Sammie Lane and her world of Idiocracy

Brigadier General James Deshler

       As for those of you who do not know, our local SCV camp in Tuscumbia, Alabama have raised the money to erect a monument to the greatest man that ever came out of our county. The above mentioned Sammie Lane is some idiot girl on facebook that knows about as much about history as my dog. Miss Sammie Lane claims that Deshler died to defend his right to own slaves, however as was pointed out to her, he owned no slaves. But, don't let any of this stop Miss Sammie's image of the perfect North against the Evil South. She'll just jump to something else, another excuse perhaps and she does. 

       She claims she loves good research and then publishes a paragraph (repeatedly mind you) that explains how Deshler and his father and all Confederate's didn't feel the black race was equal to the white. This one always kills me, because looking back from today without any imagination about what life then was like is way over Miss Sammie's head. Everyone in that day and age believed the black race was inferior. One of the most racist men in the country was a politician named Abraham Lincoln, but don't tell Sammie. 

       This same Sammie then goes into this diatribe about how we should give the money we raised ourselves for the monument and give it to school teachers. I'd be happy to do just that if they would teach history correctly and not just from Sammie's point of view. How about the one billion dollars annually the Federal Government (according to wikianswers.com) gives to the NAACP yearly? How much of a raise would that give to those poor school teachers?

       Sammie says it took her just 30 minutes of research online to discover that the South was all evil and racist and the North was Holy, ad nauseam. The point is, if you do your research online (and we all know everything we read online is correct) in 30 minutes and use the same stupid paragraph over and over, Miss Sammie's not too bright. 

       I have a few questions I'd like Miss Sammie Lane to answer for me since she is such an expert on the War Between the States. Caution: This may take longer than 30 minutes for the airhead to accomplish and will take much longer for her if she has to put some sort of spin on it. 

       The war was all about slavery? Then please explain the Corwin Amendment to me? Please explain the Morrill Tariff? Perhaps, since the Holy North was right, Miss Sammie would feel fine paying 85% of the Federal taxes while everyone else only pays 15%. After all, we all know that war was about slavery, there's never been a war about money, ever. 

       Commissioner David Black stated that we must put something in place to limit which groups can place monuments on the courthouse lawn. So, what type group are we? Well, we respect men who were brave enough to fight for their homes and families against an unconstitutional invasion. These same idiots like Miss Sammie who call Confederate's traitors are the first to celebrate July 4th each year when the United States seceded from England. However, Miss Sammie can place some twist on that too I'm sure. By the way, when was the slave trade outlawed? Well, Sammie, the year was 1807 and when did the North begin forming abolitionist groups against the evil institution of slavery? Try 1808, and why then? Because they could no longer make money off of slavery, they were ready to be rid of it. Of course, I'm sure in her 30 minutes of researching an entire era, she missed the fact that ships owned by the cities of New York, Philadelphia, and even Chicago made tons of money travelling back and forth to Africa bringing slaves over to be sold to the South. 

        Now, back to the type of organization we happen to be. A black lady named Mary (a slave) had a tombstone crumbling to pieces about thirty miles south of where I live. My organization paid to replace the tombstone. How much money did the NAACP donate to this noble endeavor? You guessed it right if you guessed $0. How much in donations did we receive from African-Americans at all? You'd be right if you guessed $0 again. How many African-Americans attended the re-dedication of her monument? Again, not a single one. For a group of people that are so upset with the treatment of their ancestors, you'd think they would have given at least a dollar to such a noble cause, but you'd be wrong.

Sammie Lane's Great Emancipator

       Since Sammie Lane is such an expert on that war and the "great emancipator" surely she won't mind me quoting him here a bit. 

"I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races … I am not nor ever have been in favor of making voters or jurors of Negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people..."

                                                                      In a debate with Stephen Douglas in 1858

"I have no purpose, directly or indirectly to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so."

                                                                     Lincoln's inaugural address

"The power confided to me will be used to hold, occupy, and possess, the property, and places belonging to the Government, and to collect the duties, and imposts (Taxes!!!!!); but, beyond what is necessary for these objects, there will be no invasion---no using of force against, or among the people anywhere."

                                                                                Lincoln's inaugural address

"You and I are different races. We have between us a broader difference than exists between almost any other races. Whether it be right or wrong, I need not discuss; but this physical difference is a great disadvantage to us both, as I think. Your race suffer very greatly, many of them by living amongst us, while ours suffer from your presence. In a word, we suffer on each side. If this is admitted, it affords a reason at least why we should be separated."

                                                                                  Lincoln speech to freed blacks, August 14, 1862

       Poor people like Sammie Lane can never admit to any of this or it would destroy her perfect world scenario she has placed before herself. Yet, she is more than willing to attack others having very little knowledge of what she is even speaking about. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the idiocracy that is today's Americans are spoon fed by the television what to believe or spend 30 minutes online to become experts on everything, thus Sammie Lane.

May I quote you Mr. Lincoln

       Last Friday, our Sons of Confederate Veterans camp had Carl Jones speaking to us about the constitution and what it had to do with the War Between the States. For anyone who hasn't heard Carl talk, you have missed out. The man understands the U.S. Constitution better than most constitutional lawyers or supreme court justice's. During the course of the talk, we got on the topic of Ole Abe Lincoln and what he truly believed. It inspired me to write a blog using a few of his quotes to come to a conclusion of what the war was truly about. 

