Tag: sarah burns
The two ideas that made America
July 3, 2023 | Post
The American Revolution: That moment when we declared independence from Great Britain and created an unprecedented new society. While we all know the basic details, most people don’t stop to ask exactly why the Founders declared independence from a powerful empire.
Here’s the best part about the anti-Trump #resistance
August 3, 2017 | Post
Have you thought about what it really means to protest Donald Trump and his administration’s policies?
Rebellion or stability: Which makes a healthier nation?
July 13, 2017 | Post
Is a little rebellion now and then a good thing? Or does a strong nation stem from the veneration that time bestows upon its government?
This Fourth of July, let’s celebrate colonial failure.
July 4, 2017 | Post
The luck of the Spanish turned out to be their misfortune, and the curse of the English turned out to be a blessing.
Highlights from our Reddit AMA with Professor Sarah Burns
May 19, 2017 | Post
Did you miss our recent Reddit AMA with Professor Sarah Burns of RIT’s political science department? You can find the whole conversation here, or check out some of the highlights below. Dr. Burns is a regular contributor to the Learn Liberty Blog, and starred in our series on America’s Founding. Adama82 Hi, thanks for […]
Reddit AMA with Professor Sarah Burns, scholar of the American founding
May 5, 2017 | Post
Sarah Burns is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Her research examines the intersection of political liberalization and American constitutional development with an eye toward policy implications for democratization across the globe. Professor Burns was featured in Learn Liberty’s America’s Founding series. She has also written on American history (1), American foreign policy (2,3), elections (4,5), […]
How a Few New Ideas Caused an Entire Group of People to Turn on Their Country
July 11, 2016 | Post
Much like us today, American colonists thought of themselves as a free people. They viewed governance through a lens called Radical Whig Theory, a political ideology stating that individuals within a free society must jealously guard their liberty and be wary of any government encroachment. The theory holds that freedom is hard to keep, and […]
A Closer Look at the Taxes That Led to America’s Founding
July 8, 2016 | Post
When we left the colonists in the first installment of America’s Founding, the British Empire had begun taxing Americans for the purpose of retaining its vast military power. But the colonists viewed the very military they were funding with ire, as soldiers often treated the colonists with disregard. In the latest installment of this series, Professor […]
This One Dysfunctional Military Practice Might Be Responsible for the Existence of the United States
July 7, 2016 | Post
What would you do if the U.S. Army came to your door tomorrow and demanded you pay taxes and tariffs on many of the items in your home? Would you fight back against them; would you declare yourself free and independent from America? Yeah, we didn’t think you’d opt for the latter route… But, believe […]