Ironfoot, I'm new to this "discussion" and I can't help but wonder; where are you from? Not to belittle your points mentioned earlier, but, DUDE! ... I'm being as polite as I possibly can... You are in dire need of a TRUE History Lesson. I say this with a grin on my face, as I'm very aware that the "history" you've learned was surely derived from a text book written... let me see... somewhere in the North. Now, as we all know (or should know) that the history of armed conflicts (i.e. wars) is always written by the "victors". We also should realize that 99% of The War For Southern Independence (or The War of Northern Aggression, as some people call it) was fought entirely in the South, thereby making it a war of aggression on the part of the North. That being said, there are some key FACTS you should be made aware of. The Library of Congress would be a great place for you to check these facts. I did. They are ALL there, preserved for all who will look. Let me start with the root cause of the war. It was over MONEY, just like every war that has ever been or ever will be fought. Let me explain. In the 5 to 10 years leading up to the outbreak of the war, more than 80% of all tax revenue in America was paid in by the Southern States, while they realized practically NO benefits from these taxes. The money was used to build infrastructure (i.e. roads, railways, modernizing cities, etc.) ONLY in the Northern States and none was spent in the South. The Northern ports had raised their tariffs so much the southern goods had to be sold where the producers could see the highest profits, overseas. The Northern States tried to dictate to whom these southern goods be sold to, thereby forcing the producers to sell to the north and pay higher tariffs to enter northern ports. (Does taxation without representation ring any bells?)
THAT being said, let's move on to the issue of slavery, which has always been taught as being THE one and ONLY cause of the war.
First point... not one single slave was ever brought to the South through a Southern port. Why not? It was illegal. The Confederate Constitution actually outlawed importation of slaves 7 1/2 years before the U.S. did. Only the Northern ports were allowed by the government to import slaves. They were actually owned by the Northern business people until they could be "sold south" , thereby creating a very lucrative market for them up north.
Second point... less than 6% of Southerners even owned any slaves. Would it make any sense for 94% of the population to fight to preserve something they had no part of? This 94% fought to defend their homes and families because the Union forces literally invaded the South. It was not until 1863 that Confederate troops entered Pennsylvania (Gettysburg).
Third point... Slavery existed in the North DURING the war. Look it up. Ulysses S. Grant owned slaves until after the war.
The South pleaded with Lincoln (who was openly racist; read his campaign speeches.) to allow the same form of abolition as the North was privy to. The laws in the North allowed that "any slave born into slavery before (a certain date) in 1838 shall remain a slave for life. Those born after this date shall remain in slavery until the attained age of 21, thereby allowing the Northern slave owner to have such opportunity as to not lose the value of his "property". But guess what happened just prior to the 21st b-day of these oh-so-fortunate slaves... you guessed it... they were "sold South", guaranteeing the property owner would not suffer any monetary loss whatever. Why would they, our freedom loving friends from the north, do such a thing? MONEY! If these slaves were allowed to remain as freemen in the North, they would be in competition with whites for jobs. Plain and simple.
Fourth point... Abraham Lincoln had almost NOTHING to do with freeing the slaves. Have you actually ever READ the Emancipation Proclamation? It freed absolutely NOBODY!! First of all, it was NOT a legal document. It was a political ploy by "Honest Abe" to stop England and France from giving their support to the South. It had no legally binding authority. Secondly, the CSA had been a separate country (had its OWN government and Constitution) for more than a year an a half. The E.P. had no more legality here than it would have in Russia or Spain. The very slaves that remained in the North (or Northern controlled territories) are actually EXCLUDED from freedom... Imagine that... He was trying to free people he had no jurisdiction over while leaving those he could free in bondage. Hmmm... Thirdly, The slaves were not freed until 1868, three years after Lincoln's death, when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution was enacted.
I could go on and on about this, but there isn't enough room here. I try to at least show a well researched viewpoint in a way such as not to insult anyone. I hope you can at least partially see my point. Nobody I know of today believes slavery should still exist. Every expert I've spoken with agrees that had the war never been fought, slavery would have ended naturally within 15 years because of the advent of machinery and technologies being introduced at the time. These same experts also say that had the South won their independence that reunification of the two countries would have occurred well before WWI, out of necessity.
Don't get me wrong. I am PROUD to be American. I am also PROUD of my heritage. I know from documented evidence of many many more truths of this terrible time in our history that will never be allowed to be taught to the youth of today. I encourage ANYONE who seeks the absolute, documented truth on this to read it for themselves. The Library of Congress is a perfect place to start. (
www.loc.gov)
