Davy Crockett

Man is a political animal.  He can hardly help it when confronted with the world as it is.  If he does not become involved in the events of his time, he is doomed to live his life in a manner dictated by others.  This realization prompts me to see politics everywhere.  I see it in every conversation, every newspaper article, every children's story, every novel.  In short, it is in every mode of communication between and among human beings.

It is through this political lens that I consciously write. My latest article in InDepthInfo is on Davy Crockett. Davy led an interesting life. Indeed, he was himself a political animal, serving several terms in congress and butting heads with the giants of his day (including Andrew Jackson). But his life has also been grist for the mill of historical revisionism as William Groneman III discusses in his biography of Crockett, David Crockett: Hero of the Common Man. In this book Groneman goes a long way toward setting the historical record straight with a balanced view of the man, myth and legend.

Even so, it is my contention that any intelligent reading of history will lead the student (and we are all students - or should be - of this vast and useful subject) to see that conservative philosophy is the one that leads people to the greatest happiness.  I think this was true for Crockett.  His views and his actions showed a profound respect for conservative ideals - although he was relatively untutored in political philosophy.  He lived by the American code, ever pursuing life, liberty and happiness (as well as property), and in the end succeeded in making a hero of himself.