John Adams

Good afternoon everyone. I cannot just simply read a book; one of my many faults. I'll read a passage and earmark it for a later date so that I can copy some of my favorite quotes into a Word document that I have started. I also have to log any important dates/events into a timeline spreadsheet that I have. I think I'm subconsciously preparing myself for my future position as a history teacher. I will also become inspired rather easily and attempt to pass on said inspiration to my, most-often-disinterested, wife (love her to death though :)). Now that I have a blog I have a secondary outlet to voice some of my thoughts. Most of the inspiration I'm talking about comes from real life characters from America's past. I'm a firm believer that there should be an increasing amount of emphasis put on history in the classroom. Not just the "learn-the-facts-and-dates history" but, an emphasis should be put on how we can use history to our advantage. Learning from our mistakes as well as other's, and being able to provide factual evidence to back up an argument. Not to mention simply having the knowledge of where we came from and who got us here.

With that rant I suppose I'll finally get into the subject of this post. It has to do with John Adams. I'm currently reading Rise To Rebellion by Jeff Shaara. A diamond in the rough if you ask me. It is based on actual events but written like a novel. I'm about 25% of the way through it and have already developed a new gratification for John Adams' place in history. A farmer and a lawyer who daringly took on the case to defend Thomas Preston and his men after The Boston Massacre. He knew that his cousin, Sam Adams, and the other Sons of Liberty might peg him as a loyalist to the King. But his dedication to the principles of law, American law, motivated him to do what he thought was right. In the end Preston was acquitted. Adams not only saved the life of an innocent man, he also demonstrated the ability of the colonies to conduct a fair and proper trial. He used that case as ammunition when England took away America's power to appoint it's own judges after the burning of the Gaspee. Jeff Shaara as John Adams, "Whether you agreed or disagreed with the acquittal of Captain Thomas Preston, the most important message that came out of that courtroom is that we are a people who rely on the law. We have proven that we can judge ourselves. There is justice in our courts" (106).

Events and stories like this are worth telling. These are stories that help explain why America is the way it is. Why defendants are innocent until proven guilty. What taxation without representation means. Why power in politics will be given back to the Iraqi people. Why America will always prosper.

Works Cited
Shaara, Jeff. Rise To Rebellion. New York: Ballantine Publishing Group, 2001.