http://mises.org/daily/1678


Mises Daily: Thursday, November 25, 2004 by Gary Galles


At Thanksgiving, Americans reflect on their blessings and
hope for uplifting family gatherings of togetherness and
unity, with the Pilgrims used as examples of peace, harmony,
and thankfulness. However, while the Pilgrims' 1623 "way of
thanksgiving" represents what we wish to infuse in
Thanksgiving, Plymouth Colony before 1623 was closer to a
Thanksgiving host's worst fears—resentments surface, harsh
words are spoken, and people turn angry and unhappy with one
another.
The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors). The fruits of each person's efforts
went to the community, and each received a share from the
common wealth. This caused severe strains among the members,
as Colony Governor William Bradford recorded:

" . . . the young men . . . did repine that they should
spend their time and strength to work for other men's wives
and children without any recompense. The strong . . . had
not more in division . . . than he that was weak and not
able to do a quarter the other could; this was thought
injustice. The aged and graver men to be ranked and
equalized in labors and victuals, clothes, etc . . . thought
it some indignity and disrespect unto them. And the men's
wives to be commanded to do service for other men, as
dressing their meat, washing their clothes, etc., they
deemed it a kind of slavery, neither could many husbands
well brook it."


Bradford summarized the effects of their common property
system:

"For this community of property (so far as it went) was
found to breed much confusion and discontentment and retard
much employment that would have been to their benefit and
comfort . . . all being to have alike, and all to do alike .
.. . if it did not cut off those relations that God hath set
amongst men, yet it did at least much diminish and take off
the mutual respects that should be preserved amongst them."


How did the Pilgrims move from this dysfunctional system to
the situation we try to emulate in our family gatherings? In
the spring of 1623, they decided to let people produce for
their own benefit:
"All their victuals were spent . . . no supply was heard of,
neither knew they when they might expect any. So they began
to think how they might raise as much corn as they could,
and obtain a better crop than they had done, that they might
not still thus languish in misery. At length . . . the
Governor (with the advice of the chiefest among them) gave
way that they should set corn every man for his own
particular, and in that regard trust to themselves. . . .
And so assigned to every family a parcel of land . . . "

The results were dramatic:

"This had very good success, for it made all hands very
industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise
would have been by any means the Governor or any other could
use, and saved him a great deal of trouble, and gave far
better content. The women now went willingly into the field,
and took their little ones with them to set corn, which
before would allege weakness and inability, whom to have
compelled would have been thought great tyranny and
oppression."
That was quite a change from their previous situation, where
severe whippings had been resorted to as an inducement to
more labor effort, with little success other than in
creating discontent.
Despite the Pilgrims' increased efforts in 1623, a summer
drought threatened their crops. Following their beliefs,
they offered contrition for their sins. Then the drought
broke, which led to the Thanksgiving we still try to
emulate. And as historian Russell Kirk reported, "never
again were the Pilgrims short of food." It is appropriate to
remember the Pilgrims as Americans celebrate Thanksgiving.
Though we have incomparably more than they did, we can learn
much from their "way of thanksgiving."


But we should also remember that our material blessings are
the fruits of America's system of private property rights,
whose power for peaceful and productive cooperation the
Pilgrims began to prove by experiment almost four centuries
ago, because those rights, and the freedoms and prosperity
they entail, are under constant assault today.
------
Gary M. Galles is a professor of economics at Pepperdine
University. Send him MAIL, and see his Mises.org Daily
Articles Archive. See also Murray Rothbard's 4-volume
history of Colonial America and the American Revolution:
Conceived in Liberty. Discuss this article on the blog.
You can receive the Mises Dailies in your inbox. Subscribe
or unsubscribe.


"In the capitalist society there is a place and bread for
all. Its ability to expand provides sustenance for every
worker. Permanent unemployment is not a feature of free
capitalism."
— Ludwig von Mises, in Socialism

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On 11/22/2011 12:25 PM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
http://mises.org/daily/1678


Mises Daily: Thursday, November 25, 2004 by Gary Galles


The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors). The fruits of each person's efforts
went to the community, and each received a share from the
common wealth. This caused severe strains among the members,
as Colony Governor William Bradford recorded:

Wow, what a twisted version of history. The truth: King James cut a
deal with a company of merchant adventurers to settle and govern the
area in New England. The Peirce Company would be given 100 acres from
the Crown for in exchange for each settler it transported.

