That "war of Northern aggression"...

[kentuck]

that some Governors and politicians and self-proclaimed "patriots" are eager to implant into the consciousness of yet another generation.

It serves no useful purpose. It is not good for our society or our country. It is not an argument that either side can win.

There is not a soul alive who remembers the Great Civil War. We can only know what we read about that Great War. Even more, we can only know what we perceive when we read about that Great War.

Some philosophers have noted that we can only gain knowledge through experience. If that be the case, then there is no one that has the direct knowledge of the Great Civil War. Who knows if there was a similar political climate in the late 1850's, as there is today?

We do know that many people died. Our nation was torn apart. Brother fought Brother. It was a high price to pay for our sins. Let us not travel down that road again...

[Alexander]

1. Sadly, many in the South cannot get over a war that happened about 100 years before their birth.

When I see someone sporting a Confederate flag, I'm tempted to ask "Why do you hate America?"

[RoyGBiv]

3. This is not unique to the American South ...

I'm not sure why we should expect an American sub-culture to be any better at this than anyone else is. Mythologies invariably form around catastrophic (and some not so catastrophic) events, and humans seem wired to cling to them indefinitely.

And frankly, American culture as a whole hasn't "gotten over" the Civil War. It's expressed in different ways through various sub-cultures, but most of the major ones express it in some form. The groups that seem least prone to it are those which developed around immigrants who arrived largely after the war ... which makes sense.

[laughingliberal]

2. I tend to call it the 'war of Southern treason.' nt

[backscatter712]

4. You beat me to it!

The War of Southern Treason it is!

[csziggy]

5. Recently I read a local history that ended with the Civil War

(The author had a previous local history that started with it and then went back and wrote the 'prequel'.) He had a lot of information about the period from the founding of Tallahassee, Florida, up to the beginning of the war - apparently there were several newspapers that printed lots of detailed reports on the various gatherings and speeches. The author also had access to many journals and personal reminiscences of many of the planters and their families who lived around the state capitol.

Setting aside the style of language, the feeling is very similar to what is heard now, even up to the accusations of disloyalty laid against people who tried to insert some sanity into the conversations. For anyone who wants to read this stuff, check out Clifton Paisley, "The Red Hills of Florida, 1528-1865" and his first book, "From Cotton to Quail, 1860-1967."

Maybe another day I will try to post some quotes he has in the book. Tonight it is too late, and I am still breaking in the new computer Mr. csziggy brought home at 10 PM - I still have essential programs to locate and install!

[krispos42]

6. The War of State's Rights over Human Rights.

That's how I think of it.

[Chulanowa]

7. I hope I'm not reading you correctly

But it seems like you're advocating just "sweeping it under the rug" with statements like 'it's not an argument either side can win' and 'nobody alive remembers it'.

People don't need to be alive for it to be remembered - it's very well-documented. And it certainly IS an argument that can be won. South Carolina seceded because it felt its right to treat human beings as chattel was threatened. South Carolina then opened fire on Fort Sumter when federal troops refused to surrender and vacate. Seven more states seceded, each in turn copying South Carolina's declaration, in which it outlines fears that slavery might be ended as a core reason for leaving the union.

In other words, the southern states, spearheaded by South Carolina, committed treason against the country and instigated the bloodiest war in American history, because they felt it was their divine right to treat human beings like farm animals.

There, argument won, through information of the period easily accessible to anyone who has a local library or an internet connection. It was not a communal crime - the burden of the entire thing weighs on the same fucks who are today still preaching about state's rights and holding rallies against that uppity negro and threatening secession.