Comrade Shampanyov wrote:
Jeffari-al-Texani wrote:
Tarbox23 wrote:
um, perhaps because when it came to fighting a war to determine whether slavery would continue, the confederate flag represented the losing side of "we love slaves"
just a guess.
Hmmm, if the Civil War was simply about determining whether or not slavery would continue, why were there still slaves in the Union?
A bit simplistic, don't you think?
The south was quite clear that it was seceding as a direct response to Lincoln's election, and that the reason for secession was to preserve the institution of slavery, which was perceived to be in peril with the election of a Republican to the Presidency.
Lincoln, on the other hand, was quite clear that he was fighting to keep the Union intact. He was not fighting to end slavery. The South, however, was fighting to preserve slavery.
Slavery, though a part of the reason for secession, was not the the whole reason though Comrade. The Civil War was the final deciding factor to the issue that had plagued the States from the birth of the Constitution: which has more power, state government or federal government?
Yes they went to war because of Lincoln's election, but because he was a strong federalist. The north had lttle need for slavery as it didn't impact thier industry, so took the high road. Slavery was instrumental to southern economy. The federal government had taxed the South so that it was economically already not doing well and pulling slavery out would make the economy collapse. Secession was already in the minds of people long before slavery became an issue, it was the needle that broke the camel's back.
The war stems from the feud between Hamilton, who believed that there needed to be a strong central government - Federalists and Jefferson, who believed that States should have more power to run themselves - Republicans.
People need to start looking at history from 1776-1861, not just the narrow scope of just before the war. The civil war wasn't about the South having a moral stand on slavery. Many in the South were against slavery and fought on the side of the Confederate States - General Lee, the commanding general, freed his slaves before the war.
It sounds so much nicer in primary school to say it was about slavery, then there are no questions if the war was correct. If it was mentioned that it was a fight over power, then people would still be split today on if it was correct.
The war was the worst thing to do, and pulling slavery out the way they did it caused many problems. It brought with it carpet-baggers and a collapse of an economy. It brought about the racism we have today, that just doesn't seem to die. If slavery died naturally, I don't think there would be the racial problems we have today in the South.