The Peirce Company then contracted with the Pilgrims to take them to
America, under terms that said all land and profits would accrue to
the Company for seven years. After that period, the assets would be
divided among the company's investors, most of whom were not Pilgrims.

In other words, the Pilgrims were employees of a corporation. And
guess what - after a few years of doing the work and enduring the
misery for the sole benefit of the company's investors, the Pilgrims
renegotiated their contract with the Company, permitting them to buy
the Company out over a period of years.

In other words, the Pilgrims were the first workers in America to
collectively organize and bargain for a better contract with their
employers. It worked to their benefit.

Stormy, you just endorsed the enduring principle of labor unions.

I endorsed free markets. You added a story, and then falsely
credited to me.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"HellT" wrote in message
...
On 11/22/2011 12:25 PM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
http://mises.org/daily/1678


Mises Daily: Thursday, November 25, 2004 by Gary Galles


The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from
their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors). The fruits of each person's
efforts
went to the community, and each received a share from the
common wealth. This caused severe strains among the
members,
as Colony Governor William Bradford recorded:

Wow, what a twisted version of history. The truth: King
James cut a
deal with a company of merchant adventurers to settle and
govern the
area in New England. The Peirce Company would be given 100
acres from
the Crown for in exchange for each settler it transported.

The Peirce Company then contracted with the Pilgrims to take
them to
America, under terms that said all land and profits would
accrue to
the Company for seven years. After that period, the assets
would be
divided among the company's investors, most of whom were not
Pilgrims.

In other words, the Pilgrims were employees of a
corporation. And
guess what - after a few years of doing the work and
enduring the
misery for the sole benefit of the company's investors, the
Pilgrims
renegotiated their contract with the Company, permitting
them to buy
the Company out over a period of years.

In other words, the Pilgrims were the first workers in
America to
collectively organize and bargain for a better contract with
their
employers. It worked to their benefit.

Stormy, you just endorsed the enduring principle of labor
unions.

On Nov 22, 12:25*pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
* *http://mises.org/daily/1678


The real Thanksgiving is about the transfer of communicable diseases.
Just as the Native Americans caught small pox from the settlers and
sometimes wiped out total communities, surely many of us will catch
some cold or flue from some snot nosed kid or relative we only see
once or twice a year.

Er, I mean, happy Thanksgiving everyone.

-C-

Dear Snotty,
I've been coughing since last Thursday. I guess I'll have to
stop answering your messages.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Country" wrote in message
...

The real Thanksgiving is about the transfer of communicable
diseases.
Just as the Native Americans caught small pox from the
settlers and
sometimes wiped out total communities, surely many of us
will catch
some cold or flue from some snot nosed kid or relative we
only see
once or twice a year.

Er, I mean, happy Thanksgiving everyone.

-C-

Stormin Mormon wrote:
I endorsed free markets. You added a story, and then falsely
credited to me.

Ummmm. YOU posted it.

I'll throw in some labelling, so you know better who wrote
what.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"HellT" wrote in message
...
On 11/22/2011 12:25 PM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
http://mises.org/daily/1678


Mises Daily: Thursday, November 25, 2004 by Gary Galles


The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from
their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors). The fruits of each person's
efforts
went to the community, and each received a share from the
common wealth. This caused severe strains among the
members,
as Colony Governor William Bradford recorded:
===END OF WHAT STORMIN POSTED===

===BEGIN HELL T TEXT===
Wow, what a twisted version of history. The truth: King
James cut a
deal with a company of merchant adventurers to settle and
govern the
area in New England. The Peirce Company would be given 100
acres from
the Crown for in exchange for each settler it transported.

The Peirce Company then contracted with the Pilgrims to take
them to
America, under terms that said all land and profits would
accrue to
the Company for seven years. After that period, the assets
would be
divided among the company's investors, most of whom were not
Pilgrims.

In other words, the Pilgrims were employees of a
corporation. And
guess what - after a few years of doing the work and
enduring the
misery for the sole benefit of the company's investors, the
Pilgrims
renegotiated their contract with the Company, permitting
them to buy
the Company out over a period of years.

In other words, the Pilgrims were the first workers in
America to
collectively organize and bargain for a better contract with
their
employers. It worked to their benefit.

