Happy 4th of July! May we celebrate independence in all its best senses. All these days seem to get overrun by commercial and governmental concerns, which obscures what is radical and oppositional about the events they celebrate, what, for example, was really revolutionary about the American Revolution and the Declaration.
Perhaps this is the time to think about a lost tradition of radical celebrations, the celebration of Tom Paine’s birthday, January 29. The Thomas Paine Institute has a birthday celebration page. It’s not too early to start planning an event!
