An Englishman who emigrated to America, Thomas Paine used his pamphlet Common Sense to inspire the colonies to rise up against his homeland. Paine proved to be more than a century ahead of his time, demanding social reforms that are now integral elements of modern societies: gsubsidies for the poor, pre- and post-natal care for women, and universal social security. As Harlow Giles Unger details, however, Paine's vitriolic attacks on organized religion alienated many of his friends, and the muse of the American Revolution found himself alone and forgotten.