Neo-Confederate hooey, November 22 edition

I believe the accuracy of the attempted deal to save his life in return for implicating Davis is disputed.

Just a question, but IYO, was there ANYTHING positive you can say about the South? Other than it was defeated?

The ultra-liberal former Governor of the Commonwealth of Massaschusetts Michael Dukakis had said the following, “We are not here to say whether these men are guilty or innocent. We are here to say that the high standards of justice, which we in Massachusetts take such pride in, failed Sacco and Vanzetti.” Dukakis stated that he probably would have pardoned them; however, Massachusetts law did not permit the governor to grant pardons posthumously. The case is still officially open.

Wirz was guilty of slavishly adhering to his orders as opposed to the moral duty of caring for the men in his charge. That said, it was Wirz who devised and constructed the drainage system which eliminated the sewage back-up (into the camp) from the nearby swamp.

While I am no fan of the confederacy and their ultimate goals. I think you have to be careful not to examine history within current societal standards. I can think of many statements made by the Great Emancipator himself which would not survive current scrutiny.

Regarding Wirz. The victors write the history and execute the war criminals. I have no doubt that within the scope of what Henry Wirz had available to him in the way of resources, in combination with his overall mission, that Wirz was put in the unfortunate situation of “doing the best he can”

Scapegoats and scapegoating is a very common practice. Certainly there are examples of equally deplorable Union prisons. Or at least Union prisons which defied current standards of care regarding prisoners of war.

The two paragraphs are radically different. I did not find the second one as polarizing.

I am not sure I would classify the second one as neo confederate doctrine. Just a different point of view.

Absent slavery I think it is a moot point. The peculiar institution is the driver in this car. What other right was in danger to any state?

Even the existence of slavery was not threatened before the war was in full progress. Lincoln said so himself, and the Republican Party platform only addressed halting the spread of slavery.

Regards,
Dennis

I am no southern sympathizer, but I am a bit of a Wirz sympathizer. Have you not done research on Elmyra, New York and Benjamin Tracy? He was no better or worse than Wirz and yet he ends up serving in high office in the US Government and a Navy vessal was named after him while ol’ Henry Wirz was sent to the Gallows. Scholarly work on the matter is favoring the argument the South had from the beginning on this one- sorry.

Maybe Wirz got what he deserved, but why not Tracy and others- the death rate in Elmira was very near equal to that of Andersonville.

I’m with Dennis on this one, Damion. We should condemn all those who committed criminal neglect or worse in regard to prisoners, not give Wirz a free pass because others were given a free pass (or reward) for their crimes.

We did prosecute the Japanese, and executions were conducted. It just didnt receive the same kind of press and then subsequent history writing that the Nuremburg trials received.

The topic of who is and who aint a war criminal is very murky. (Im going strictly on recollection here) Wasn’t it Custer who hung like 7 (and shot one execution style) of Mosby’s men upon capture?

There are many stories from DDAY, and Viet nam and everywhere else within our own military experience of GI’s executing prisoners because they were too much trouble to handle properly. It goes back to my previous comment above of “the victors naming the war criminals”

It seems to me that the handling of POW’s for any army at any time seems like an inconvenience at best. Throw in a generalized lack of resources (read:food) on the part of that army and you have a situation ready made for an “Andersonville”

Or in other words. Exactly what I said.

I was home this morning and poking around and the History Channels documentary on Camp Douglas in Chicago was on. Near the end of the show the issue of Henry Wirz and his problems versus Colonel Sweet and his treatment of prisoners was raised. Backing up what I said previously, Colonel Sweet ended the war with a commendation for a job well done, Henry Wirz ended the war at the end of a rope. The point was made that at Andersonville, guards suffered nearly the same fate as the prisoners, lack of resources causing hunger, death and disease. At Camp Douglas, resources in abundance were willfully and knowingly withheld from the prisoners causing equal if not worse conditions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_prison_ships_%28New_York%29

Anyone appalled by the cruelty of Andersonville may be interested in reading this quick wrap-up. In retrospect, Andersonville was a walk in the park compared to being placed on an intensely crowded ship with no supplies, no guards, cannibalism for survival, and mob rule. This was how “gentlemen” treated prisoners. The black flag of “No Quarter” used for centuries is another example. Some folks may consider this note an attempt to justify cruelty, but quite to the opposite, rather than to focus on the ill will of man, it adds the greatest of honor to the memories of those who volunteered to fight regardless of the knowing that these cruelties could be inflicted on them if captured. Men still fought against the armies flying the black flag with full knowledge, just as black soldiers and their officers in our Civil War. There is more to courage, honor, and valor than standing up to the enemy on the field of battle. One fella has it totally right. We can never judge history by present standards. We must immerse ourselves in the total picture of the day while forcing ourselves to forget the proceedings since in order to make judgements. Rather than to judge, I just thank God that these, the bravest of men, who fought the enemy armed only with the will to survive, so that we today we may sit back in our comforts and find their treatment appalling.