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Originally Posted by Bill O'Rights
The war had less to do with slavery, at the time, as relatively few southerners actually owned slaves.
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I disagree with you, as do many Civil War historians.
A lot of (revisionist?) historians seem to like arguing this point, as I guess they don't like the taste of defending slavery. But the fact remains that slavery was
fundamental to the outbreak of the war. The Southern States warned that they would secede if Lincoln was elected or inaugurated,
due expressly to his anti-slavery position.
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Slaves were an expensive commodity.
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Yes they were. As were plantations and large houses and horse carriages and holiday homes etc. The point is that the monied classes, those in positions of power, had slaves. And because of the invention of the cotton gin and the emergence of cotton plantations, they had most to lose.
The fact that most Southerners had no slaves has no relevance at all, as most Southerners had no real power or influence over Southern politics.
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The war began over the issue of states sovereign rights,
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The right to hold slaves, the right to extend slavery to new states, the right to have escaped slaves returned etc etc.
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then evolved into an issue over slavery when President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclomation, freeing slaves only in those states in open rebellion to the US.(border states, loyal to neither, were left alone).
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To say that slavery only became an issue after the Emancipation Proclamation is, at best, wrong and at worst, disengenous. It was an issue over 40 years BEFORE the war even started.
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This issue effectively kept England from formally recognizing the Confederate States as a nation, severely limiting their chances for winning the war. Which, of course, they did not.
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Absolutely correct. And there was a very real danger that this would have happened. The only thing that stopped Great Britian (the world super-power of the time) from recognizing the Confederacy was the repugnance of slavery. Had the Confederates themselves considered some kind of emancipation (as recommended by several of their own politicans and generals) would have swung it towards their favour. But the fact they did not (another example of how slavery, and not State's rights were foremost in Confederate minds) coupled with the North's Emancipation Proclamation effectively sealed their fate. Britian now withheld recognition from the South, despite the Trent Affair, despite the damage to their cloth-making industry, despite the cotton embargo.. Once the North "freed the slaves" (even if it was only a first step), Britian had no choice.
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The image of the confederate battle flag has since been adopted as a symbol used by various white supremacist groups, most notably the KKK, and the Aryan Nation. This fact, coupled with revisionist history of the Civil War, has turned a once proud symbol into a feared, and much maligned, emblom of hatred.
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Well, to be perfectly honest, it was the battle flag of a confederation of States, who seceded to protect slavery. It has been used ever since by racist extremists. And, as far as I remember, it's actually illegal to fly on State buildings in many countries.
In another thread I used the phrase "If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it's a duck." The fact remains that the flag represents racist extremism to the vast majority of people. You may find that lamentable, but it's a fact.
The swastika (or tetraskelion) is actually a spiritual symbol and is quite important in Hindu and Budhist religions, amongst others. But most of the world relate it to Nazism. Same issue here.
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This has been your Bill O'Rights history lesson, for the day. By the way, I am a Civil War Re-enactor, and have portrayed soldiers, and officers, from both sides of the conflict. Hope this helps?
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And a rather revisionist one at that.
I'm an armchair Civil War historian (ie, I love the subject and buy and read far too many book on the subject). Interesting subject.
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Oh, and by the way, the kid knew better. Kick her in the butt, and tell her to get on with her life.
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Agreed! :-)
Mr Mephisto