It has been a while since I have posted – and my life has changed – for the better this time!! I am a grandfather now, and have the most beautiful granddaughter ever born. I do often ponder on the world she will grow up in – more specifically (and importantly) – the country she will inherit. Winston Churchill once said, “History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.” He also said, “The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see.”. Joanna, this post was created for you to reflect on during future problems/crises concerning our Republic (hopefully it still will be.). The truth almost always requires a lot of effort to find. This post will (hopefully) dispel popular myths attached to the Civil War – or, as your great grandmother said, “it was the War Between the States. There weren’t anything “civil” about it.”
I never dreamt I’d see the day when a General Lee reference and/or statue would have to be erased from history. Also, from this day in southern history: I never dreamed I’d see an Alabama redneck delete a song with a REL reference in it either. People confuse heroes and perfection. In the last two years (forget Civil War references) I have seen people inspired by Ghandi ridiculed for gender/sexuality/pedophile claims, Thoreau followers are being ridiculed by people saying he was fake and his sister did his laundry/etc. MLK Jr is also being called a white man’s N word, and on and on and on. Whatever happened to being able to celebrate people for contributions without crucifying them for flaws/faults? I am just waiting on the vilification of the founding fathers (and good ol Abe Lincoln) for their beliefs and views (damn deists/racists) to make 100% sure our republic cant survive. Also for the record: NOBODY, REPEAT NOBODY, passes the smell test when all is said and done… The greatest humans have flaws; the worst have some redeeming quality… Riley is being BBQ’d on twitter – and I bet 1000% his label is behind it, not him.
Astronaut Scott Kelly was ridiculed for quoting the very Churchill I quoted earlier.
https://twitter.com/stationcdrkelly/status/1048967485821599744?s=21
As is almost always true, follow the money – find the truth. The north was set to lose tax income, the south – the $$$ in tariffs imposed and money lost when slaves were no longer “property”. Look closely at the “Panic of 1857” – in which the North had a depression while the South prospered. The irony that might have spared us from the War Tween the States? Had the third branch (judiciary) ruled on the legality of the tariffs, slavery, AND secession – PERHAPS it wouldnt have happened. (Sarcasm) But, then again, I tend to be more of a “glass half full” instead of empty kinna guy…. The difference is whether one is pouring or drinking. But I digress.
https://medium.com/@jonathanusa/everything-you-know-about-the-civil-war-is-wrong-9e94f0118269
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/supreme-court-rules-in-dred-scott-case
I’m not justifying slavery by any means, but I do believe most non-racist white southerners (before 1860) thought the “peculiar institution” was a necessary EVIL to maintain their standard of living, and slaves in the south were “worth” (every human is priceless) > 3 billion dollars. (Nobody “gives away 3 billion without a fight – even if it is only with ones-self). Robert E Lee himself wrote his wife in 1856 (before secession and the war) echoing my belief. A partial quote from it:
“In this enlightened age, there are few I believe, but what will acknowledge, that slavery as an institution is a moral & political evil in any Country.“
Last, but certainly not least, I think slavery was already on the way to being abolished. Much of the work slaves did in the south was agricultural, and inventions were just around the corner that would replace most slave labor (tractors/combines/etc.). Also, the slave trade and importation of slaves was abolished long before the war – in 1808.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/congress-abolishes-the-african-slave-trade
“Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it” is a quote attributed to George Santayana. Life is real time – history is not. Accepted values change over time – for instance Coca Cola originally had cocaine in it. It was removed when society decided it was “bad”. I surmise that only a very small percentage of the world’s population actually study/learn history – it is a difficult and time consuming process. It requires third person insight and the use of nuance when studying complex conflict. One must be able to see both sides and reject “simple” arguments for war (ie slavery for the north / state’s rights for the south). For that reason, perhaps the quote “Those who study propagandized history are doomed to repeat it” is also true. Most historians think that Reconstruction in the south would have been much smoother and easier had Lincoln lived his full second term – I tend to agree. I feel like that helps explain the hundred or so years it took to end segregation and bring civil rights to fruition.
However, I recently found a live hand grenade that would (could/would) change history forever were it taught. Pity that the best (clearest) info on it had to come from the UK – check it out.
I am 100% opposed to slavery in any form, but I am also convinced that agriculture slavery in the south was a dying institution anyhow due to technological advancement. Cotton aint “hand picked” any longer. Imagine the pain and lives saved, not to mention racial tensions post 1865. Eli Whitney’s cotton gin was just as big of a reason that the Civil War occurred as slavery and states’ rights. From the Library of Congress.From history.com
“James Madison and his colleagues had reason to believe that slavery would die a natural death. Before the invention of the cotton gin—a machine patented in 1794 that sped the laborious process of cleaning cotton of its seeds—slavery seemed increasingly unprofitable. Indeed, Madison, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington never made substantial profits from their plantations.”
The tractor appeared in the early 1900’s and Rust’s cotton harvester in the 1930’s – it was automated by 1950.
https://www.thehenryford.org/collections-and-research/digital-collections/artifact/250111/
Had the cotton gin, the tractor, and farm automation happened simultaneously, who knows what may have happened? We had the cart in front of the horse – so to speak.
Herein lies a non-discussed part of history. (In honor of Black History month I edited this post to add it.)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jun/16/slavery-starvation-civil-war
Joanna, I implore you to keep an open mind and never accept things at face value. In your lifetime, a similar problem will (probably) occur due to Artificial Intelligence and the lack of manual labor necessity. It won’t be seen that way though. Question everything, and never stop seeking Truth. Learn the process called Satyagraha and live by its tenets. Above all, learn to love unselfishly, and treat all people with respect – follow the “golden rule”. Also, don’t forget where you came from – and never be ashamed of it. Keep a tie with the land and family lines which created you – it will keep your feet on the ground when your head is in the air – learn to walk and fly at the same time. Never forget how much I love you, and how much others in your life love you – as Love conquers all.