Tag: civil war

American History Meets an Agenda: Ban Re-enactments

 

Isn’t it frustrating that some progressives insist on denigrating white Americans with the dark history of slavery (systemic racism), but refuse to acknowledge how far we’ve come in overcoming the past? That attitude—that there is only one acceptable way to illustrate American history—has become part of progressive propaganda, and in particular, according to black progressives. They want to teach their incomplete version of black history, including their own depictions of the Civil War and other controversial conflicts.

In recent years, the Left is working to ban re-enactments in particular, with excuses that simply aren’t credible or honest. Slowly but surely, more excuses are used ranging from the rejection of violence, firing weapons, felonious use of weapons, the importance of gun control, the evils of the Confederacy, white supremacy, the use of Confederate symbols, and rejection of Civil War monuments. That these events and symbols depict our history is meaningless to the Left.

Here is a brief list of some of the re-enactments that have been affected:

Member Post

 

At the beginning of Women’s History Month, we at the Comenius Institute want to celebrate Lucy Higgs Nichols. According to the Historical Marker Data Base Lucy [was] born a slave April 10, 1838, was owned by the Higgs family that by 1850 lived near Bolivar, Tennessee. She gained her freedom in 1862 by escaping to […]

Join Ricochet!

This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

Who’s Winning? Who’s Losing?

 

For those people who thought there’d be no civil war in this country, I think they’ve been proven wrong. We aren’t fighting with arms, but the discourse is as brutal and vicious as I’ve ever seen. Every day there is a new report of the skirmishes that have taken place, of the people whose lives are being destroyed, or of the reputations that have been wounded. It’s difficult to describe this time in our country as anything but a war.

As we watch new battles erupt, I find myself trying to assess the status of the two sides. When I look at the Left, I see our schools being captured by an insidious curriculum. The project is spearheaded primarily in private schools by NAIS. This WSJ article reveals the true nature of NAIS indoctrination that is embedded in every school subject.

This organization is operating with impunity and threatens our public sector schools by trying to bring this dogma to all schools.

This week on “The Learning Curve,” co-hosts Gerard Robinson and Cara Candal talk with David Reynolds, a Distinguished Professor of English and History at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He is the author of Abe: Abraham Lincoln in His Times, selected as one of the Top Ten Books of the Year by The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. Professor Reynolds shares what teachers and students alike should know about the culture of Civil War America, primary education in that era, and the wide variety of influences on Lincoln’s thinking and leadership. They delve into the most bitterly contentious political topics of Lincoln’s time, including slavery, states’ rights, trade tariffs, and women’s rights, and how the 16th president addressed the nation’s many political divisions. They also explore how Lincoln used his rustic image to shape his public persona and appeal to voters; and how he marshaled his rhetorical talent, invoking biblical language and the ideals of the American founding, to win the war, preserve the Union, and ultimately abolish slavery. Professor Reynolds concludes with a reading from his biography.

Stories of the WeekWashington Post columnist Jay Mathews recognizes the work of Will Fitzhugh, founder of The Concord Review, to encourage students’ interest in historical fiction and reward long-form research and writing. A new project of the Teagle Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities promises to restore the humanities in undergraduate education.

Voices from the Past

 

General Patton, Corps and Division Commanders, 4th Armored Division C.P., England, June 1944.

These are the generals of the Third Army. Patton stands in front. My great uncle Brigadier General Julius Easton Slack stands in the back row, second from the right. This photo was taken in June 1944 in England shortly before the landing at Utah Beach in July.

Boys, The Old Flag Never Touched the Ground

 

When I’ve thought about the kind of person who could legitimately be described as a hero, my mind creates the image of a larger-than-life man, someone who stands above others as an inspiration and role model. And yet my imagination doesn’t do justice to the ordinary people who are suddenly called to take action at the risk of their very lives and don’t hesitate to step up to the moment.

William Harvey Carney was one of those men:

Join Jim and Greg as they enjoying watching the Texas Senate pass a voting reform bill despite the publicity stunt from Democrats. They also unload on President Biden for absurdly calling state elections legislation the worst threat to our democracy since the Civil War. And they shake their heads as Senate Democrats start pushing a $3.5 trillion spending bill to accomplish many more horrible policy goals once the infrastructure deal is done.

Member Post

 

Good news. Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia – a town that is also home to the state-supported Virginia Military Institute and Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, and an ignominious restaurant called the “Red Hen” – will not be changing its name to remove Robert E. Lee. So say their Board of Trustees. And it wasn’t even close. If you’ve […]

Join Ricochet!

This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

Member Post

 

Good news. Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia – a town that is also home to the state-supported Virginia Military Institute and Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, and an ignominious restaurant called the “Red Hen” – will not be changing its name. So says their Board of Trustees. And the vote wasn’t close. If you’ve […]

Join Ricochet!

This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

We’ve Had Worse Times

 

My wife became a US citizen 14 years ago.  She did it on her own hook, after being in the US for 25 years, not because she married me.  But now she tells me she’s beginning to regret becoming a citizen because of all the nonsense we are seeing now.

