Common Sense, Thomas Paine's American Revolution-inspiring pamphlet, was published on this date in 1776.
249 years later, America needs a refresher course.
Project Intuition 2025
Hello, dear readers and happy new year! Welcome, new subscribers!
This title of today’s message may seem a bit off-topic from what I usually write, but hang in there for a moment. I promise it has less to do with history and more to do with current trends [energy] in the collective—and more importantly, how to benefit from the winds of change and be part of a new paradigm.
One more pre-post announcement…
This is post number 195 on Shelley (W)Rites! For the next 5 weeks, I’ll be publishing 1x/week, making post number 200 arrive in your mailbox in early February…which is also my birthday month. Yes, I’m an Aquarius!
200 posts is reason to celebrate. So is my bday, although it’s not a biggie with a 0 or 5 at the end.
I’m planning a month-long celebration that will include giveaways and new resources to assist your soul’s journey. It’s too early to reveal the details, but today, Post 195 marks the countdown.
Get ready to receive!
Some historical background you didn’t get in school
Thomas Paine is widely known for publishing Common Sense, a 47-page pamphlet delving into all the reasons why the colonies needed to break free from Britain’s tyrannical monarchy and form their own separate, independent government.
You probably got that much information in your US history courses from grade 3 on. From my recollection, Paine was positioned as one of the Revolutionary War heroes, along with those who met and wrote the Declaration of Independence. And it’s good that he is remembered that way today, even though there is nary a statue of him in our nation’s capital.
The little-known backstory that your history books likely omitted is that Paine’s Common Sense ignited the flame of dissent, which wasn’t yet widely felt in the populace in January 1776. John Adams had been unsuccessful trying to advance a similar agenda in the Continental Congress for nearly a year prior to Paine’s publication.
Yet Common Sense, initially published anonymously, spread like wildfire through the colonies and created the collective revolutionary energy among colonists necessary for organizing the revolt against British rule.
But the Founding Fathers weren’t enamored of Paine. Why, when his words were the fuel for the ultimate victory?
Although at the outset Paine was encouraged by Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Rush (the Declaration of Independence signer who helped Paine publish Common Sense), he later became considered dangerous by the Founders because of the extent of his radical ideas about rebuking authority.
Yes, his support of religious freedom was highly regarded by the populace, many of whom had emigrated to America for that very reason. But Paine went on to further suggest that all forms of authority should be questioned and resisted, including Christianity and all organized religion.
It was evident to the Founders that Paine was a dangerous man and his views could upend their own authority as well.
Over time, Paine was isolated and even forgotten. Scorned and reviled everywhere, he died in obscurity in New York City in 1809.1
Why is Common Sense still relevant today—and maybe more so?
In an age when “word of mouth” had a very literal meaning, Common Sense sold an estimated 500,000 copies. Published before copyright laws were in place, the pamphlet was also copied and shared. Although book tours and author signings had yet to evolve, Common Sense was frequently read aloud in public places. Had a bestseller list existed, the pamphlet surely would have claimed the top position for years.
What was the attraction?
A new idea. An alternate way of thinking. Transference of power to the individual.
Given the year, the origins of the colonists, and the cultural norms of the time, the populace had only ever been exposed to rule by monarchy, also known as Divine right (ordained by God). Whatever social class you were born into was your designated place forever. Your position was inherited from your ancestors and was passed on to your descendants.
Free will was largely nonexistent and most people, regardless of circumstance, accepted the paradigm.
Colonists had it somewhat better than their relatives in Europe simply because of distance. That’s why they risked everything to travel to a New World. But they still were beholden to the king for taxes and forfeited certain personal rights and freedoms.
This exchange went unquestioned by many until Paine published Common Sense. Up until that time, choosing or thinking for oneself, if done at all, went unspoken.
But the desire for that freedom did not go unfelt. And that is what Common Sense appealed to—the deep, human inner need for sovereignty of self, in all forms.
And so Paine argued against rule by the monarchy, point by point.
