Annotation

**Ms. Millet's Annotations**
In 1776 only one third of all American colonists actually supported independence (Foner, pg. 110). Paine here refers to those who only protest taxes rather than tyranny by calling them "sunshine patriots", much like we would call some people "fair-weather fans" who only wear their Red Sox hats during the Playoffs.

By including both 'man and woman', Paine hopes to make abundantly clear that all colonists are of one mind on the issue. However, it is unlikely that this inclusion signifies his belief in the equality of the sexes. In 1776, women could not vote or hold property in any colony. Despite the appeals of Abigail Adams to her husband John, women are not granted any political rights in either the Declaration or the Constitution.

The practices of the British army factored heavily in the colonists' decision to rebel against the Mother Country. The practices of impressment (the forced conscription of peasants into the army), requisitioning (the expropriation of weapons, foods, and supplies from individuals to meet the army's insatiable needs), and quartering (when an individual or family is forced by law to provide food and lodging to one or more army officers or soldiers), were vehemently opposed by the colonists who had growing feelings of entitlement to their lives, their liberty, and their property.

This phrasing derives verbatim from the Declaratory Act of 1766. Although the violence and nonimportation practices of the colonists in reaction to the Stamp Act eventually forced Parliament to repeal it, in doing so they issued a rebuttal act - the Declaratory Act. This stated that Parliament had the power to pass laws "in all cases whatever." For the British, this act was an effort to save face in light of recent defeat. For the Americans, this sounded like tyranny.