Stormy, you just endorsed the enduring principle of labor
unions.
===END OF HELL T TEXT===

Please read my other post, about a minute ago. I most
certainly did not post the bit about the settlers breaking
thier contract, and renegotiating.

HellT added that story, and then falsely stated that I wrote
or copied it.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Bob F" wrote in message
...
Stormin Mormon wrote:
I endorsed free markets. You added a story, and then
falsely
credited to me.

Ummmm. YOU posted it.

On 11/22/2011 6:11 PM, Country wrote:
On Nov 22, 12:25 pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
http://mises.org/daily/1678


The real Thanksgiving is about the transfer of communicable diseases.
Just as the Native Americans caught small pox from the settlers and
sometimes wiped out total communities, surely many of us will catch
some cold or flue from some snot nosed kid or relative we only see
once or twice a year.

Er, I mean, happy Thanksgiving everyone.

-C-



I love Thanksgiving!
It's always such a great feeling to see my wifes relatives again...in my
rear-view mirror.

Do you leave them with that all terrain tire tread
pattern all over their backs?

Sadly, some families don't get along very well.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Betelgeuse" wrote in
message
...

I love Thanksgiving!
It's always such a great feeling to see my
wifes relatives again...in my
rear-view mirror.

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
...
http://mises.org/daily/1678

Not taught in schools because it's not true.

The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors).

Oy! They were unhappy because they were starving. By 1623 half the
original colonists were dead. They were starving because the assembled group
of misfits didn't really know much about farming in the New World and
weren't well-suited for it. They were forced to band together and share
what they had to survive. Many historians point to the early Christian
church as operating the same way - pooling resources to ensure survival of
the entire group.

The Plymouth colony was formed as a joint-stock company, the very latest in
cutting edge capitalism in 17th century England and Holland.

Interestingly enough it was the "socialism" of the Native Americans that
saved the colony. They were willing to share what they had even though the
colonists had produced none of it. Look what that got them.

As for collectivism being a failure, go to an Israeli kibbutz and tell them
all about it. With a shared vision and good leadership, collectivism can
thrive. For more mixed societies like America, it does not function quite
as well. We must remember that the Pilgrims were all self-selected as
people who didn't like others telling them who to worship or what to do.
That's probably a bad lot to expect cooperation from in an unpleasant
situation like starvation.

--
Bobby G.

On 11/23/2011 3:28 PM, Robert Green wrote:
Interestingly enough it was the "socialism" of the Native Americans that
saved the colony. They were willing to share what they had even though the
colonists had produced none of it. Look what that got them.

They wanted to ensure that their future casino customers survived?

Country wrote:
On Nov 22, 12:25 pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
http://mises.org/daily/1678


The real Thanksgiving is about the transfer of communicable diseases.
Just as the Native Americans caught small pox from the settlers and
sometimes wiped out total communities, surely many of us will catch
some cold or flue from some snot nosed kid or relative we only see
once or twice a year.

Er, I mean, happy Thanksgiving everyone.

-C-


Hmmmm,
Thanks for giving or Thanks for sharing?
Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

"Country" wrote in message
...
On Nov 22, 12:25 pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
http://mises.org/daily/1678


The real Thanksgiving is about the transfer of communicable diseases.
Just as the Native Americans caught small pox from the settlers and
sometimes wiped out total communities, surely many of us will catch
some cold or flue from some snot nosed kid or relative we only see
once or twice a year.

Three factors come into play in the Great Disease Exchange that is
Thanksgiving. (-: People crowd into airplanes, often traveling when they
are sick because they don't want to forfeit the ticket or pay the
reticketing fee. They "spread the wealth" quite effectively. Tests with
fluorescent die bottles strapped to people's head that leaked artificial
snot showed that in very short order people wipe their dripping noses with
their hands and spread it around. When they turned on the black lights to
measure the spread, the investigators were stunned by the sheer amount of
dye spread everywhere.

They also did tests on fishing villages in Scandanavia that were isolated
for four months of the year. Colds and flu spread at amazing speeds even
with one infected person introduced into the mix.

The second reason this time of year is so good at spreading illness is that
household air is very dry and the mucosa are more susceptible to infection
when they're dried out. Third, that little snot-nosed kid probably shares
much of your DNA and any virus or bacteria that can infect him can usually
infect you.

