The Left's craven efforts to rewrite history merit skepticism and resistance.

The Devil rarely makes his approach in ways that reveal his identity or intentions.  He comes as an angel of light with a winsome countenance and a reasonable proposition.  But the moment his victim forfeits all suspicion, Satan pounces and all is lost.  So it is with con-men, scammers and many other ne’er-do-wells. 

Virginia owns a long, noble and precious history of zealously preserving freedom and aggressively rejecting tyranny.  Therefore, when the Commonwealth’s legacy is rewritten and reinterpreted by the profane and the ignorant, you can be sure that personal liberty is the intended target of the attack.  Thus is the case in the campaign to delete Virginia’s proud Confederate history, by removing statues of General Robert E. Lee and General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and renaming the public parks where the monuments reside. 

Contrary to urban myth and liberal legend, slavery was not exclusive to the 19th century American south.  In my home state of Ohio, many houses still bear the telltale signs of the slavery era, namely, iron rings anchored to the walls of brick cellars.  The Civil War was not fought solely over slavery.  The conflict was sparked by the tyranny of northern states. 

The removal of monuments to Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson by leftist Democrat city councils is nothing more than a public relations ploy orchestrated by the political descendants of segregationists and Jim Crow enforcers.  There are two reasons for this.  One is that Democrats seek to erase the guilt and shame of their own past.  The other is that Democrats attempt to use false guilt to weaken the spirit of freedom that burns hot in southern states. 

To the radical Left, the Confederate battle flag and monuments to Generals Jackson and Lee are straw men, meaning that they are safe symbols upon which to unload their hate and rage, and endear themselves to their extremist fringe base.  Symbolic actions cost nothing, and accomplish nothing good.  Slavery was a real and tragic chapter in America’s past--one that Democrats are desperate to revise.  Americans can choose to learn from that era, or we will condemn ourselves to repeating it.

Having lived in Virginia for over twenty years, I have come to appreciate the enormous sacrifices made by people in the south, and the superb skill and genius of Jackson and Lee.  There is no question that Lee was a superior tactician to Union General Ulysses Grant, another Ohioan.  Had there been an equitable balance of men and material, there is no doubt the Confederate States would have prevailed. 

These are the qualities that make Jackson and Lee worthy of admiration and honor.  Robert E. Lee was initially sought by President Abraham Lincoln to command the union army, but Lee declined, professing that his first loyalty was to the Old Dominion.  Both Jackson and Lee were military experts and patriots. 

Robert E. Lee is quoted as saying, “slavery as an institution, is a moral and political evil in any country,” even though he owned slaves that he had inherited.  Virginia state law would have prohibited Lee from freeing his slaves in the mid-1800s.  Jackson also owned slaves, but started a Sunday School class for them because he was concerned for their souls.  In fact, General Jackson sent money home during the Civil War to keep his Sunday School class going.

Those who desire to preserve the history of their champions have every right to do so.  Efforts to acknowledge the heroic actions and ideals of Confederate leaders or the flag under which they fought, are not prima facie endorsements of the institution of slavery.  Liberals attack and demean people who possess genuine integrity and dignity because they have none themselves. 

The American Left has replaced the plantations of the south with the federal “plantations” of dependence upon government and fatally-flawed liberal political policies.  But the slavery they demand today, is tyranny of the mind; tyranny of the soul. 

Confederate soldiers and officers fought with honor, died with honor, and eventually, surrendered with honor.  I am not ashamed of the Confederate history of Virginia, and no Virginian should allow northern liberal Democrat activists like those on the Charlottesville City Council to make them hang their heads or hide from their proud and rich history.
 
Sic Semper Tyrannis!