You say you want a Revolution? Well, we all want to change the world.
The truth of the matter is that the American Revolution did not have overwhelming support. At best, there was about 1/3 of the population that was behind it. Another third was dead-set against it, and the remaining third was at best ambivalent.
The 1/3 that was for it contained some of the wealthiest and influential people of the day. They were the ones hurt worst by the British taxation. If I remember correctly John Hancock made his biggest profits off smuggling from the West Indies and didn't like the way the Brits were cracking down. If the Brits had made it worth the while of a few dozen men, the Revolution probably would not have happened.
In the case of the Civil War, there was also a minority in favor in the South that actually had anything to gain from secession. However, it was these fellows that ran the state legislatures. Similarly, the North found itself being led by a regime that wanted to save the Union when there was a strong minority that would have just as soon seen the south go its own way. U.S. Grant attributed the war to the advent of the railroads. Once folks up north started taking the train into the deep south and saw what slavery really was, they were revulsed. However, this was a minority opinion in 1860.
