I ask for, not at once no government, but at once a better government.

“I ask for, not at once no government, but at once a better government.” - Henry David Thoreau


Henry David Thoreau was born 1817 and Concord, Massachusetts. In 1845, he started a twenty-six month long experience by living on Ralph Waldo Emerson’s land near Walden Pond. During this he lived in a one-room cabin and on trip to town in 1846, he ran into a tax collector and refused to pay taxes. “In 1846, on a trip into town, he ran into the local tax collector who asked him to pay six years of delinquent poll taxes. Thoreau refused because of his opposition to the Mexican-American War and slavery. He spent a night in jail and was freed the next day, over his loud protests, when his aunt paid his taxes.” as stated on newworldencyclopedia.org. He opposed the government for waging the Mexican-American War because he saw it a try at extending slavery. “He opposed the government for waging the Mexican war (to extend slavery) eloquently in Resistance to Civil Government, based on his brief experience in jail; he lectured against slavery in an abolitionist lecture, Slavery in Massachusetts. He even supported John Brown's efforts to end slavery after meeting him in Concord, as in A Plea for Captain John Brown.” as stated on vcu.edu.

When writing “Civil Disobedience” Henry David Thoreau probably didn’t realize he would be affecting great leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. “Over the years, Thoreau's reputation has been strong, although he is often cast into roles -- the hermit in the wilderness, the prophet of passive resistance (so dear to Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King).” as stated on vcu.edu.

Today’s government may need a dose of Thoreau’s philosophy. Our problems are a little different, it’s no longer slaves. I’m not trying to step on any toes, our government is sufficient. But we need a better government to help us do what’s right; less war and more caring for the economy.Though I feel as if this quote could have fit anywhere in time, I’m sure that many people have thought so before. As a college student, the economy is my worst enemy. “Today’s unemployment rate is 9.1 percent. From 1931 to 1941, the annual rates ranged from 9.9 percent to 24.9 percent. So peak unemployment since the start of the most recent recession, as bad as it has been, remains well under half of the peak it reached during the Great Depression.” as stated on politicalfact.com.