It was 1859. The analogies to the current state of American politics are not precise and even paradoxical. To begin with, John Brown, though crazy and bloodthirsty, was on the right side of history. He preferred wielding guns to scoring debating points. He had utter contempt for politicians, electoral campaigns, and the Constitution. In fact, he wrote his own to replace it. The last thing on his mind was making money off his cause. After his execution, Brown was venerated as a Christ-like