Posted on 01/19/2005 5:41:26 AM PST by meandog
Rather than defending slavery, I would argue that he was defending States' rights of self determination. You may have noticed that the Constitution spells out exactly that form of govt.
If Lee had taken command of the Union Army, things after the war would have gone a lot better for the South.
Just my theory... I bounced it off of a colleague (the Dean for Research at SIU-C and a man with a Ph.D. in history) and was met with a resounding "EXACTLY RIGHT!!"
Just my theory... I bounced it off of a colleague (the Dean for Research at SIU-C and a man with a Ph.D. in history) and was met with a resounding "EXACTLY RIGHT!!"
"Today marks what would have been Robert E. Lee's 198th birthday."
Lee's childhood babysiter, Helen Thomas, said "Where are my pills? George Bush stole my pills!"
> I would argue that he was defending States' rights of self determination.
I would argue that the *peoples* right of self determination is more important. And being enslaved *really* works against that.
> Would you call G. W. Bush (or yourself) a traitor?
Depends. In your hypothetical, did GWB (or you) take an oath of allegience to the UN?
And also, the South didn't just seccede, they also launched a war. It was a mind-bogglingly stupid decision, ranking right up there with Pearl Harbor. The amazing thing was that the War Of Southern Aggression was as successful for the South as it was; as with Vietnam (and possibly Iraq in the future), the US had the overwhelming superiority in might and right, but was undermined by protestors and some poor military leadership.
Well said.
I am no student or expert on Robert E. Lee.
Still, I was in Savannah the other day and there was a conflict of some sorts concerning a portrait of the General. It seems that the Mayor decided to remove a couple of portraits from the city hall and this sparked some controversy which was reflected in the local newspaper's letters section.
I learned that Robert E. Lee was never a slaveholder, and that those slaves owned by his wife were released before Lee entered into the Civil War.
I never knew these things before and I was surprised to learn them. There were other claims made by writers of letters and I found the subject to be thought provoking. I intend to learn more about the man.
He defended his home state against what he considered an invading army.
Think of it this way:
I have the bitterest disagreement with my nation's position on abortion. That doesn't change the fact that I love my country and will - and have - defended her. I would imagine Lee felt much the same way. He was, as someone else pointed out, mildly opposed to slavery personally - which was a fairly progressive opinion to hold at the time. He was far more concerned with the fact that his native state was being invaded.
Thanks for adding to the discussion.
Not.
Happy Birthday General Lee...I am proud to be in the college classroom to teach the truth of that war and American patriots like you.
Deo Vindice!
Happy Birthday General Lee...I am proud to be in the college classroom to teach the truth of that war and American patriots like you.
Deo Vindice!
> He defended his home state against what he considered an invading army.
The South probably shouldn't have started the war, then.
Maybe, maybe not...but either way, it wasn't R.E. Lee's call, was it?
Perhaps not. But as you say, you're opposed to abortion: consider a weird hypothetical. The UN declares abortion to be illegal, world-wide. Would you not only defend the US but lead the military in an aggressive war against the UN based on this one policy?
(The analogy is readily admitted to be a bit lame...)
Lee could easily have led the *US* forces, which would have been far better for both the US *and* Virginia... and his own soul.
Glad someone said it.
Textbook example of cognitive dissonance.
From the looks of it, the same one you use as a napkin.
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