Common Sense - By Thomas Paine

"Common Sense is perhaps the work single most responsible for the American Revolution. It brought the idea of freedom and liberty down from the intellectuals to the common American colonist. Written by Thomas Paine and published January 10th, 1776, it was the first publication to openly ask for independence from Britain."

Here I present a bit of American history. If you're not an American, it doesn't matter, it should be of interest to everyone.

On this site you'll find download links to a two part audio version of Common Sense. The two parts total 25MBs, but even if you're on a dialup connection, they're well worth it.

Though the theme of the piece deals with the reasons we should remove ourselves from the yoke of the British Empire, it's as relevant today as it was more than two hundred years ago, as it describes the perils of unfettered government. All peoples of the world can benefit and gain insight by understanding why we chose to rebel against what was then, the most powerful empire in the world. Everyone of every nation can use Paines' words to judge the value of the rulers they currently live under.

And we Americans very much need to hear these words from our past, to remind us why we should not be led astray from the form of government that has endured for so long, no matter what the current circumstances are.

If this doesn't interest you, maybe there's some other Free Audio that will.