Posted on 07/01/2005 6:14:30 AM PDT by lunarbicep
The items you mentioned were a part of the American consciousness from the get-go:
1) The US constitution embodies an explicit constitution as seen in The Mayflower Compact. The seal of the state of North Carolina also shows an explicit constitution, in contrast to the unwritten constitution of England.
2) The Bill of rights codified liberties Americans largly enjoyed and existed as the Virginia Declaration of Rights, written by George Mason, prior to the Republic's existence. One could go through each amendment and find exceptions, for example cruel and unusual punishment, butthe sentiments expressed were a part of American frontierist zeitgeist.
3) Representitive government existed in Virginia's House of Burgeses long before the Republic.
The ideas embodied in The War for Independence were not revolutionary for Americans, but rather the state of this frontier society.
Usually the History Channel merely repats it's prgramming over a 24 hour cycle. So, if you missed this today, chances are you'll see it again after midnight.
The Continental Army itself rarely used "guerilla tactics" at any time; must be using a very broad definition of "guerilla tactics."
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068156/
(checkout the many comments)
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