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Friday, August 14, 2015

Short answer: No

Question: Was the 'War Between the States' about slavery?

This is not *new* information that Mr Sensing presents.

5 comments:

K T Cat said...

Wow!

Ilíon said...

So much of what is Constitutionally wrong -- and anti-liberty -- in American government is a direct result of the (mis-named) Civil War. And the myth that the war was about "ending slavery" helps protect the present unConstitutional setup from scrutiny.

planks length said...

Gotta disagree with you on this one, Ilion. The American Civil War, although unquestionably the greatest catastrophe in our nation's history and probably preventable, was nevertheless (as the colonel said) our Finest Hour, and something all Americans - North and South - ought to be proud of. The North were the Good Guys in that one, and it is appropriate to give thanks to God for its victory.

(And I say this as someone with a great deal of affection for the Rebel Flag, and with tremendous respect for those who fought for the Confederacy.)

Ilíon said...

PL, that response doesn't even make sense.

Whether or not we should be proud of slaughtering over 600,000 fellow Americans, how does that dispute (much less disprove) what I said?

planks length said...

I think it's a damn shame that the PC crowd today seem eager to undue the brilliance of Appomattox, wherein the South was treated as an honorable foe honorably defeated. The Confederates were allowed to return home with their dignity intact. Nowadays, the anti-flag folks apparently think that Grant ought to have ground his conqueror's boot into the rebels' faces.

I recall the news reports of an Iwo Jima "reunion" held in 1985, where former enemies embraced each other and openly wept together, expressing their mutual love. Yes, love. Survivors from both sides held no bitterness whatsoever towards those who were doing their level best to kill them 40 years ago. And Iwo Jima is a good candidate for the most horrifically savage battle of all time, yet its participants not only respected each other, they honored them.

Now that in no way meant that the Americans at that ceremony suddenly felt that the Japanese were the Good Guys in WWII, or that they should not be grateful for an American victory. In the same way, it ought to not only be possible for Americans today to respect and honor both sides in the Civil War (without whitewashing the very real differences between them), it is essential that we do so.