>>>
>>>But those guys who said "all men are created equal" then sat down and figured out how to implement it. Their first attempt wasn't very good, so they came back and did it better. They didn't think the slogan was enough.
>>>
>>
>>The constitution was ratified in 1791
>>The revolution began in 1775.
>>They fought first and made laws later.
>>
>
>The Articles of Confederation were passed in 1777, so they didn't wait long. Especially when you realize that they didn't start out to have a revolution; they started out to get the British to treat them like British citizens. I think it's reasonable to date the actual revolution from the Declaration of Independence, which while it didn't lay out a system of laws certain did lay out a set of principles by which they believed governing should occur.
>
>Tamar

Granted.
The Declaration was what I had in mind. It set out the ideas motivating the colonists.