Thomas Paine produced the greatest opening for an argument and used only two words - the best title - for his essay, Common Sense.
English classes overlook the opening - eight words, eight single-syllable words. How does one duplicate "These are the times that try men's souls"?
Someone may find an equal to the opening, but more likely the best one will be hauled out of the computer rather than gathered from a brilliant brain.
I always enjoyed a chance to have a classroom find a sentence equal to those concise, electrifying words. I never saw the equal, but that is what helped the colonies build a foundation for the United States.
That is what lacks today. The majority of clergy are far distant from the foundations of their own creeds and their own denominations. They have ready publications, just off the press, that will make sure they are doing well in the coming months. But they know what is happening.
America itself has fallen into shambles (total disorder) and little will happen to make that change. The statistics are obvious. Those who look back can compare their growing-ups with the standards of today. I grew up with Father Knows Best on TV, unlikely today.