       We'll begin with dear Abraham speaking on the floor of congress on January 12, 1848. All italics in these quotes are mine.

       "Any people, anywhere, being inclined and having the power, have the right to rise up, and shake off the existing government, and form a new one that suits them better. This is a most valuable, a most sacred right, a right, which we hope and believe, is to liberate the world. Nor is this right confined to cases in which a whole people of an existing government, may choose to exercise it. Any portion of such people that can, may revolutionize, and make their own, of so much of the territory as they inhabit."

       As far as Lincoln waging war on the South because of his love for the African slaves, let's see what he says about them on September 18, 1858, just two years before the conflict begins. 

       "I will say then that I am not, nor ever have been in favor of bringing about in anyway the social or political equality of the white and black races, that I am not nor ever have been in favor of making voters or jurors of negro's, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people." 

       What does he say just before the war begins in a speech a group of northerners who opposed slavery. This was stated by Lincoln on February 27, 1860 in New York City. 

       "Wrong as we think slavery is, we can yet afford to let it alone where it is, because that much is due to the necessity arising from its actual presence in the nation."

       What did he mean by the necessity of is presence in the nation. Lincoln was no idiot. He understood that if he freed the slaves upon taking office, he would ruin half the nations economy and that half was the one paying eighty-five percent of the Federal taxes at the time. 

       Let's take a look at a few quotes from his first inaugural address and see what we can learn about Abe Lincoln and his views on freeing the slaves.

       "I have no purpose, directly or indirectly to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so."

       So Mr. Lincoln what exactly would lead to war if your not invading the South over slavery?

       "The power confided to me will be used to hold, occupy, and possess the property and places belonging to the government and to collect the duties and imposts (taxes); but beyond what may be necessary for these objects, there will be no invasion, no using of force against or among the people anywhere."

       Now we get a better understanding. You will have 700,000 of your countrymen slain and many more disabled for the love of money. Can you tell what you your reply was when suggested by a member of your own cabinet to just allow the South to leave in peace?

       "Let the South go? Where then would we get our revenue?"

       Let us look at a speech that Mr. Lincoln gave to a group of freed blacks on August 14, 1862 so we can understand how you truly view the black race.

       "You and we are different races. We have between us a broader difference than exists between almost any other two races. Whether it is right or wrong I need not discuss, but this physical difference is a great disadvantage to us both, as I think your race suffer very greatly, many of them by living among us, while ours suffer from your presence. In a word we suffer on each side. If this is admitted, it affords a reason at least why we should be separated."

       Eight days following this speech, what exactly did you write and say to Horace Greeley the New York newspaper editor. 

       "My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could do by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that."

       This last quote I am posting is not by Mr. Lincoln, but by that newspaper editor that Lincoln was writing to above. 

       "If the Declaration of Independence justified the secession of 3,000,000 colonists in 1776, why did it not justify the secession of 5,000,000 Southerners from the Union in 1861?"

       That's a very good question. It's too bad ole Abe's not around to explain it to us. Wait, I believe he can. I refer you to the reply he gave to his cabinet member earlier in this post. "Where would we get our revenue?"

       

       

       

       

Lincoln Takes A Leap

Honest Abe

       I have been reading the book Lincoln's Melancholy by Joshua Wolf Shenk and discovered a story that I hadn't heard before. While serving as a Illinois state legislature in 1840, Lincoln jumped from a window to deny a quorum. It seems the democrats proposed an early adjournment to put an end to the state bank. The whigs were outnumbered and decided the best way to avoid the vote was to leave the building, preventing a vote because there weren't enough members available to form a quorum. 

       Lincoln remained behind with fellow whig Joseph Gillespie to manage things. One newspaper noted how Lincoln seemed to be rather enjoying himself at the embarrassment of the house because the vote had been hijacked. Unexpectedly, the sergeant at arms, who had police powers, went out and rounded up just enough of the absent members to form a quorum and locked the doors. That was when the smirk left Lincoln's face and he made his move. 

       With a grave expression on his face, Lincoln became greatly excited and finding the door locked, raised a second story window and leapt to the ground. One newspaper mockingly stated that Lincoln was not harmed because his legs were so long it didn't require much of a drop. He understood that he had made a fool of himself and felt that his political career was probably over. It would be another six years before he would hold public office again. He remained embarrassed over this incident for the rest of his life. 

What it would be like to hear actual witnesses of the Lincoln Assassination

       You've heard the story a thousand times and probably read about it a hundred times. What if you could hear the story from one of the witnesses themselves. You may be surprised to learn you actually can. Thanks to an invention called youtube. Below I have posted a couple of links to actual eyewitnesses who were later recorded telling what they saw. The first is Samuel J. Seymour who was in attendance in the audience the night Lincoln was killed. Mr. Seymour was five years old on that fateful night and tells how he was more concerned with the man who fell from the presidential box at Ford's Theater. That man was John Wilkes Booth. In the video, Mr. Seymour appears on a television show called I've Got A Secret in 1956 and he would die soon after. He was 96 years old. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_iq5yzJ-Dk

The second link is to a sound recording made by Joseph H. Hazelton who was eleven years old at the time of the assassination. He was a program boy at Ford's Theater and he tells a great story about Booth and Lincoln. He would go on to become an actor and eventually play in movies. The recording was made in 1933.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SvKPACbx_U&list=FLUdlcf79OMkxlOdE1QGqfzA&index=8

Those are the only recordings that I am familiar with, but hopefully more will eventually come to light. Enjoy!