Is There Not A Cause?

  The right, to conduct a peaceful protest to demonstrate or show how you feel about a tax, or a war or some other government policy you don't agree with it  is a fundamental part of the foundation that built this great nation we call America. You might even say, there would be no America, if there had been no protest. The Tea Party, we have heard so much about, especially since 2010, derives it's name from the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773. For those who don't know this part of our American history I will try to give you  just the  basic details.
  Beginning,  on March 22, 1765 King George the Third of England, passed the Stamp Act basically,  the king, imposed,  a tax on any printed material  produced by the British colonies. This meant  every legal document, or magazine,  any news paper,  had to be stamped with a British revenue stamp. The colonies had no representation in the British Parliament to speak for them. The Stamp Act,  was soon followed by the Tea Act,  first imposed, by King George the Third, of England on May 10, 1773.
  Basically, the Tea Act was a tax on all tea produced by the colonies. It seems the colonies had begun to smuggle in tea from other sources besides the East Indian Company which was the company owned by England. Each time the colonies found cheaper ways to import and export tea the king's East India Company lost money so, the king,  simply placed a tax on all tea  produced  and exported by the colonies. Basically. the king was saying to the colonies, you will buy your tea from my East Indian company or you will pay a tax,  to receive your tea from any where else. A public out cry, sprang up from the colonies, They expressed their feeling by yelling in protest,  no taxation, without representation!  The colonies, wanted to have a voice in the British Parliament, someone, who could speak on the colonies behalf and thus,  voice their displeasure,  over what the colonies considered to be  unfair,  and unjust,  taxes. The king,  was not interested, in what the colonies thought about anything! To King George,  the colonies were the property of England,  and they existed  only, to make money for the king. The colonies,  as you might imagine,  didn't see it quite this way, and finally, the colonies ran out of patience after years of being ignored, on December 16, 1773 the colonies revolted.  Many of the men,  dressed as Indians, stopped,  British ships from unloading their tea on the docks instead, the men from the colonies, began dumping,  huge crates of British tea in the water, of the Boston Harbor, the event became known as the Boston Tea Party, it is this protest which eventually, led to the American Revolution, and the birth of a new nation, the United States of America.
  Now, that's what I call, a successful protest! Many of you, already knew that story, and, I realize  that. Although, it might surprise you, how many high school seniors, could not tell you that story, in fact, it's a safe bet many students in many of our public inner city schools,  have never even been taught that part of our American heritage. That discussion, however, is for another day.
  Contrast, now, the present, protest called Occupy Wall Street,  with the protest of 1773, that was the Boston Tea Party. First, to be fair I get it, many of the protesters at least in the beginning were speaking out against the banks on Wall Street who had been bailed out with huge amounts of the American taxpayer's money. Well, they have made that point very clear for several weeks now. So, why are they still there? Well, I think many of those who started the protest have now left, and went back to their daily lives. They made their statement, and then realized they had a life that they needed to go on living, if only because, they had certain other responsibilities to take care of. The people that remain there now,  are basically, people who were looking for a good reason to drop out of society in the first place, and this movement largely financed by unions, with political agendas, became the perfect way for them to do just that.
  I didn't  like many, of the Berkley, sit In's of the late 1960's I  will admit to you however, I only read about those particular protest but, even if I didn't agree, with some of the methods used,  to express those protest, at least, I understood why they  were protesting I suppose,  it depends, on how you view the Vietnam  war  as to whether, you think those who marched against it, accomplished, anything.  I do know,  that war, almost ripped this  country a part, but at least the protesters,  felt they had a cause to fight for. If you ask any one of the protester's on Wall Street what they are trying to accomplish I'm sure you'll get many different answers, frankly, most of the protesters on Wall street now, simply remind me of spoiled, over grown children, who are just throwing a big temper tantrum, because their daddy, the government won't give them everything they want for free,  for  many,  who are now protesting on Wall Street, it's not, that they don't have,  or can't find a job. Many, of the protesters, want the government to give them   free money so they won't even have to bother looking for a job in the first place! I know this one thing for sure, if  I ever decide to protest something. I'm going to make sure I know why, I'm protesting, and I will ask my self, this one all important question, is, there not, a cause? In today's English, what, am I protesting, or fighting for. as always, my friends, these thoughts remain, just, some words, to think on.