The One Percenters - The Way I Heard It Podcast (Ep. 104)

well hey there America how are you happy Independence Day or as some prefer happy 4th of July personally I'm partial to Independence Day that's just me I don't say happy November 26 I say Happy Thanksgiving I don't say happy December 25th I say Merry Christmas but far be it for me to judge this is a holiday inspired version of the way I heard it I just wrote it some moments ago on it just spilled some beer on it if you like it you can listen to more over at micro comm slash podcast if you don't this is happening what one way or the other so you might as well listen it'll be over in five minutes ready jobs a farmer in Hopewell New Jersey like many working farmers John feeds lots of Americans who have absolutely no idea where their food actually comes from but unlike many of his peers John is not struggling to make a living far from it John is prospering in fact John is downright rich so too is Frank Frank made his money doing whatever it is international businessmen do something to do with the mercantile exchange he was born in Wales and educated in the very best schools after becoming a legal citizen of this country he made an absolute fortune now he employs more people than he can keep track of and then there's Richard Richard is one of the wealthiest lawyers in America he studied law at Princeton which his ancestors helped build and worked under the Honorable David Ogden of Newark he sits on the bench of the New Jersey Supreme Court where his reputation as a jurist earns him the respect of politicians on both sides of the aisle not long ago John Frank and Richard sat down with dozens of other wealthy Americans at a private men's club in Philadelphia to discuss among other things the future of the country and our current tax code not only do these men believe their taxes are way too high they feel their money is being squandered by America's leaders they're also offended deeply offended by the continual assertion that they are not paying their fair share John Frank and Richard listen attentively has a number of powerful men addressed the group they talked with great passion about the need to elect a leader who will stop dividing the country ultimately the men draft manifesto outlining their concerns and announcing their refusal to keep paying taxes to an administration they believed to be corrupt John Frank and Richard each sign the manifesto along with everyone else in the room then they sent it off to the largest media outlets in the country and go home to see what might happen next well they don't have to wait long in the halls of power America's leaders are livid how can these wealthy men who have enjoyed so much good fortune complain about paying a little extra for the good of the country they say do these elitists seriously think they could have possibly prospered without the government's help maybe it's time to teach these guys a lesson and so they do when Frank arrives home at his mansion in New York it's been thoroughly looted armed troops now occupy his estate they're confiscating everything of value including his wife they locked her up for months with little food or water didn't even give her a change of clothes Frank went mad with worry and panic they let her out eventually and then she died John doesn't fare much better the troops have occupied his farm and Hopewell they refused to relinquish him John learns the occupiers have orders to execute him in the town square recently widowed with 12 children but John is now a wanted man he goes into hiding moving from place to place under the cover of darkness and lives on the lam for the better part of a year eventually the stress kills him Richard's wealth and status make him an even bigger target armed men barged into his home and dragged him from his bed in the of the night he's locked up starved and tortured Richard survives but never really recovers his vast fortune is stolen and he spends his final days utterly dependent on the kindness of friends John Hart Frances Lewis Richard Stockton if their names don't seem familiar it's probably because they've been overshadowed by other men who signed the same manifesto men like Benjamin Franklin Thomas Jefferson John Adams men whose names are now preserved for posterity on the bottom of that troublesome document that so enraged the occupiers in the Redcoats unlike most revolutions ours didn't start with an angry mob armed with pitchforks and guillotines with absolutely nothing to lose that was France our revolution started because 56 very wealthy men with everything to lose put everything on the line for a country that didn't even exist yet the internet is full of grossly exaggerated accounts of what happened to the original signers and that's too bad really because the truth of what actually happened back in that exclusive men's club in Philadelphia also known as the Second Continental Congress is remarkable enough with no embellishments at all those 56 men those one percenters of 1776 they could have easily paid whatever new tax was being demanded by their king they could have easily lived out their lives and comfortable peace but they didn't they chose liberty over safety when they signed that manifesto they weren't just declaring their independence they were signing their own death warrant and when they pledged their lives and their fortunes and their sacred honor they weren't just making a pledge to the King of England or to each other or to the rest of their fellow colonists they were making a pledge to you and me and they kept it 240 years later as the hot dogs plump up on the grill and the condensation forms on another bottle of cold beer and the fireworks explode overhead their pledge and their courage are still worth remembering and celebrating anyway that's the way I heard it so uh happy Independence Day or the 4th of July if you prefer but let's be honest that's Independence Day

Channel: Mike Rowe

Views: 341,695

Keywords: mike rowe, the way i heard it with mikerowe, podcast

Id: izSz9_DHXkc

Length: 7min 13sec (433 seconds)

Published: Thu Jul 07 2016