Happy Thankgiving! (-:

--
Bobby G.

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
...
I endorsed free markets. You added a story, and then falsely
credited to me.

Not as far as I can see. It was pretty clear he told a different version
than what you had posted and then congratulated you on posting the initial
story that you thought meant one thing, but further clarification showed
another.

Perhaps if you didn't top-post, it would have been more obvious to you what
had happened. I just looked a second time to make sure, and unless your
newsreader "is broke" then it's pretty obvious HellT quoted a snippet of
what you had written and then wrote new material below that.

Just checked a third time. You jumped the gun. Bad attribution occurs all
the time when people snip. Ironically, this wasn't one of them.

--
Bobby G.

On 11/23/2011 5:20 PM, Higgs Boson wrote:
On Nov 23, 12:28 pm, "Robert
wrote:
"Stormin wrote in message

...

http://mises.org/daily/1678

Not taught in schools because it's not true.

The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors).

Oy! They were unhappy because they were starving. By 1623 half the
original colonists were dead. They were starving because the assembled group
of misfits didn't really know much about farming in the New World and
weren't well-suited for it. They were forced to band together and share
what they had to survive. Many historians point to the early Christian
church as operating the same way - pooling resources to ensure survival of
the entire group.

The Plymouth colony was formed as a joint-stock company, the very latest in
cutting edge capitalism in 17th century England and Holland.

Interestingly enough it was the "socialism" of the Native Americans that
saved the colony. They were willing to share what they had even though the
colonists had produced none of it. Look what that got them.

As for collectivism being a failure, go to an Israeli kibbutz and tell them
all about it. With a shared vision and good leadership, collectivism can
thrive. For more mixed societies like America, it does not function quite
as well. We must remember that the Pilgrims were all self-selected as
people who didn't like others telling them who to worship or what to do.
That's probably a bad lot to expect cooperation from in an unpleasant
situation like starvation.

--
Bobby G.

***Bobby, I admire you for trying to penetrate some of these titanium
skulls! People just don't want to know about anything that might
attack the romantic myths they (we) were taught in school and in the
popular culture.

A good book about the Early Days when the Pilgrims (did not) land on
Plymouth Rock, etc. is :

THE WAR THAT MADE AMERICA: A short history of the French and Indian
War, by Fred Anderson.
Crammed with excellent research about Pilgrim-Native relations at the
outset, and when things began to turn sour.

Another highly readable debunker of myths and legends, about a later
era in our early history:

AMERICAN TEMPEST: How the Boston Tea Party* sparked a revolution, by
Harlow G. Unger.

*the original one

Happy Thanksgiving!

HB

You mean there is no talking turkey or Santa Claus? Darn those popular
childish myths, I'm devastated. :-(

TDD

On Nov 22, 7:38*pm, HellT wrote:
On 11/22/2011 12:25 PM, Stormin Mormon wrote:

* * *http://mises.org/daily/1678

Mises Daily: Thursday, November 25, 2004 by Gary Galles

The Pilgrims' unhappiness was caused by their system of
common property (not adopted, as often asserted, from their
religious convictions, but required against their will by
the colony's sponsors). The fruits of each person's efforts
went to the community, and each received a share from the
common wealth. This caused severe strains among the members,
as Colony Governor William Bradford recorded:

Wow, what a twisted version of history. The truth: King James cut a
deal with a company of merchant adventurers to settle and govern the
area in New England. The Peirce Company would be given 100 acres from
the Crown for in exchange for each settler it transported.

The Peirce Company then contracted with the Pilgrims to take them to
America, under terms that said all land and profits would accrue to
the Company for seven years. After that period, the assets would be
divided among the company's investors, most of whom were not Pilgrims.

In other words, the Pilgrims were employees of a corporation. And
guess what - after a few years of doing the work and enduring the
misery for the sole benefit of the company's investors, the Pilgrims
renegotiated their contract with the Company, permitting them to buy
the Company out over a period of years.

In other words, the Pilgrims were the first workers in America to
collectively organize and bargain for a better contract with their
employers. It worked to their benefit.

Stormy, you just endorsed the enduring principle of labor unions.

Yes pretty twisted.
It is celebrationof how the indians helped the early colonists and
were repaid with ethnic cleansing and infection with deadly disease.