jlf1961
Posts: 14840
Joined: 6/10/2008 From: Somewhere Texas Status: offline
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Being from the south, and having ancestors who fought on both sides during the war of Northern Aggression, I willingly admit that Lincoln was a great man, for many reasons. Lincoln had to deal with many conflicts in his own mind, because he understood the argument for state's rights, which was the real reason for the civil war. It was only after many substantial losses that he announced the Emancipation Proclamation which turned the civil war into a war to end slavery. Initially, Lincoln supported the 'Immanent Domain' plan to end slavery, whereas slave owners were compensated for their loss, and then ending slavery (the same way slavery had been ended in the British Empire.) Another misconception about the Gettysburg Address that is commonly held is that Lincoln was only speaking about the Union dead, his speech was paying honor to all the dead of the battle. There is another quote that should be mentioned, but not one of Lincoln's, indeed, it is not one that is commonly known. Upon the news of Lincoln's death: "The world has lost a great man, one who held the power to rebuild this nation after such a terrible war. It is my fear that his death will do more harm to the south and the Union as a whole than did the war." Robert E. Lee. Do not forget that Lincoln first offered the command of the entire Union army to Lee first. Lincoln was a friend and admirer of Lee. He admired his beliefs, his loyalty, his values. Lincoln prayed that Lee would hold the loyalty to the United States above that of his own home state. Lee admired Lincoln for his ability to compromise, to get two opposing sides to see a common good, and his simple down to earth values. Lee did not immediately refuse the appointment, it was only after Virginia voted to leave the Union did he turn it down. Lincoln saw in those first days what the cost of a war would be to the United States. His great fear was that it would not be preventable. Lincoln once said, "the cost of this war will be paid by future generations" Yes, Lincoln was a great man, his vision, his philosophy, even his compassion was taken from this world all too soon, before he could finish the job he saw that needed to be done.
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Boy, it sure would be nice if we had some grenades, don't you think? You cannot control who comes into your life, but you can control which airlock you throw them out of. Paranoid Paramilitary Gun Loving Conspiracy Theorist AND EQUAL OPPORTUNI
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