[Dahak]

USA! USA! USA! USA! goooooo NORTH! boooooooo to the south!

(hehe j/k i love the south)

[Big_Bad_Zack]

So, with the No-Fly zones in Northern and Southern Iraq, I guess that makes Saddam a big oily zit just waiting to be popped.
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[VoDoToe]

It is true that the south fired the first shots on Ft. Sumter. But Ft. Sumter is in South Carolina. Southern property. The Confederacy was simply taking a fort that was rightfully ours. The actual first aggression was at the first battle of Bull Run. Northern invasion of the south. Basically all campaigns and battles were fought on southern soil. Thats were we get the name "war of northern aggression" Only exception was Lee's invasion of the north which ended at Gettysburg.

I'd also like to add the reason most of the south still remembers the war. We lost and it and took about 100 years for the southern economy to get over it. It wasn't until 1900 that the occupation forces left the south. Southern legislators agreed to pass the Sherman Anti-Trust Amendment in return for the removal of the troops.

As to what the war was really fought over IMHO it was over import\export taxes. The south imported most of its goods, and the north exported. The north passed import taxes that made the south buy goods from the north at higher prices than could be bought elsewhere. This was to boost the factories in the north. One good example of the part money played in the war was the port city of Mobile, Alabama. One of the busiest ports in the south. When northern forces came to occupy the city they gave up with little or no fight. This was because the business men in Mobile were not making money because of the northern shipping blockades.

Our local hero here were and are Fightin' Joe Wheeler who later commanded the forces fighting in the Spanish-American War. And Nathan Bedford Forrest who carried on the fight after Lee surrendered.

I fly my rebel flag proudly for the men who fought and died for STATES RIGHTS. And it is a shame that even today the US government will not pay to maintain the graves of southern warriors on the battlegrounds. That is left to the Daughters of the Confederacy.

My 2 cents

VoDoToe

[Darkath]

If the South had of won the War between the states, there would be two nations today: The United States of America and The Confederate States of America (or whatever they wanted to be called)
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^^^ Clicky

[BitterBeerFace]

Heh, this could degenerate quickly into a very heated argument, but: The American Civil War was mostly about the differences between the parts of the country. The less politically correct way of saying that is the south didn't think they could continue their way of life based on slavery and horribly destructive cash-crop agriculture. The north had two main issues they fought for: preservation of the Union, and emancipation of the slaves for economic AND moral reasons.

I could go into detail about how the two sides of the mason-dixon line had developed and how it naturally lead to conflict, but I'll leave that for later.

The only way the south could have won the war would have been to do a massive first attack invasion. Since they didn't do that, they were screwed from the beginning.

As for the argument of why the south didn't recover after the war, I did touch on that topic in my first statements: the horribly destructive agriculture. The southern economy was based almost exclusively on "king cotton" before the war. After slavery was abolished, cotton became much less profitable. Additionally, the blockade during the war spurred cotton to be grown in Egypt, Australia and India (I think) to supply the rest of the world. After the war, there was new competition for the south's only true source of income. When you add to the low value of cotton the fact that the cotton plants actually destroyed the fertility of the southern soil, so other crops were almost impossible to grow, it's only natural that the economy went into the dumper for a long time. The physical destruction of the war was large as well, but combined with the lack of any money to invest in rebuilding, the south was doomed to a long period of depression.

Ok, a couple statements that need to be disputed:

[VoDoToe]

HeHe......this could go on forever.

Why don't you come to a re-enactment in Chattanooga at the Chickamaga Battlefield and give me a chance to shoot you............yankee.


Oh, I wish I were in the land o'cotton...........

[Computer]

JCOM your first post said it best. The Confederate States of America never wanted to fight a war against the United States and had they been allowed to ceced peacefully, I may still may be living here. I'm glad things worked out the way they did however.

Slavery was an issue in the war but was not even close to the main cause. Slavery went on in both the north and the south. Not to mention the countless number of foriegn indentured servents that were in the north. Slavery is an unjustified act against humanity. But unfortunately it had gone on for millenia before this war started. Some people would like to point the finger at "the white devil" for creating the beast that is slavery, but was it not Africans that were selling they're own people? Hypocrytical to point a finger there from either side, because EVERYONE that was involved was at fault. The thought that I should have to pay some sort of reperations for this heanous act is absolutely obsured. But I'm not touching that with a ten foot pole here.

State rights were by far the most key piece in fighting this war. The north wanted more power to reside in the federal government, while the south thought that more decisions should be made on a local level.

People please don't be indoctrinated. Don't just zone out when your in school and take in 100% of the drivel your teacher is spewing. Keep your mind open and you'll see that public schools will steer you down a long, ignorant road of leftism. Think for yourself and draw your own conclusion, don't believe everything you see on TV or read.
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"Don't be so humble - you are not that great."

[Mongoose_Slayer]

IMO what should have happened is that the Europeans never came over here in the first place and left the Native American's alone!

[Potato-VS-]

Geeze look at what I started now...

[RS]Potato-VS-

[Whatever]

LOL Potato!
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Been chasing since May 2001!

Play under the names...Darlon Jeel, The Ghost, The Spirit, and <NSA>Whatever

[hoaxie]

Interesting point you brought up, Computer. I know when I was in school, we were taught to fear Russians. We were taught that they were bad people. How wrong is that?! Our schools were teaching and breeding hatred. You should never swallow a pill just because someone tells you that it is good for you. You should always take the time to look beyond and educate yourself. You my find that pill is a slow poison. It is always good to think outside the box. To question authority is a good thing (always remember to be respectful, though ). I have always taught my kids to question what they do not agree with or what they do not believe (that is why I threw the respectful thing in there). It does not make you obnoxious, it makes you informed.

The truth will set you free! heheheheh
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LONG LIVE THE 'VILLE!