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Happy Birthday, Mr Lincoln.

post #1 of 9
2/12/09 at 1:29pm
Thread Starter 
Today is the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birthday. He took over the presidency when the country was on the brink on of secession and civil war over slavery and guided us through the darkest period in our young nation's history. He is arguably one of the greatest presidents we have ever had and his brief address at Gettysburg is one of the most powerful and moving speeches ever uttered by an American president. Thank you, sir.
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post #2 of 9
2/12/09 at 1:53pm


I hope every American realizes the debt we all owe this man. He truely put the good of the country above all else.
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post #3 of 9
2/12/09 at 6:39pm
He had a crappy childhood, but rose above it. He was honest enough to not make the Civil War about slavery but about States' rights. Someone today should learn from his lessons.

Happy Birthday, Honest Abe.
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post #4 of 9
2/14/09 at 12:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by neetanddave View Post
He was honest enough to not make the Civil War about slavery but about States' rights. .
This is a good observation. A lot of people, perhaps victims of rewritten history today? (or reinterpreted at least) think the only issue dividing the North and the South was slavery.
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post #5 of 9
2/14/09 at 8:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by coaster View Post
This is a good observation. A lot of people, perhaps victims of rewritten history today? (or reinterpreted at least) think the only issue dividing the North and the South was slavery.
Most people haven't learned that at all, Tim. All the events going on now with states stepping up to reiterate their rights should remind us of it. The old "those who forget history are doomed to repeat it" quote couldn't be more applicable.

I was born in Gettysburg, so I've a little fascination with his ideas on the Civil War. I could recite the Address when I was in first grade, and still can. It wouldn't hurt anyone to reread it these days, if they haven't lately.
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post #6 of 9
2/14/09 at 9:07am
It's a wonderful speech. Really representative of the ideals this country was founded on. I'm not going to look for it now, but there is an actual photograph of Lincoln giving his address. It's from the back of the crowd and too blurred to even see his face, but the tall, gaunt outline of his figure is unmistakable.

Most conflicts have multiple causes. It's often a case of people just coming to a point where they say "enough is enough, I'm not going to take any more." Look at the list of grievances against King George III in the Declaration. It was about a whole lot more than taxation without representation.

It bears remembering: people will only take so much and no more.
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post #7 of 9
2/14/09 at 9:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by coaster View Post
Most conflicts have multiple causes. It's often a case of people just coming to a point where they say "enough is enough, I'm not going to take any more." Look at the list of grievances against King George III in the Declaration. It was about a whole lot more than taxation without representation.

It bears remembering: people will only take so much and no more.
Very true. People think that the radicals holed up in the mountains of the western US, "clinging to their guns and religion," are alone in many of their grievances. Most people don't take it to that extreme, but yes, the people have a tendency to take action rather quickly once they've decided to do a thing.

I think we're about 25 years past it now. About every hundred years or so.
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post #8 of 9
2/14/09 at 2:28pm
"It" meaning time for another civil war? Or another revolution?

I hope it's not a civil war. When I get around to it, I'm going to write a piece about a possible future civil war on the nation's horizon, and it's not one part of the nation against the other.

I'm fond of a quote by Thomas Jefferson; paraphrasing it here because I'm in too much of a hurry to look it up; but he said that a revolution every now and then is a good thing. I don't know if we've reached the point yet of needed an armed revolution. I think a revolution in the way of how government does its business is indeed long overdue. That may be a revolution waged by a third or independent political party, if one can ever get its feet off the ground with a viable slate of candidates. I often wonder what would happen if a person with the charisma of a Barack Obama would run on a third-party ticket.
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post #9 of 9
2/14/09 at 3:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by coaster View Post
"It" meaning time for another civil war? Or another revolution?

I hope it's not a civil war. When I get around to it, I'm going to write a piece about a possible future civil war on the nation's horizon, and it's not one part of the nation against the other.

I'm fond of a quote by Thomas Jefferson; paraphrasing it here because I'm in too much of a hurry to look it up; but he said that a revolution every now and then is a good thing. I don't know if we've reached the point yet of needed an armed revolution. I think a revolution in the way of how government does its business is indeed long overdue. That may be a revolution waged by a third or independent political party, if one can ever get its feet off the ground with a viable slate of candidates. I often wonder what would happen if a person with the charisma of a Barack Obama would run on a third-party ticket.
"It" being some sort of uprising against the organized political machine that chews up everything in its path.

And I think we missed our chance, we had Ross Perot.
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