Last month, in his inauguration speech, George W. Bush brazenly assumed the mantle of the Great Emancipator, quoting Abraham Lincoln while declaring world war in the name of human liberty. Clearly the elastic Lincoln icon can be stretched in startling ways, when the example of Honest Abe, an eloquent autodidact of backwoods birth, can be appropriated by our current president, a… return to article
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Reader Comments (15)Page 1 of 1 pagesThis is too good but from next time onwards describe Lincoln’s death and u must still improve it
Posted by Pranav Sanghvi on Feb 11, 2005 at 12:43 PM Lincoln suspended the right of habeous corpus, Franklin Roosevelt interred Americans of Japanese descent in concentration camps. George Bush has the Patriot Act, also approved by congress. In times of war over reaction is common and possibly even the norm.
Posted by Molly Rotert on Feb 11, 2005 at 3:13 PM Lincoln not only was a racist and white supremacist he was also anti-semitic.
In Washington D.C., at Ford’s Theater where he was assasinated, you can visit the small display on the lower floor and read Lincoln’s order that no JEWS could be chaplains in the UNION Army. No such restriction existed in the Confederacy. And furthermore, U.S. Grant forbid JEWS in his camps. Grant maintained the use of his “servants” without apology until they were freed by the 13th amendment! Grant stated if he “found this War is fought for the Radical Abolitionists he would resign his commission and offer his sword to the other side”
But you see, Victors write the history books!!!
Posted by Charles M.Byrd on Feb 11, 2005 at 7:39 PM Lincoln suspended habeus corpus with the consent of Congress as the Constitution requires. Bush has suspended habeus corpus wihout asking Congress for their approval in violation of the Constitution. Lincoln freed the slaves. Bush is turning all of us into slaves.
Why don’t we carry these analogies to their logical conclusion? Bush said Karl Rove had perfect thighs.
Posted by AmericanInsurgent on Feb 11, 2005 at 11:40 PM Those of us in Maryland who know our history know Lincoln for the sneaking tyrant that he was. Chief Justice Roger Taney declared his persecution of dissenters and his dictatorial policies illegal and unconstitutional. Lincoln stomped all over Maryland as soon as he had enough blue coated thugs at his disposal and was on the verge of arresting the Chief Justice for his impudence. Not only did he suspend the writ of habeus corpus (which he used to jail for indeterminate amounts of time ALL opposition in our state, including a majority of the state legislature, Baltimore’s Chief of Police and Police Commissioners, etc., etc.) but perpetrating fraudulent state elections through terror tactics to replace those officials he had forcibly removed.
Without a doubt Lincoln did more to destroy constitutional government in America than any president before or since. He was a master wordsmith (most lawyers usually do have talent in this area) but in the final analysis his actions far outbespoke his words. It does not suprise me that he also led a perverted life style.
Posted by Raymond Francis on Feb 12, 2005 at 8:47 AM I wonder what any other man elected at the time Lincoln was would have done??
To me, his greatness is contained in his Second Inaugaural address.
I think it is totally ridiculous to assume his sex life based on what an “early bedmate” said about his thighs. My sister was my early bedmate. She had great boobs. And I am sure I have said so. All THAT meant was that I recognized she had great boobs, and was perhaps a little jealous of them.
I am very drawn to women. Emotionally if not physically. However, the thought of a lesbian relationship is repulsive to me. But, I dearly love a number of women for their souls and spirits. I could certainly share a bed with them and think nothing of it. Might even cuddle if it was a cold night. But I only desire MEN. In fact ONE man, my husband.
Living with the difficult woman Lincoln did, it is little wonder he sought out men. And Mary was so jealous, he certainly could not have sought out women. Have you not read the scenes she caused when he paid any attention to ANY other women whatever?
I do not know why everything has to be “sexual” in this culture. It is certainly possible for people to be close. Even to share a bed without ANY sexual activity whatever. Or any desire for any. Additionally, some people have high sex drives, some don’t.
Certainly it is possible that Lincoln had some “homosexual” encounters. It is also possible he didn’t.
The FACTS of his ruthlessness and suspension of Constitutional rights are areas that it is certainly important to discuss. That he had a male bedmate at times may be a fact. That it means anything more than that is only conjecture. I think it is totally WRONG to brand dead people in their personal life, when they have no chance to state their own case, and the allegations could never be proven.
Posted by Lonna VanHorn on Feb 13, 2005 at 4:12 AM Is the author of that book the guy who was on Crossfire or some other similar jerk-off Republican shout fest? He was asked why he thought Lincoln was gay and responded, “Because he was.” Then the host asked if he might have some wish for Lincoln to be gay(insinuating that the author might be gay) and the author goes, “I have a strong anal fixation” then atared at the ground until they stopped the segment and just went onto something else? I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure that was the guy. He came off as a fucking nutcase…Lincoln was a racist and bla blah, I know… but this gay thing is not only a little out there, it’s totally besides the point. No, it does not matter whether or not Lincoln was gay…I agree that Lincoln’s reputation could kicked down a couple of notches, but good luck doing that 150 years after his death. Most kids still think Colombus was an all around great guy, right?
Posted by Ryan Conover on Feb 13, 2005 at 7:12 AM How exactly is the fact, or more appropriately the suspicion, that Lincoln was gay going to take him off of his pedestal?
Posted by Xian on Feb 13, 2005 at 5:16 PM Why are you liberal Lincoln lovers always so foul-mouthed?
You didnt see the author on TV - Tripp died two years ago ‘jerk-off’.
Posted by David Guthrie on Feb 14, 2005 at 8:17 PM Ms. Eckhaus:
It would take a lot more than suggesting Lincoln was gay to strip some of the varnish off of his image. Lincolns’ historic image is the ultimate American lie, the biggest diversionary con job ever pulled. To “unvarnish” Lincoln would be the equivalent of convincing the world that the Confederacy won the civil war, that the slaves were never freed and that America is the weakest (mentally), poorest (morally) and most backward (spiritually) nation on Earth. I’m sure the books cited just add a couple more layers of varnish over these truths.
Posted by theloneous on Feb 14, 2005 at 10:27 PM Hmmmm… a liberal Lincoln lover? I have to smile on the inside at that… that being said… fawk, $hit, I do have a filthy mouth…
Posted by Ryan Conover on Feb 15, 2005 at 8:26 PM Might I just ask what relevence Lincoln’s sexual preference has to anything? I found the talk pertaining to lincolns wartime practices interesting but I dont understand why It suddenly digressed into a discussion of whether or not he was gay…
Posted by Hurin on Feb 16, 2005 at 10:02 PM Lincoln the sneaking tyrant and sexual deviant…sounds like my kind of houseguest. All this aside, I hope we can divert out attention away from such figures of historical importance to their contemporary issues and trends that brought them into prominence. Perhaps books like these do such a thing. Or perhaps they center too much on the cult of personality from the opposing side.
Insomma, the guy at once freed the slaves and concentrated federal power at the same time. Not intrisically good nor bad, but clearly competent, a spellbinding orator and a product of his time. Now let’s focus on the bozo sleeping in his bed.By the way - James Buchanan? Flaming.
Posted by rocco on Feb 18, 2005 at 1:14 PM Page 1 of 1 pages -
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