He guided people to think for themselves. He showed them how, when they did, the lack of freedom adversely affecting their lives was obvious. The pamphlet spelled out in great detail every reason they were entitled to act in accordance with the good of themselves and their families, rather than the king.
It was a novel, thrilling idea whose time had come. To paraphrase Victor Hugo, there’s no stopping that energy.
You know the rest of what happened in 1776.
But has the lesson been learned?
You might think that almost two and a half centuries later, Americans would still treasure that inherent right of self-sovereignty. Still bask in the freedom to make decisions and take action according to the inner guidance they know is for their highest good.
But that’s not how history has supported Common Sense—the pamphlet or the concept.
The mindset of the Founding Fathers that led to Paine’s discredit is the same mindset that accredited the monarchy. It only looked different. The colonies were no longer governed by a State outside of their own continent, and many colonists were given the right to vote.
But not all the colonists enjoyed the new freedoms. Women didn’t. People of color certainly didn’t.
And this “All men are equal, but some are more equal than others” mindset extended to education: Economic standing, gender, and race all factored into who could go to school, who could learn to read. Because, of course, educated minds demanded things and only trouble would ensue if women and colored peoples were given equal opportunity to learn, to think independently.
And that mindset shaped the lives of those in lower economic classes. The Industrial Revolution spawned a society that needed workers who could perform physical labor that required little thinking. So minds had to be trained not to think to endure the boredom of repetitive action.
As the nation evolved and new legislation extended more freedoms to marginalized populations, the mindset of who was “deserving” over “not deserving” didn’t keep pace with the advancements.
And that is what has led to a nation with laws that spell out equal rights, but doesn’t embody them in fulfillment.
Adherence can be mandated, but personal acceptance of the concept of equality cannot be legislated.
Going back to Paine’s Common Sense, the key factor leading to the overwhelming acceptance and agreement (aside from timing in history) was that he methodically presented his case by asking the colonists to rely on how they felt as subjects of the king. He asked them to imagine how they would feel given the opportunity to be self-governing.
In modern terms, he asked them to activate critical thinking skills of evaluation and rely on their felt sense (intuition).
From History.com:
Paine originally wanted to call his pamphlet The Plain Truth, but Rush, who informally served as his editor, persuaded him to name it Common Sense instead, according to Stephen Fried’s biography of [Rush]. That phrase fit one of Paine’s most important notions, that Americans should trust their feelings, rather than get bogged down in abstract political debates. (boldface added)
“The Almighty hath implanted in us these unextinguishable feelings for good and wise purposes,” Paine wrote. “They are the guardians of his image in our hearts.”
However you believe that these feelings are planted within us—be it Divine doing, or Universal Law, or the essence of being human—at the core of each of us is a voice. Paine called it Common Sense. Today our language for this could also be called Intuition.
Intuition, like many other natural human traits, got a bad rap from the Church and government figures because defaulting to our inborn instincts shifted allegiance away from outside authority and over to the individual. And no such loss of power would be tolerated by those entities.
This explains why that particular aspect of Common Sense has largely been obscured in history, similar to the great ideas and achievements of women and minorities—to preserve the status quo that supports the patriarchy.
Yet, as in the days leading up to the American and French revolutions, there comes a time when an idea cannot be stopped.
And 249 years later, here we are again.
The first draft of this post began on Tuesday, January 7, 2025. Top four headlines in the New York Times on that day read:2
An Embolden Trump Suggests US Territorial Expansion
Judge Blocks Release of Special Counsel Report on Trump Documents Case
Trump Asks Appeals Court to Freeze His New York Criminal Sentencing
Meta to End Fact-Checking Program in Shift Ahead of Trump Term
The above is what we can expect in a modern-day monarchy, in an authoritarian regime.3
Earlier this week on January 6, Vice President Kamala Harris presided over the congressional proceeding to certify the 2024 election results. In everyone’s mind was the contrast to the same proceeding four years earlier and the insurrection that threatened to disrupt it.
Yet our incoming administration is actively presenting material to reverse the image of that day from one of shame into one of glory.
