5 questions for your consideration

          If you study the Civil War or just enjoy reading about it, you have read about the controversies surrounding the big moments of the conflict. The ‘What if’ stuff.

          Your loyal blogger enjoys debating the ‘What if’ questions although generally speaking, all that really matters is what actually happened. Determining what actually happened is hard enough, even after all this time.

          The traditional what ifs include: What if all of JEB Stuart’s cavalry force stayed with the main body of the Army of Northern Virginia during the entire Gettysburg campaign? What if Robert E. Lee stayed with the Union army instead of following Virginia into the Confederacy? What if the Union army won at the first battle of Bull Run, as it should have?

          The reader is invited to determine on his/her own whether the following questions are traditional what iffers or not. Regardless of that determination, the reader is asked to consider the following questions and develop answers. Your local blogger will provide a set of replies at a future date.

          Before the questions for consideration, your loyal blogger reminds that there are no right or wrong answers here. There are only ideas.

 

          QUESTION #1: If war had somehow been avoided, how long would the institute of slavery have remained legal in the United States of America?

 

          QUESTION #2: How different would American society have been during the 20^th century had Abraham Lincoln lived through the completion of his second Presidential term and seen to the start of Reconstruction?

 

          QUESTION #3: How would your life have been different if the Confederate states had secured their independence?

 

          QUESTION #4: In terms of action on the battlefields, who was the single most important individual in the fighting? No fair choosing one per side and no fair choosing the individual foot soldier as answers.

 

          QUESTION #5: No single event has had a bigger impact on American history than the Civil War. Study of the War era and the War itself offer educational opportunities on many social and historic topics. Should the War be reemphasized in K-12 classrooms?

          Think these questions over and, as you do, we thank you for reading.