My morning newspaper presented an interesting front page photo to consider.

[aikoaiko]

Confederates honored at annual ceremony
H. K. Edgerton, a native of Asheville, North Carolina, is a southern heritage activist, passionate about honoring those who fought for the Confederacy, black and white, and is the keynote speaker at the Confederate Memorial Day Ceremony in Forsyth Park on Sunday. Hunter McRae/Savannah Morning News

http://savannahnow.com/node/713081">Savannah Morning News Article

I moved to Georgia from New England about 10 years ago and the complexities of the Southern identity never cease to amaze me.

[NightWatcher]

1. hey, I saw that photo too. It caused a double take

The Savannah Morning News is a joke and their website is weak as well. But most Savannahians dont care about the news either. Have you ever tried to watch channel 28's news here? It's a joke with more American Idol updates than news stories.

[aikoaiko]

5. Its true what you say about the paper, but...

...after I canceled it I found that I was always missing local event announcements so I subscribed again.

Bill Dawers is the best local columnist and I appreciate his insights as well as his "heads up" on local events.

[Bunny]

2. Reminds me of Clayton Bigsby:

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/291638/clayton_bigsby/

Loved Chappelle's Show.

[lame54]

3. Is that the blind guy from The Chappelle Show?

[butterfly77]

16. That was the first thing I thought about...

[Schema Thing]

4. "Unemployed for six months, blind crooner finds work"

[rrneck]

6. Looks like the Big Lebowski on the right. nt

[NutmegYankee]

7. As a northerner, I can't understand it.

Here in New England, we build monuments to Patriots like Nathan Hale, Colonel Ledyard and the men defending Fort Griswold at the battle of Groton Heights. Down south on the other hand, I see monuments to traitors like Jefferson Davis and General Lee. I just can't understand it.

[DKRC]

8. Nathan Hale, Colonel Ledyard, et al are traitors in England

so I don't suppose you'll find monuments to them in Piccadilly Square.


Here's a book for you: Confederates in the Attic by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tony Horwitz.



I just finished reading it. It's not the definitive answer to your question about the South, but it is a quick easy read. Maybe it will help.

[NutmegYankee]

9. Correct, But I would expect to find them in the USA.

The South is part of the USA is it not?

[DKRC]

10. Yes

but not for lack of trying. :evilgrin:

My point is it depends on your viewpoint. As a Yankee, erecting monuments to Lee, Davis, Forrest, Jackson, etc doesn't make sense. As a Southerner, commemorating these men who stood up & put their lives on the line for what they believed in makes perfect sense to me.

[NutmegYankee]

11. Ok.

I can't see how someone calls themselves a patriot and loves their country when that person celebrates men who attacked their country and killed the troops that defended their country. The two do not reconcile. But, as I said before - I cannot understand it.

[hyphenate]

22. I think it's mostly about Southerners being citizens

of the U.S. as much as those from the North. They were defending their rights as American citizens just as much as northerners were, only their philosophy about their rights was different. Yes, they believed in slavery, but so did many of our greatest founders and patriots. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson would not include anything in the Declaration about slavery, because he too maintained slaves.

Those of us living up north can't grasp this, because insofar as we call ourselves patriots, the truth is, if the south hadn't lost the war, we would be celebrating the patriotism of Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis.

As they always say, the winners write history. The north won, but it doesn't mean there weren't any home-grown patriots to people who live in the south.

[Chemical Bill]

14. Hmmm...

There is a guy at work who claims that the Oklahoma City bombers were patriots. Just sayin'.

Bill

[KatyMan]

17. Well

There's a statue of George Washington in Trafalgar Square, just by the National Portrait Gallery. I always thought that was kind of strange.

[nadinbrzezinski]

12. Well in years back we used to have a guy (african American) who

went to a gaming convention

He wore the most amazing Nazi uniforms...

And played historical games,

So I asked him one day why?

They have cool uniforms.

So you never know

And yes, he knew his history and said if they had won the war, he'd not be here

This guy, though I note this. He's wearing an EM jacket, while the onloookers are all wearing officer kit

Speaks quite a bit, doesn't it?

And yes, some African Americans served in the Southern armies, side by side with their masters close to the end of the war

[Varner911]

13. Sad, no?

[conscious evolution]

15. Forsyth Park?

Unless savannah has changed its pretty disrespectful to hold a celebratrion like that in a predominately African-American part of town.
Color me surprised.Not.

[aikoaiko]

18. Yes, the picture was taken in Forsyth Park, but that is where the Confederate Monument is.

So it makes sense that it was held there. Savannah is actually kind of interesting in how upper, upper middle, middle, lower, and poor housing are all mixed together north of Derenne.

[conscious evolution]

19. I remember when DeRenne was the city limit.

I hear they call it midtown now.

Your right.I forgot,also,that way back when that statue was erected blacks were not allowed to live in the city limits.

[aikoaiko]

20. My wife grew up in Savannah and she remember more cow pastures south of Derenne

than stores. Suburban spawl has not been kind to the southside of Savannah.

But still I like it here.

[Sheltiemama]

21. God bless the South.

I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. I can guarantee you the photographer thought to himself, "I gotta get a shot of this." And that it livened up the newsroom last night.

[aikoaiko]

23. Knoxville would be a pretty awesome place to live.

whether it was above or below the mason dixon line.