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Confederate monuments: So what? Now What?

“A people without history / Is not redeemed from time” — Eliot

Let us suppose every public statue or monument to the Confederacy is removed as fast as their opponents want. “So what? Now what?” Who exactly will be better off? Black unemployment will be unchanged. The risk of horrific war with North Korea will not be lowered. The near-total breakdown of civility in our political life will not be improved. The inability, indeed, unwillingness, of the parties in Washington to come together to govern well will not increase. Obamacare will continue to fail and there will continue to be nothing on the docket to replace or repair it. Al Qaeda will still attempt to carry out the attacks it recently promised against mass-transportation means in the United States.What difference will it make, exactly?

RTWT: @ Sense of Events: Confederate monuments: So what? Now What?

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • Brother John August 17, 2017, 3:34 PM

    None of those things are the objectives of the vandals. Wanton destruction and pointless disturbance are, however. The more of that, the better; the more damage to civility, the more damage to the historical record, the more breakdown in law, the closer we move to Anarch0-Tyranny, the better.

  • Dr. Jay August 17, 2017, 4:40 PM

    Slouching towards Venezuela . . . Methinks.

  • Gordon August 17, 2017, 4:45 PM

    They seek one more click of the rachet. These people do not want to work hard, earn respect, demonstrate their wisdom, and change society. They want it now, because they want it, and because throwing tantrums is a successful tactic these days.

    In Minneapolis, a lake named after John C. Calhoun now has a second name that’s supposed to be what the Dakota called it. But I’m betting that we’ll see the dual name signs torn down or defaced in short order. The city council is full of people who need physical therapy from patting themselves on the back too much.

  • Nori August 17, 2017, 5:08 PM

    Profound essay, Mr Sensing. Very cold,harsh truths, particularly the DNA evidence. One point I would make is that in elite, wealthy circles, white servants and indentured whites were treated as chattel by their masters, with lots and lots of little bastards to prove their virility. The pompous asses north of the Mason-Dixon line, and in saintly Europe,are guilty as sin also. Not trying to refute your words, just adding to the mix. Looking forward to your next installments.

  • Casey Klahn August 17, 2017, 6:13 PM

    We know much Civil war history, and there is much, much more that we don’t know. I wish it never happened.

    What makes any history bearable is the human and the divine evidence found in it. I mean, I am a lover of history. But, morally, the things we try to understand and rationalize and internalize in our history are sour tonic.

    I don’t begrudge Confederates their sense of duty. I feel the same about the Wehrmacht, who incidentally wore uniforms copied from the pattern of the American Confederates. Respect, not acrimony. Reconciliation, not animosity.

    Of course, my sensibility of the statues is that they are art and history. Neither should be destroyed.

    Well written, as always, Don. The what next I fear is attacking our patricians, and also our flag. Don’t ask any of it to make sense.

  • Aggie August 17, 2017, 8:12 PM

    Why you naive person. We have public schools to rename. Streets to rename. All sorts of institutions to guide into their new role in our glorious society. And let’s progress – not just Confederate generals. All white generals. And selected white political leaders. Yes, and we’ll provide you with the names and biographies of our new cultural past, to be taught to our young who will march, march forward into their glorious future.

    It’s worked before, just ask Pol Pot.

  • eclectickelvin August 18, 2017, 4:33 AM

    Unfortunately the left has no concept of cultural heritage. Maybe they believe out of site out of mind. But it probably just comes down to they are batshit insane and should be locked up and kept away from society. The ideas of sanity and reason seem to send them off the deep end.

  • ahem August 18, 2017, 5:53 AM

    Time to look over ‘Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds’ again.

  • tim August 18, 2017, 7:13 AM

    “The pompous asses north of the Mason-Dixon line…”

    Bless your heart.

  • Bill Henry August 18, 2017, 7:28 AM

    The monuments don’t offend. To be genuinely offended you have to care about something in the first place. The left is systemically narcissistic. They can not care about anything except what is most important to them which is their standing and perception among their fellow narcs. This is all virtue signally with a boundary pushing as a side benefit. This is the just the first attempt to see how far they can push the adults.

    Why is anyone giving them credibility? Who cares what they say on twitter? Who owns the tools that build, places or removes the monuments in the first place? Can you actually visualize a hipster driving a bulldozer? Its only the cuckolded flying monkeys of the right/center right that give any power to these overgrown children by listening to their narcissistic rants in the first place.

    Close the borders, stop propping up the universities by sending your children to them, send you kids to technical colleges or not at all. Save your money and build something in your life with purpose and value.

    Am I embarrassed by the civil war? Of course not, no more embarrassed than I am by the Alzheimer induced actions of my recently deceased, beloved parents. I loved them, I think of the legacy and wisdom they gave me in their bright moments, and I move on with my life.

    Ignore the left, defund their platforms and institutions, and fight them with our inherent wealth, which can only be created by doing something of true value. Wealth can not be appropriated, only abandoned.

    Bill Henry
    Ignore the left and when you vote make it count.

  • Howard Nelson August 18, 2017, 7:39 AM

    Let’s stop nibbling at the edges of our prejudices and postjudices, all based on our priorities — which in turn are based on our personal preferences, whether rational or not — and get to the core of the matter.
    Until about 220 years ago slavery was accepted by the ruling social order. The start of its abolishment was by the British.
    Americans, with symbols, have honored Confederate government heroes for reasons of reconciliation and justification.
    Textbooks, when allowed, have described the unpalatable complicated truth.
    So, to correct the present situation, we need to tear down everything back to before the Big Bang which lead to this time.
    While we’re spending time in this destruction, be sure not to expend more than another 0.001% of those resources to support infant orphans, helpless elderly, hospitals, ill and injured police and veterans, the mentally incapacitated, and other Christ-in-form entities.
    Note that this cleansing destruction must include all us destructors.
    If we adults weren’t so stupid we’d be nothing at all. Ignoramuses and/or ignoranuses? See, you do have choices!

  • ghostsniper August 18, 2017, 7:44 AM

    Anybody have any idea when the conversion of america into africa will be complete?

  • indyjonesouthere August 18, 2017, 12:45 PM

    The conversion won’t occur until planned parenthood is gone and then it may not occur if AFDC, section 8 housing and Medicaid go belly up.

  • John the River August 19, 2017, 5:11 AM

    We closer to The Wild West than we are to multi-cultural utopia.