Yes, racial relations are getting worse and worse and the situation is being driven by race mongers and seditionist leftists.  Yes, the libs are threatening to tax us and take the money in our IRA’s and 401ks.  Yes, an increase in inflation is threatening to destroy our retirement savings.  Yes, inflation is increasing.  Yes, corporations will pay higher taxes, and we will pay more for goods and services as a result.  Yes, people are losing their jobs and status for speaking their minds.  Yes, we are set to waste trillions on the phantom of climate change.  Yes, crime is on the rise even as leftists are calling to abolish the police.  Yes, we have seen continuous rioting, vandalism, and violence in our cities.  Yes, anti-white racism in on display everywhere.  Yes, there is an open season on American Jews.  But not to worry, I say.   The US has seen worse.

A Stillness at Appomatox

 

Friday was the 156th anniversary of Robert E. Lee’s surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia to U.S. Grant and his Army of the Potomac, at Appomattox Courthouse, VA. I consider this the effective end of the Civil War, though some fighting continued, and Confederate leaders in other locations, further south and west, surrendered at different times over the next couple of months.

The title of this post is from Bruce Catton’s excellent book on the conclusion of the war.

Love Thy Neighbor

 

It is when we have the most cause to hate and reject our neighbors that we most need to remember the command to love them. Yes, my fellow Christians, it is a command and not merely an invitation. Though no challenge could be so difficult to fulfill, it is the foundation rather than the pinnacle of Christian love. It is a challenge not reserved only for the holiest saints but rather put to every one of us. Our Lord and Creator doesn’t even stop there. “Love thy neighbor as thy self.”

A philosophy professor and friend once caught me off guard by claiming that the Golden Rule is nothing special. Any person raised in a good home knows not to mistreat others as oneself doesn’t want to be abused.

Member Post

 

The Civil War (1861-1865) was nothing less than a revolutionary reorganization of American government, society, and economics. It claimed almost as many lives as every other U.S. conflict combined and, by war’s bloody logic, forged the nation which the Founding Fathers could not by settling once and for all lingering national questions about state sovereignty and slavery. The postwar period, […]

Join Ricochet!

This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

Member Post

 

Paraphrasing Dan Bongino, conservatives think Leftists are people with bad ideas, Leftists think that conservatives are bad people because the conservatives have bad ideas. Conservatives are beginning to return the favor.  Many people are describing what’s going on in America as the rise of a new civic religion, and one which aggressively proselytizes at that. […]

Join Ricochet!

This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

Member Post

 

I’ve previously had a post censored on the grounds “conspiracy theorist” for quoting Matt Bracken but he is absolutely correct on this: Antifa and BLM have roots in the Revolutionary Communist Party, (which is why Bracken refers to them together as “ABR”.) He’s reporting an escalation in ABR tactics. He provides an excellent analysis of […]

Join Ricochet!

This is a members-only post on Ricochet's Member Feed. Want to read it? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

The Debate Question You’ll Never Hear

 

Moderator: “This question is for whichever of you have the guts to answer: The last time a Democrat nominee for president graciously accepted a losing result — that is, without claiming that they were cheated, that votes were stolen or suppressed, that Diebold rigged the outcome, or claimed that the process itself was unfair — was Michael Dukakis in 1988. If you are the Dems’ nominee and then lose the general election, will you:

  1. Concede graciously and immediately
  2. Issue a call to all Democrats for national unity, and to work with the duly elected president
  3. And condemn any and all continued activities by The Resistance.

“And if your answer is no, and you should in fact win the general election, explain why all the same tactics used against Donald Trump should not be applied to your new presidency.”

Such Was the Fidelity of a Dog: Mousel, the Mascot of the 8th Illinois Infantry

 

Civil War Period Illustration of a Soldier with his dog. (Peterson’s Magazine, October 1863)

Civil War soldiers faced the dangers of the battlefield with great valor, but they also had to come to terms with the boredom and loneliness that was part and parcel of army life. To help cope with the stresses of military service, many soldiers adopted pets or mascots that traveled with their owners on the march and in battle. One of the most famous Civil War mascots was “Old Abe,” the eagle mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Infantry, but all manner of creatures served as mascots. Probably the most common mascot was the dog, and they came in a wonderful variety of breeds and sizes. The importance of these canine companions to the soldiers they followed should not be underestimated; the following story, published in the Vicksburg Daily Herald, on July 21, 1864, illustrates this fact.

Quote of the Day: Abraham Lincoln and his Religiosity

 

Lincoln grew into an intensely religious man, although we rarely hear him described in those terms nowadays. His religious faith became fundamental to his thinking and decision-making during the Civil War; we rarely hear that either. When he assumed the enormous burden of the presidency with war approaching, his faith grew deeper. When his beloved young son Willie died in early 1862, it deepened again—and seemed to continue growing deeper until his death. In the end Lincoln should almost certainly be remembered as the most important religious figure America has ever produced. I don’t mean he was a theologian. But Amos, Isaiah, and Jeremiah weren’t theologians either.

– David Gelernter, The Fourth Great Western Religion

Angel of the Battlefield: An Unexpected Gift

 

As a child, I was addicted to a series of biographies written for children. They were undersized volumes, with a textured blue cover and the name of the featured person written in a kind of script. One of those books told the story of Clara Barton. Her courage, determination, and devotion to the soldiers of the Civil War have stayed with me all these years.

Clara Barton, 1905