Stars and Bars
Close to 150 years ago, the United States quelled a rebellion which cost the lives of 500,000 men and boys but which also led to the freedom of some 4,000,000 African Americans from the shackles of slavery. (Note that the number of slaves does not include the generations of African Americans who died in slavery’s grasp.) But as the years have gone by, Southern people have cried out that their illegal rebellion was one defending states’ rights, ignoring the hatred and racism that fueled their war and even their way of life, antebellum and today.
Well, some people in southern Delaware seem eager to continue propagating this outrageous lie of Southern honor in a recent celebration of Lee and Jackson reports The News Journal.
Confederate soldiers who returned to their native state [Delaware] sometimes faced hostility, and today there are many who see Confederate flags as a symbol of slavery and racism.
But members of the Delaware Grays say they’re only honoring their ancestors, men who fought for a cause in which they believed.
“We’re not here representing hatred,” Eldreth said. “That flag is a symbol of our heritage.”
Yes, that flag is a symbol of your heritage, if your heritage is slavery and racism.
I guess you did not celebrate Robert E. Lee’s birthday yesterday? It’s hard to believe that one of those evil Republicans, Abe Lincoln, was president at the time.
Of course, today’s Republicans would drum him out of the party, but go ahead and gloat. It’s all the maturity I expect from a REpublican.
Abe Lincoln was also a Liberal…. as were most republicans back then. The switch came in the 60’s when the GOP welcomed the racist Dixiecrats with open arms. Conservatives have been the bane of this country from the get go… all the way back to supporting the King
Abe Lincoln was also a racist…. as were many people back then.
I guess the GOP welcomed the racist Dixiecrats after the GOP overwhelmingly supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and forced its passage? One of the leaders of the fillibuster to stall the legislation was Robert Byrd who remains a Dixiecrat.
I would at this point be constrained to mention that Delaware, although siding with the Union, was a slave state, and our slaves weren’t released by the Emancipation Proclamation, but had to wait for the 13th Amendment.
Oh, the War of Northern Aggression was devastating to our people and our way of life. Losing it made us free all of our darkies.
No, flying the stars and bars is just as bad as flying a Nazi flag – they both promote hate.
If you fly a flag and then have to explain what it really means, you have a problem.
These neo-Confederates are a dime-a-dozen in Kentucky where I grew up. The people in the area have so romanticized the Confederacy, that they’ve really taken slavery out of the equation. They even say the Civil War wasn’t really about slavery it was about Southern agriculture vs. Northern industry (i.e., slavery).
Once again, you are begging nemrod!
actually …. im gonna tread lightly here, because my liberal nerves are frayed as well…
BUT
Many believe Lincoln only freed the slaves in order to make slavery the war’s main focus…. kind of like making the Iraq war about freeing the Iraqi people only after the original 4 reasons fell flat. He did this to keep Russia from helping the Confederacy. Czar Alexander II had freed the serfs in 1861 and wanted to be known as a reformer. After the Emancipation Proclamation… which as you all know only freed the southern slaves (Delaware kept ours) Czar Alexander II could not support the south because he would be supporting slavery. Without the help of a major nation like Russia, the Confederacy didn’t stand a chance. A good thing done for not-the-best-of reasons.
He also only freed the slaves in those states that were in revolt. It did not apply to slaves in Kentucky and Delaware.
I SAID DELAWARE GEEZER! READ MY DAMN POST YOU WING NUT-NAZI! just kidding dude 🙂
i forgot about KY (jelly)
In any case… at the time Lincoln wasn’t the said he has become. Typical republican.
Wow. 13 posts of jackoff trying to forget the rogering you got in Massachusetts.
I guess that’s why liberals are soulless academics. Always changing the subject, never truly committing to one.
hey Ellie, there have been specifically two (or three if you count yesterday’s open thread, five if you count the two this morning with articles citing future advice for dems) threads about the Mass race. They include a “what have we learned” thread where you would be able to gloat to your heart’s content. Liberals can multi-task.
and I’d rather be a “soulless academic” than someone who wears ignorance like a badge of pride.
And yet the former keep getting outwitted by the latter….
When does it dawn on you that, if there is a God, he does not favor thee?
so, you believe god endorses discrimination of the sick, poor, and un influential? you conservatives really are the scum of the earth. your insurgency is in it’s last throws.
