Five myths about why the South seceded

[many a good man]

By sociologist James W. Loewen is the author of "Lies My Teacher Told Me" and co-editor, with Edward Sebesta, of "The Confederate and Neo-Confederate Reader."

One hundred and fifty years after the Civil War began, we're still fighting it - or at least fighting over its history... As the nation begins to commemorate the anniversaries of the war's various battles - from Fort Sumter to Appomattox - let's first dispense with some of the more prevalent myths about why it all began.

1. The South seceded over states' rights.
Confederate states did claim the right to secede, but no state claimed to be seceding for that right. In fact, Confederates opposed states' rights - that is, the right of Northern states not to support slavery.
...
The South's opposition to states' rights is not surprising. Until the Civil War, Southern presidents and lawmakers had dominated the federal government. The people in power in Washington always oppose states' rights. Doing so preserves their own.

2. Secession was about tariffs and taxes.

3. Most white Southerners didn't own slaves, so they wouldn't secede for slavery.

4. Abraham Lincoln went to war to end slavery.

5. The South couldn't have made it long as a slave society.

As we commemorate the sesquicentennial of that war, let us take pride this time - as we did not during the centennial - that secession on slavery's behalf failed.


link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/07/AR2011010703178.html?sid=ST2011010703601

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

1. Where's my card?... Ah, here.

[neverforget]

6. This could be fun......

:popcorn:

[Telly Savalas]

7. That's hilarious

[Hugabear]

10. Pretty sure I've heard almost all of those right here on DU

If not all of them...

[Drale]

2. Abraham Lincoln did hate slavery

but politically your correct, he said "If I can save the Union be freeing all the slaves I would, if I could save the Union by freeing none of the slave I would and if I could save the Union by freeing some of the slaves while ignoring others I would." His first priority was the save the Union. Also if they had won the war they would have had to abolish slavery if they wanted any sort of friends in the world, because all the "civilized" nations, mostly Britain and France hated slavery and would never allied themselves with a slave nation.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. The Northern States were more concerned with two things than slavery:

1. The Northern States were concerned about the rising economy in the Southern States due to their ability to outcompete with slave labor.

2. The Northern States were the ones that insisted on the 3/5 ratio in the Constitution, otherwise slaves would be counted as citizens during the Census, which would give a greater amount of congressional representatives in Congress to the South, hence power.

The North went to war with the South over money, not seccession and not slavery.

[Goblinmonger]

4. Lincoln went to war to protect the union

Perpetual union and all.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

5. I-2, and (debatably) N-5.

[dawg]

8. We seceded because Northerners refuse to make sweet tea.

You say stupid things like, "There's sugar on the table, you can sweeten it to your liking."

Hell no I can't!!!!!!

Don't you morons realize that the sugar will just sink to the bottom and form a syrupy glurge. It's iced tea for cryin' out loud. You have to sweeten it when it's hot. Otherwise, the sugar will not melt.

Also, we hate toll roads, and you have lots of them.

[Merlot]

9. Finally we agree!

That is true about the tea. Sugar at the bottom is disgusting.