Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 2, 1993 TAG: 9306020277
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN HIGHTOWER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Recchi has handily lumped 217 years of history together (1776-1993), laced it with a few names on either side of the current Confederate flag issue, and determined that the war between the states was about slavery. Certainly slavery was an issue, but Lincoln stated rather plainly the war concerned holding the Union together, with or without slavery. Recchi has sighted the folklore cause of the war that was promulgated by historian James Ford Rhodes, who took the time to boil down the facts, drain off the truth and find slavery the simplistic cause of the conflict, at the bottom of the pot.
The Confederate battle flag is honored and revered by those black and white descendants of Southern patriots who fought for a free and independent nation. They, too, had grown weary of the dictates of Washington and the duplicitious nature of the radical social engineers, who at that point were uninterested in freeing the slaves, but were interested in placing their agenda and value on the Southern people. The problem was the Southern states had their own agenda, programs and timing. These were ideas and ideals that still can be traced back to the founding patriots, when Northerners and Southerners worked for the common good and called themselves "we the people."
Lincoln, the president of the North, sought to pin the wrent national fabric back together with Union bayonets. Social engineering at the end of a threatening sharp point does not promote love, tolerance or even a willingness to try.
Symbolism can be a tough item to understand. Symbols mean a variety of things to various people. Some are put off by the proper flying of the Confederate colors, and some rejoice at seeing them snap on a brisk day. That is the nature of symbolism, personal choice and the First Amendment. The lauded United States Supreme Court says burning the American flag is fine: free speech. Some find that offensive.
The issue this nation faces today is not so different than it was in 1861. The rhetorical sophistry of do-gooder politicians has not slowed. The touchy-feely propositions of the current batch of leftist pundits have chosen to pander to the malcontents and disenchanted, whose leaders have chosen paths of sorrowful ignorance instead of bringing their followers to further light and knowledge.
The old saw goes something like this: "If we could rid ourselves of our history and the Confederate battle flag, we would not be a divided nation but rather a harmonious country." The fundamental truth is that history is neither good nor bad, just fact upon fact. Those who view the flag as being other than a salute to the great people of the South who wished to be free are able to see a yet-divided nation, or one which they wish to divide.
John M. Hightower of Berryville is an author and publisher.
by CNB