Dissent is Patriotic

Liberals and democrats reverberate the term "dissent is patriotic" as a defense of their Bush-bashing. They believe that anti-American ideology and accusations are a true form of patriotism. In their defense, I heard a story of dissent and actions that symbolize this liberal defense.

It’s a story of ten individuals who put politics into their own hands because they didn’t like the President and how the country was headed. They succeeded in their efforts after years of planning, ‘grass-roots’ campaigns, and a little bit of ‘getting their feet wet.’ They acted quite similar as liberals of today because of their anti-President spirit and their obvious vocalizations.

Samuel Arnold
George Atzerodt
David Herold
Dr. Samuel Mudd
Michael O'Laughlen
Lewis Paine
Edman Spangler
John Surratt
Mary Surratt

These ten people were dissenters of their times, speaking out against the president even though they were undoubtedly the minority; they still felt that the United States had to hear their voices. Because their success was minimal and the outcomes were non-existent, they acquired the help of the unlisted tenth man. I can’t emphasize the similarity of these individuals to the liberals of the 21st century but I’m sure you’ll agree if you studied American History.

For those who haven’t figured it out yet, I found a picture that might help you recognize some of the nine listed. It’s not the greatest picture because you really can’t make out the faces.


These individuals were the conspirators to the assassination of one our greatest presidents: Abraham Lincoln. Some were imprisoned, shot in pursuit, or escaped, but these four received the appropriate treatment. You probably have now figured out the 10th individual…

John Wilkes Booth. This man was a dissenter of the president to the highest degree but he acted similarly to the dissenters today. He didn’t believe in the country’s ideology, didn’t approve of the president, but the most important distinction – he was of the minority.

His beliefs and the beliefs of the other nine were in fact, not the beliefs of the general populous but they believed they should be heard. They believed that they were right. They took offense to being ignored so they took the life of the president of the United States of America. They believed that "Dissent was Patriotic."

-Pictures compliments of http://members.aol.com/RVSNorton/Lincoln.html