And it has absolutely nothing to do with politics.

George Washington lived by a series of codes that related to politics, productivity, self-reflection, but most of all: manners.

He was, in every sense of the world, a gentleman.

However, with even a brief look at a 21st century restaurant, sidewalk, or kitchen table, he would dismiss us. He’d return home to the 18th century with far less optimism about the American experiment.

Washington’s 18th Code:

Cell phones would end the Revolution before it even began.