From a book about the American Revolution written in 1999

In his book The American Revolution: First Person Accounts by Men Who Shaped Our Nation, published in 1999, T.J. Stiles makes the following observation, presented with no further commentary:

"Revolutions often begin with backward glances.  A conservative impulse most often moves the mass of mankind -- a fear of change, a dread that what little one has will soon be taken away.  Rarely have governments been overturned by a bold vision of the future; rather, popular radicalism often rises from the churning tide of events.  A ruler's initiative prompts a protest; a protest sparks repression; repression stirs resistance; and on and on in a cycle of polarization, anger, and revolt.  Never has this process been more clear than in the American Revolution."