In spite of all the talk about no taxation without representation. The shooting didn't start until the lawful authorities went for the arms of the colonists.
Then all hell broke loose.
Another interesting fact from the 1770s is that the British overlords actually paid the taxes that they levied on the colonists, too.
They weren't a crew of arrogant Tax Cheats who were "too smart", "too important" and "too connected" to pay the taxes everybody else had to pay.