto the newly constructed White Hous, while the paint was still drying and the furniture being arranged, John Calander walked into the Oval Office. He wanted his fifty dollars. Jefferson, land wealthy but broke as usual, didn't have the money. When Calendar suggested that he intended to publish in his slander sheet a description of Jefferson's affair with his slave Sally Hemmings, dreamy, high minded Tom suddenly found the money. For this reason,among others, Jefferson has been labeled by some historians as a "scoundrel", and hypocrite. The first description was only party accurate, the second bears more truth. Duringhis presidency, Jefferson alternately favored the French and the English,though much more ofteh the French, since his was a "Francophile". When the two foreign powers were at odds, which was most of the time, he became frustraed and amostpetulanty issued an embargo on imported goods from both, which was a disastrous action for the American economy, which sank almost immediately into a depression. Merchants had nothing to offer for sale except inferior domestic merchandise. By examining the shortcomings of the flawed but brilliant Jefferson, we are reminded, as Bill Clinton once said, that, arguably, nobody is qualified to be president. Maybe nobody ever has been. But, As jefferson himself wrote in the "Declaration of Independence", "when a long train of abuse evinces adesire to reduce us (the colonies) under tyranny"...,strong solutions, even revolution, becomes expedient, indeed necessary. And so we find ourselves once again subjected to unsatisfactory leadership, governed not by a foreign power or a president with limited leadership abilities, but by a demonatrable criminal and tyrant, of severely limited intellectual capabilites, and utter moral depravity. Jefferson said that we would need a revolution and new constitution every generation. Isn't it apparent that we are long overdue?