Fed Up – 1776 & 2016
July 5th, 2016
Yesterday was the 4th of July – Independence Day. Falling on a Monday this year, it created a nice long weekend to relax and spend time with our families, but in 1776 it was a little different. The signers of the Declaration of Independence spent a long time trying to decide whether to stay or seek independence. Tired of rule from a government across the water, tired of being taxed to death from afar, tired of being told what to do by people who did not listen to their needs; the colonists decided to act and face the consequences. They faced the serious risk that they would be rounded up and hung, but they moved forward nonetheless.
The European rulers discovered that you better be careful when someone gets “fed up”. This simple expression accurately describes the colonists’ feelings leading up to the Declaration of Independence. It was the ultimate statement that they were not going to be dictated by others anymore. Wait, are we talking about July 4, 1776 or are we talking about June 23, 2016?
It was less than two weeks ago when British voters voted to leave the European Union. Since then, all hell has broken loose in the UK. We have all been hearing learned people pontificate on why and how it happened. The markets and the world will take months to fully digest the impact, but a potentially bigger issue is at hand – understanding the potential power of people who have become fed up with something.
Populist movements are important to recognize, but are often hard to anticipate. Sometimes it takes a while for a group to get so tired and angry over an issue that they act. Often the action is severe and feels like it is coming out of leftfield. Who would have ever thought that a billionaire real estate developer would be the Republican nominee for the President of the US? In my opinion this has happened because he has tapped into the power of people being thoroughly fed up. The usual behaviors have gone out of the window. No longer are our voters just going along with things they do not like. In normal times a voter might not like their current senator or mayor, but they let it slide, believing there’s nothing that can truly be done about it. This feeling of frustration can build and build until finally people get fed up, and action follows.
Former President Richard Nixon used to describe a large portion of American voters as the “Silent Majority”. This group was characterized during the Vietnam War as the people who did not protest, who the media disregarded, and from whom pollsters did not seek opinions. They were effectively ignored. In the same way, there are silent majorities around the world today who have the power to act, and act in surprising ways. Be wary of groups that are being ignored, or misunderstood. With time they might well become fed up, and turn the established order on its head.
Carl Gambrell
