Deflection

As General Sherman stated as he marched to the sea, he stated that all blacks should be given 40 acres of land after their release from slavery. This is a difficult statement to understand, but it does warrant some thought. As President Lincoln stated before the end of the war, equality is not possible with the blacks. With this statement being present in our current environment, this statement is just as real as it was 160 years ago.

As I can remember back in the 70s, people were always trying to find something that careers that each kid was interested in as they worked their way through school, and this does seem like the best way to approach careers. It seems like those that are good in math, science, business, welding, carpentry and other areas found in there youth should be come their careers. In today’s environment, with minimum qualifications, it seems like there is no point in finding a career that fits each of the youths interest. As for those that find a career that they love as a youth, they will probably never work in that area with EDI programs and being cheated out of the careers that they love with those that minimum qualify. Although this is sad, it is a topic for another day.

As for those coming from different nationalities, they seem to have strengths in certain areas: Germany, math and science; Italy, art; France, food; and the list goes on and on. These are not bad qualities and they should be enriched in the youth coming out of high school.

As Abraham Lincoln recognized, the black nationality is so different from the European nationality. It is best to look at the strengths in the black culture. They are strong in hunting, farming, and cooking. When I was in South Africa, the blacks were so strong in tracking animals, since they were taught at a young age. They are not good a politics, as seen in Africa, with no black governments, but black tribes. Trying to bring governments into black areas has failed. Although these are not bad qualities black, it is part of their human characteristics. It is not to say that they cannot working in areas of their interest, as with all nationalities, since they can work out of their heritage.

At the time that Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, he also supported to send ex-black slaves to Cow Island in the Caribbean Sea. Without environmental support on the island, like stores, banks, and doctors, the experiment failed. But, what Lincoln was looking for, was an environment where the blacks could serve under their strengths.

This goes to General Sherman’s comments to give the blacks forty acres of land-recognizing the strengths of the blacks. They could farm, hunt, and cook as their ancestors did for centuries in Africa. In their tribes, they form tight societies. If they lived in this country in supportive communities, with schools, stores, banks, and doctors, it seems like they would succeed, as they did in Africa. It would give them to freedom to sell or buy more land, but at least they would have their own piece of the earth. They would be the owners of their destinations.

Although, as we have seen through the years, there are those that do not support the blacks at all, like the KKK. This would still be a force that law enforcement would have to deal with over time. But, since the federal government had given the blacks this land, then the federal law might be written to protect the blacks.

Lincoln did fear that the blacks would face this issues of the blacks not fitting into the communities that we see today. After the war, many blacks sit around doing nothing in the south. Without a plan for the Blacks, they would not fit into the communities. If Lincoln would have live, there was hope that Lincoln would have found away for the blacks to fit into the United States. The presidents that followed Lincoln did not have a desire to work on Black reconstruction, even Ulysses S. Grant was consumed by other issues that kept him away from his desire to work on reconstruction.

John Locke, an English Philosopher, born in 1632, quoted, “Being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions.” The word “possession” does give everyone a goal to acquire meaningful assets. It is the pursuit of assets that does drive everyone to happiness. It is quite obvious that the word possession could mean property. The Declaration of Independence states the following: “…that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Although Thomas Jefferson was writing from John Locke’s philosophy, he was persuaded to write “the pursuit of happiness” instead of the pursuit of property, since the signers of the declaration would not sign the document without the changes. By changing the word property to happiness, the term happiness becomes ambiguous. It has no value. Therefore, without a personal drive, it leave everyone open for debate on their own feeling of happiness.

During the writing of the Massachusetts Constitution, written before the Declaration of Independence, John Adam made the following quote, “All men are born equally free and independent, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights, among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties, that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting their property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness.” Here Adams writes, “that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting their property,” making it clear that happiness is the drive for property. It becomes interesting that a military general would mention giving property to Blacks while he is totally focused on winning a war.

By giving the Blacks land, they would have become land lords, able to care for the land as they saw appropriate. Although there would have been regulations to keep land grabbers from taking the land away from them, they could farm the land as they wanted to, buy more land, or even sell the land. The point is that they could handle the land as they wanted to for their happiness. Furthermore, since they were slaves for so many years, they had earned the land, so they would have felt ownership in the land.

Obviously, they would feel some push backs by others, since they owned land that others would feel that they could better utilize. As stated above, they would get push back from the KKK. But, if the land dedicated to the blacks was all in the same area, it would minimize the push back and the Black would feel more comfortable in this environment.

Give the Blacks forty acres of land for each household was practical in the late 1800s, but it is impractical with the development since the civil war. Therefore there is no point even trying to give Blacks property,

General Sherman was probably correct by giving the blacks forty acres of land. They would have been able to fit into their community, with dignity, and they could work with their strengths and not the strengths of other Americans. If only Abraham Lincoln would have lived this country would be a better place for everyone to live.

Roger