A Brief Disclaimer

I just wanted to include a brief entry to explain my purposes and desires for this blog. I want to restate here that I am not a racist. At least not excessively. Anyone who states unequivocally that they are not racist is lying. Everyone is guilty on occasion of racist thoughts and feelings. It is human nature. What makes a difference is our reaction to our racist thoughts. Do we fight them or surrender to them?

But, I digress. With this blog, it is my wish to explore the following:

・ The true causes of the war;

・ The Confederate army was not a rabble of hillbillies and rednecks fighting to keep their slaves;

・ The true sentiments in the North and South concerning slavery and Negroes;

・ The efforts of the Federal government to transition Negroes from slavery to being full and productive free citizens;

・ The “what-ifs”, the endless possible futures had this or that led to a Confederate victory;

・ Finally, the lesser explored changes wrought on the American landscape by the Federal victory.

At no point will I engage in, nor indulge comments concerning, speculations relating to the continuation of slavery (in the event of Confederate victory), a return to slavery, nor shall I ever propose a new state of secession, rebellion, or revolt.

Now, having established the basis under which this blog shall be conducted, allow me to close this disclaimer with these thoughts. It is my most heart-felt wish that whoever reads this comes away from it with something good. Maybe your eyes will be opened to the real causes and you will now be free to develop a new appreciation for the South. Maybe you will learn that in many cases the Confederate government actually had more honorable intentions toward slaves than the Federal government. Maybe, if you are a Southerner, you will learn more concrete reasons to be proud of your heritage and new “ammunition” with which to defend your pride.

If we are to believe, as we have been taught, that the war was about slavery, and the North was fighting to free the slaves, then by inference we must also believe that the South was fighting to continue holding African-Americans in bondage. Operating under such beliefs, the only conclusion that may rightly be drawn is that the South, her people, and her cause, are all deplorable. This has indeed been the opinion of the South for a very long time. It is my goal, through this blog, to dispel the falsehoods which have empowered this opinion for generations.

It is my sincerest hope that, through this blog, the true causes of this national tragedy may be learned, and thus the stain on the honor of the South, my home, be cleansed.

A final note on terms: I will be using the terms African-American, black, and Negro throughout this blog. When I use the term Negro I am doing so to preserve historical context, as that was considered the proper term for African-Americans of the day.