You forgot the queers.
It’s a damned shame that the rebellion wasn’t successful – we’d have a north where we could actually pass decent policies without worrying about the backwards-ass conservatives dominating.
And in the south, eventually the natural population increase among the slaves would lead to a majority, an eventual slave revolt, and possibly a partnership with the north, but with the reasonable people running the states who actually appreciate freedom.
anononthisone-So you would sacrific the country, and leave millions in slavery so you could have your way. Kind of says it all.
The War was not about slavery. Lincoln didn’t bring forth the Emancipation Proclamation until the Union had been defeated on the field of battle on numerous occassions. Lincoln needed the support of the North, as most were faltering towards giving the South their independance in order to facilitate the end of the war. They were tired of hearing about the death tolls. If Lincoln’s morals were in the right place, he would have freed ALL of the slaves. He didn’t do this because he wanted the support of the border states and feared that they too would succede if he banned slavery in their states.
The issue of slavery would have resolved itself. Technology would have made the owning of slaves a thing of the past, just as it did in Britain and France. Yes, the slaves would have suffered longer, but the technology would have made it more profitable to not own slaves. Most historians agree on this fact.
I think the majority of the commentors on here need a history lesson.
The politicians from the northern states are the worst politicians. You can have them. Hillary Clinton, Barrack Obama, Nanci Pelosi, Bloomberg… They are ALL idiots.
Before you judge me…
I am neither Conservative nor Liberal. I am educated (Masters Degree in Psychology), a combat veteran of both wars, served nearly 10 years on active duty in the USMC, and sick and tired of Washington and all of the hypocritical beaurocrats that live there. I love my country very much, and have sacrificed more than most of you could possibly imagine to defend Her. I also took an oath to defend Her against all enemies, foreign AND domestic. I’ve seen things come out of my dog’s ass that makes more sense than the things coming out of Congress.
Shame on you America! We have children going to bed at night without eating, homeless people on the street with nowhere to go, elderly citizens going without needed medication, unemployment at over 10%… and a fund-raising event on 12 different TV networks for the people of Haiti.
We have a President with no leadership abilities, a Congress that couldn’t lead themselves out of a wet paper bag, and a military crying for a leader… YES, our military is already fed up with the White House. I heard not one bad comment about former President George Bush, but hear bad things about Obama daily.
Keep leaving your freedoms in the hands of our current government, and you’ll have none left. The Communist/Socialist/Facist Liberals are slowly whittling away the Constitution right in front of you and you are too blind to see it.
Think you can trust the government??? Ask a Native American.
Wow, Dan. It’s time for your medication.
Please answer for me why the South seceded? What was it that they feared in the newly elected President Lincoln?
The rest of your comment is typical teabagger babble. I guess that you guys must have just had another round of speechifying or something and you’re all revved up.
I suggest that you try and look up the definitions of some of the words that you are using there. You keep using those words… I do not think they mean what you think they mean…
Were you serving your country when the Patriot Act was passed? Hmmm. I don’t remember you screaming then about fascists taking away your Constitutional rights?
Get thee to a militia meeting.
“The issue of slavery would have resolved itself. … Most historians agree on this fact.”
Actually, most historians don’t bother considering this question, and a prediction cannot be a “fact”.
Dan’s understanding of the Civil War, its causes and consequences reflects the residue of a discredited generation of historians. Sean Wilentz elaborates:
http://www.tnr.com/book/review/the-return-ulyses-s-grant
Yeah, it’s pretty common for the neo-Confederates to say slavery would have ended on its own eventually. The whole sharecropper thing that came up next pretty much bursts that bubble doesn’t it? The South needed free/cheap labor to continue.
Yeah, it’s pretty common for the neo-Confederates to say slavery would have ended on its own eventually.
Christ, just imagine if FDR had to deal with slave states as well as the Nazis and the Depression.
Liberalgeek, you probably believe the Boston Tea Party was about a “tea tax” as well, huh?
Let’s think about the phrase “Union.”
A group of states mutually agreeing to “unify” into ONE country. As such, the individual states agreed upon unifying. The individual states did not like being bullied by the Northern states who were passing laws in order to make newly formed states outnumber the Southern states, which would cause the North to be able to pass any laws they wanted without the South being able to out-vote them. It’s the same thing we see in Congress today. The only difference is the pettiness of the Democrats and Republicans. One is just as dirty as the other.