Today, January 10, 2025, on the 249th anniversary of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense publication, we are once again faced with a critical decision:
Who has control of your mind?
If you think it’s not important, consider this headline story from January 9, 2025, New York Times:
Boarding Schools in Tibet Reshape the ‘Souls of Children’: The Chinese government is placing hundreds of thousands of Tibetan children in boarding schools as a way to mold them into citizens loyal to Beijing.
Given the incoming president’s statements about loyalty, how many years away are we from this happening in the United States?
2025 is the year of the individual. Be one.
Until there is a movement to teach minds to favor common sense thinking over propaganda, history is destined to be repeated.
The stakes in 2025 are far greater than in 1776. The advancements in technology make it possible to influence thought and behavior on a mass scale in a very short time.
History has shown protests, including even violent revolution, to produce unsustainable results.
It’s not laws that govern us, it’s our minds. Belief systems are far more powerful than any government or institution.
The beauty of that reality is that there is only one way to create lasting change for the highest good—and everyone has it within their power to invoke it.
The single-most powerful asset you have as a human being is the ability to think and discern.
Interestingly, that is also the single-most powerful weapon used against you.
If you can be dissuaded from thinking for yourself and to accept the ideas, customs, and belief systems of others, you can be led to endorse policies and practices that don’t serve you.
In a society where mind-control conditioning begins at birth, perpetuated by generations of individuals who were conditioned by their parents, teachers, and religious and government officials, it has become rote behavior to follow outside guidance as if it were more accurate and reliable than your own inner common sense. Especially when following your intuitive guidance is largely considered ineffective, inaccurate, or worse, ridiculous to even imagine.
And yet, just for a moment, think about how ludicrous it truly is to think otherwise. To imagine, for even a moment, that someone else knows better than you about what’s best for you.
That doesn’t mean that people who have knowledge in certain areas can’t be consulted for guidance. It simply means that if you can learn to listen and consider all possibilities, it’s in your best interest to make a decision based on what your common sense or intuition leads you to follow as best for you, given all the information available.
Perhaps it will be something suggested by another, but your gut and your heart will let you know if that’s the right choice for you or not.
This transference of power takes only your decision to (learn to) think clearly to get started. Indeed, there is a transition period and integration process. This is revolutionary change, and it doesn’t happen overnight.
But is 249 years long enough? How about 2025?
Time is an illusion anyway. Start today.
As you empower yourself with critical thinking skills, you’ll enjoy a sense of freedom, accomplishment, and self-satisfaction that can only be bestowed upon you by you.
Titles, awards, and honors of all nature are to be appreciated, but if you’re going to sleep feeling that it wasn’t deserved or that it can be lost “if” something happens, then it’s only a temporary boost.
Creating something on your own, living by your rules, and following your heart are accomplishments rewarded with self-confidence and are evidence of sustainable change that cannot be undone.
I am dedicating 2025 to teaching how to use intuition to guide your life and create a life of purpose that serves both you and others.
Join me in Project Intuition 2025. It’s far more self-affirming and supportive of you than the other project with 2025 in its name. In fact, the long-term goal of Project Intuition 2025 is to foster minds that turn the old paradigm upside down and replace it with one that serves people, not politics.
If these words have touched something in you in any way, please share this post. Let’s create a 21st century version of Common Sense.
As always, I hope this message supports you on your journey. Until next time…
My best, Shelley
ICYMI: In a previous post, You Don’t Need a Weatherman to Know Which Way the Wind Blows, I ask the question: Was Dylan talking about common sense or intuition?
The inspiration for this post did not arise from the above articles. Earlier this week, I saw a note about the pub date of Common Sense and that precipitated this writing. The articles from the NYT simply showed up as if directed somehow to give me evidence of a trend that matches what was occurring in the colonies in the 1770s.
We sure need this reminder for our lives today--perhaps more than ever. I have learned that intiution is a muscle--the more you use it, the stronger it "speaks." It grows the more you trust it. I look forward to reading your articles in 2025