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A Look Back at Entrepreneurs

Independence Day has a nice ring to it. In 1773 the young colonies were fed up with paying the tax on tea to King George without having any representation in parliament. Even more infuriating was the con job, (called spin today), coming out of London. The Brits assumed tea to be indispensable to the budding Americans and allowed it to only be shipped to Boston harbor where the tax was to be paid before it could be unloaded.

The bureaucrats of stogy old Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing St. did not realize that nearly all of the colonists were Entrepreneurs...that is why they went to America in the first place! Yes, the colonists loved tea, craved it, but it is just a bloody drink! 7,000 colonists murmured, fists were occasionally seen gesturing in the air and the hot steam of their breath bellowed ominously on that cold day in December, 1773 around the harbors of Boston. The mob could turn deadly at any second.

British war ships anchored firmly in the harbor and prepared for the worst. It was as though the entire area were a huge powder keg about to explode with the least encouragement. Thankfully night came; the crowd dispersed, except for 200 patriots who painted themselves with coal dust and dressed as Indians. Armed with tomahawks and determination, they divided into three groups and descended upon the three ships.

Confidence and determination, (plus a tomahawk!) can do amazing things! No one stopped them as they hacked into each box of tea and then threw the broken chests overboard. The armed British ships did not even resist.

They could have simply stolen the tea and avoided the tax, but that was not the message! They wanted the tea but not with the price attached. They wanted The Prime Minister, Lord North and King George to get the message loud and clear! You can take your tea and shove it!

Morning found a lot of the chests bobbing in the harbors cold waves. Word had spread through Boston during the night faster than todays TV newsflash! The nearest citizens manned boats and beat the chests with their oars until the salt water rendered the tea useless. The act of those 200 patriots was the critical mass that began the inevitable. Some would call it sedition, some patriotism. Some treason, some heroism.

In the chain of events the crescendo built until Patrick Henry passionately declared, Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

The die was cast, the course irrevocably decreed and the rest is history, so to speak. And now we come to a time to look inside ourselves and be grateful for what we have and what we represent.

I look back and wonder who I might have been, one of the 7,000; one of the 200; maybe a sailer on the tea ship? Being a resident Yankee I think I should have been one of the Patriots, but I wonder how courageous I could have been, how dedicated to that cause.

All I know is that Ive been an Entrepreneur all of my life and I could not live under the tyranny the colonists lived under. Many thought it was Just fine, we are safe with the British soldiers to protect us. Many thought there was no tyranny, just security that the soldiers brought and the taxes were but a small price to pay for it.

Who knows. Maybe they were right. But for me? I dunno, I think I have to side with Patrick Henry and good ole Ben Franklin. Ben had some interesting ideas on those thoughts...and he wasnt even sure about the Constitution! But for all of its flaws and inadequacies, it was a miracle that a group could agree on THAT much! Ben said that if those colonists gave up their liberties for safety they would ultimately lose both.
Independence? Great concept.
Hmmm, maybe I should start drinking tea.

About the Author (text)

Scott McGregor is the founder of www.Doppelit.com, the Entrepreneur Connection. He is considered The Consummate Entrepreneur, started companies when it was impossible and financed companies when there was no money for nearly 50 years. His mission is to show other Entrepreneurs that they CAN!

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