Rebel soldier in New England

[Swampyankee25J]

Hi, new here, and my Great Grandfather was in in R I Heavy Arty.  Petersburg, Cold Harbor etc.  However, I came across a local story in a Sunday newspaper magazine.  Seems that this Confederate who was taken prisoner stayed after the war for some reasons and became quite a local citizen.  In fact when he finally passed away, the local church had a stained glass window installed for him.  With a confederate flag in it. It is still there in Southern Rhode Island.  Good story, and true.

[rio grande]

Just goes to show you how senseless that war was.
Good people killing other good people.  Totally unnecessary.

[wncchester]

"Just goes to show you how senseless that war was."
 
True.  And, like most wars, the events that led to it were manipulated by wealthy (Northern) industrialists using the best politicians money could buy, happily aided by a "news media" that loved to keep the public's collective bowels in an emotional uproar so they would buy the next edition.  And the industrialists and publishers did indeed become vastly richer.

[1911crazy]

The more i see and read about this senseless blood shed of our own country men just doesn't make any sence to me.   We all the same people with basically the same wants and needs.  Honoring a Rebel in the north is awesome.  This is what we need today more respect for each other.
I had talked with a family freind who was at normandy beach and he told me while crying if it wasn't for the southern farm boys who knew how to shoot he would of died that day on the beach.  He went on to say a lot of the dead were northern boys who were shooting in the sky it was that bad there.  The boys from the north were from cities who never held a rifle before and were pushed ino a war green. All the boys from farms did ok.  When they were pinned down the southern boys went to work and started moving and shooting.  No gutts or glory here its just the truth from a man that was there. He still said thanks to the southern boys over and over.
I want to take this time to thank every VET who served this great country that still makes us a free nation today.

[Mike in Virginia]

All wars are neccessary.  One side has an issue they can't live with, and the other side defends itself.  The war of good Americans killing other good Americans brought home a specific truth.  What shape would we be in today if that war had not been fought and won by the north?  Would the south have found it's own path to not treating humans as property?  No.  I'm a southerner, but if I had lived in that time, I would have been in blue.  The south had to be forced into compliance with basic morality.  We can preach that it was "just the way it was back then," but never anywhere in the world was anything more unjust.  It's on the same scale as the holocaust.  The south would have struggled harshly without slaves, and the big plantations would have failed or not even existed, but the idea of keeping any person against his will HAD to be stopped. 
The seizing of Africans for the markets was evil at best.  If there is profit available, all men, white or black, will sell their souls to get it.  That hasn't changed.  What has changed is the legality of it.  And we needed the war to put that part of criminality to rest. 
That said, America is in worse condition that in those terrible times.  If the slave traders hadn't brought them here, maybe we wouldn't have the racial conflicts that have divided our nation a second time.     

[BUGEYE]

people from both sides were equeally brave and patriotic.
all of the north and all of the south (except a small group in SC) wanted to continue talks for a peaceful solution.
that small group in SC who fired on an unarmed merchant ship started the whole thing.
if they had listened to R.E. Lee there would have been no war.

[SHOOTALL]

Just goes to show you how senseless that war was.
Good people killing other good people.  Totally unnecessary.

That's about the best I have ever heard north or South !

[ceadersavage2]

So what did Robert E Lee say to those boys in grey

[SHOOTALL]

All wars are neccessary.  One side has an issue they can't live with, and the other side defends itself.  The war of good Americans killing other good Americans brought home a specific truth.  What shape would we be in today if that war had not been fought and won by the north?  Would the south have found it's own path to not treating humans as property?  No.  I'm a southerner, but if I had lived in that time, I would have been in blue.  The south had to be forced into compliance with basic morality.  We can preach that it was "just the way it was back then," but never anywhere in the world was anything more unjust.  It's on the same scale as the holocaust.  The south would have struggled harshly without slaves, and the big plantations would have failed or not even existed, but the idea of keeping any person against his will HAD to be stopped. 
The seizing of Africans for the markets was evil at best.  If there is profit available, all men, white or black, will sell their souls to get it.  That hasn't changed.  What has changed is the legality of it.  And we needed the war to put that part of criminality to rest. 
That said, America is in worse condition that in those terrible times.  If the slave traders hadn't brought them here, maybe we wouldn't have the racial conflicts that have divided our nation a second time.   

The fact is the way America was at the time of the Civil War cannot be thought of using todays standards.Our morals at the time were different. For one thing most white men thought it was their destiny to rule all other races, a feeling that lasted well into the 20th centry. One only need look at the writings of Teddy Roosevelt to see he was a stanch believer in this idea. The wars in Asia can be traced back to "deals" and false promises he made thru Taft . When the Southern slaves were freeded it was political and an effort to gain support for the north , it worked. So the idea was not fostered by bringing slaves here it was already in the minds of the men who traced their heritage back to the forest of Germany. As proof look at how the leaders of post America treated the Chineese workers , the Spanish , the people of the Phlipines and in the Island of Cuba  and others . We still try to nation build. This is not to say some Americans didn't disagree but the ones in power ruled .