Why do I have to pick between Unions and the Confederacy?

[SlowwHand]

[Imran Siddiqui]

That's a different arguement from the one the hipster **** was using earlier though.

This would require me to actually pay attention to Oerdin's arguments.

Someone might counter it by mentioning that it is honoring an important part of the State's history and can serve as an educational opportunity for students to learn more about American and Virginian history.

I doubt much education is being done based on this event. It's far more symbolic.

[rah]

Compromise. Just call it White history month.

[Patroklos]

Educating them on what **** bags their forefathers were? That might be useful but instead they want to glorify ****baggery.

You mean just like your ancestors for the same reasons?

I am curious, do you not even contemplate the retardness of your positions by following them to their logical conclusions before posting?

I suppose you will be first in line to bash all those Jefferson statues. I mean there is a whole monuement to this horrendous slave holder (and rapist) in DC. The nerve!

[Dinner]

What makes southerners so loathsome is that they attempt to pretend that their ****baggery was good. There should be no Confederate history month celebrating treason.

[Patroklos]

Yeah, I figured the obvious retardeness of your earlier comment would be lost on you.

[Wezil]

Serious question -

After being subjugated by force by aggressive northerners, why is it southerners today are very patriotic Americans (in my experience anyway)? Is it the sort of thing you just get over with time? Did they come to realise the cause was unjust/wrong/not worth it? A cause that was deemed worth the sacrifice of so many men seems to be pretty much forgotten.

[Patroklos]

Because we are not the ones who haven't gotten over the Civil War. That would be Oerdin

There is no real "rise again!" movement. Its a fun meme at times to dick around with, but we have long ago reconciled ourselves with the loss and are happy (with the normal contemporary issues debates) with our current position. These "hot button issues" really are anything but that down here, all the head spinning by and large comes from outside. Again, see Oerdin.

[Ben Kenobi]

What makes southerners so loathsome is that they attempt to pretend that their ****baggery was good. There should be no Confederate history month celebrating treason.

Once a racist, always a racist.

[Wezil]

Because we are not the ones who haven't gotten over the Civil War. That would be Oerdin

I think you misunderstood my question. What was the thinking involved in "getting over it"?

[Elok]

Okay, so it's not about commemorating slavery. So what is it about? What did the Confederacy stand for that the Union did not? "States' Rights" is the usual answer, but it is my understanding that the only right in question at the time was slavery, which makes the two pretty close to identical for the purposes of this discussion.

So, what demonstrable difference is there between North and South, embodied within Confederate symbolism, that needs celebrating? I mean, there are plenty of Southern things worth celebrating--pulled pork, the blues, the persistent-to-the-point-of-being-almost-aggravating friendliness I observe in my wife's family--but none of them seem related to the Confederacy.

[Hauldren Collider]

Upon reflection, Virginia gets a lot of tourism because we have most of the major Civil War battlefields. It appears that this was largely an effort to boost tourism in the state. That's fine with me. Also, McDonnell's now amended it to say "yeah guys, slavery was pretty uncool", so meh. I'd say it's turning out to be fairly reasonable.

[SlowwHand]

Okay, so it's not about commemorating slavery. So what is it about? What did the Confederacy stand for that the Union did not? "States' Rights" is the usual answer, but it is my understanding that the only right in question at the time was slavery, which makes the two pretty close to identical for the purposes of this discussion.

So, what demonstrable difference is there between North and South, embodied within Confederate symbolism, that needs celebrating? I mean, there are plenty of Southern things worth celebrating--pulled pork, the blues, the persistent-to-the-point-of-being-almost-aggravating friendliness I observe in my wife's family--but none of them seem related to the Confederacy.

Let me tell you one more time, read Oerdin. That's the reason. Talkers of crap and the South got tired of it. If you don't believe it, then don't believe it. The South got tired of attitude, and resorted to the 10th Amendment.
People are tired of federal intervention? Guess what? The South got there first.

[MikeH]

What makes southerners so loathsome is that they attempt to pretend that their ****baggery was good. There should be no Confederate history month celebrating treason.

Once a racist, always a racist.

Oerdin, I got your report on Ben's post, I believe that in that post you referenced he's calling southerners racists, not you.

[DaShi]

Ben often calls Oerdin a racist hoping that it will stick and move attention away from his own horrible beliefs.