What arguments did Thomas Paine make on behalf of American independence? Why did he think that Americans could create a new and better form of government?

Ideas of the Revolution-On January 1, 1776, Thomas Paine(right) published Common Sense, which became one of the most influential pamphlets in all of American history. In this short book, Paine argued that the time for political debate and attempts to compromise with Great Britain was now over. Fighting had begun, and Americans ought to end all allegiance to King George III and the British Parliament and gain their independence. Paine's arguments struck a chord with many Americans; 100,000 copies of Common Sense were printed in the first three months of 1776.

According to Paine, Americans had an opportunity to begin a totally new era in history. By creating a new government based on the principle that citizens should have the power to govern themselves, Americans could create a society unlike the corrupt, old governments of Europe. He argued that America was like a young child: if it could be taught right and wrong at an early age, it could avoid the corruption and decay that had destroyed free governments from ancient Rome to the modern era.