I understand it is a hard pill for you to swallow. You know… your “hero” President Obama is a loser. His approval ratings are worse than George W. Bush’s ratings ever were. I can’t wait til 2012, but then again… we’ll just get another “lesser of two evils” election.
I say we fire them all and vote for common everyday people.
Liberalgeek… I meant to ask you in my previous post…
Did you serve in the military or are you just enjoying the mantle of freedom provided to you at the cost of my fellow Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen’s lives?
Are you just another Liberal Lamb that is sending another Lion to battle for you?
Oh, I am sure that the tax on tea is just like human bondage. Thanks for that, we don’t get enough intellectuals here.
Please tell me why the South seceded. You can bitch and moan about industrial v. agrarian or States Rights v. Federalism but the reason for secession was fear of abolition. Everything else is justification, just like civil rights was racism, not some states rights issue.
Dan – Have you ever worked on a farm, or do you just benefit from the labors of the farmer?
Your militarism is sickening. I also wonder if you joined the military because you wanted to defend the nation from all enemies foreign and domestic or just because you like to shoot guns and dress up?
Dan,
Thank you for your service to our country. I truly mean that from the bottom of my heart. For that you are a brave and honorable man and deserve our respect for that.
However that does not mean that you get to rub it into the faces of strangers, or that you get to think your opinion is better/matters more because of it. Plenty of liberal people are vets/current soldiers or those people’s loved ones. For that you are a brave and honorable jerk. Cut it out.
Serving in the military doesn’t give anyone the right to re-write history and make things up.
And I’m one of those liberals who’s also a vet – 3rd generation liberal and 3rd generation vet.
Thanks for your service too MJ!
Dan’s not the only Confederate apologist leading the GOP. It’s star time at the Kent County Republican Party’s “Lincoln Day” Dinner on February 12. The guest speaker will be Col. North. Take the Fifth!
For the Liberal Vets in the postings… thank you for your service.
For John Manifold: You obviously didn’t read my other post. I am neither a Conservative, nor a Liberal. I’m just another American that is tired of the Conservative vs Liberal bullshit banter. None of them are worth their word.
For liberalgeek: Yes, I was raised on a farm. I can tell you that it would probably take 400,000 slaves to get as much cotton up in 4 hours as I can get up with a Cotton Picker. I also had tobacco, soybeans, peanuts, horses, and cattle.
I am not saying that anyone that didn’t serve in the military is less of an American. I just don’t appreciate the criticism the Liberals are throwing at the wars, and our prior leadership without having been there themselves.
For the vets that posted. Thank you for your service. You were lions fighting for lambs that were too afraid to fight for themselves. It’s easy to send someone else.
For the person that criticized my motives for joining the Marine Corps… I wouldn’t expect you to understand service and devotion to your country. My father fought in Viet Nam, Korea, and WWII (Pacific and European Theatres). My grandfather fought in WWI and the Spanish-American War. My great-grandfather fought in the War Against Northern Aggression. Do you know the history of your own family???
You can say what you want. Your history books differ from those of us raised in the south.
#1 rule of history… it’s written by the winner in whatever twisted way they want to write it.
This will be my last post. Feel free to enjoy the freedom that the 1st Amendment forwards you by continuing your holyer than thou bullshit.
Regardless… the division in this country is still there… this President… this Congress… has done nothing but solidify that division. You guys are in for a big surprise in 2012.
One less Confederate sympathizer. Bye, Dan.
Let’s not get our hopes up JM. It’s my experience that right-wing neothug Christianists like Dan always come back like a Republican politician cruising a bus stop’s men’s room.
Interesting that you have personal experience with Republican politicians cruising bus stop men’s rooms, nemski.
Dan is a punk-ass liar. I bet that he is actually still living at home with his Mom and Dad. I smell it on him.
He has all of the depth of a wading pool.
I’m not a liberal or a conservative, I just hate all people that I consider liberals…
Dan, don’t come back here with your rewriting of history, idiot. There are these things, they’re called books, you should get someone to read one to you some day.
lg, he’s too busy burning them.