AnotherGuy,

Yes, I have. The Emancipation Proclamation did not abolish slavery. It freed a number of slaves within the parts of the Confederacy that were conquered betweeen 1863 and 1865, but left many other slaves in bondage, and never claimed to do anything like abolishing the institution of slavery.

I have read several histories of both American slavery and the Civil War; last I checked, slavery in the United States was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution. And last time I checked the Constitution, amendments were ratified by the Congress and the several states, not by Presidential edict.

AnotherGuy: “Is Lincoln just another one of those evil, oppressive white males in your little brain?”

Anonymous: “Apparently, Lincoln is to be faulted because he is not perfect, like the lefties of today.”

Headless Unicorn Guy: “Because Gods Can Do No Wrong”

None of these remarks have anything to do with anything that I said above. All I did was complain that it’s not historically accurate to present the abolition of slavery as the work of a single politician. Please try to respond to what I actually said, rather than to the lively debate that you’ve created in your own head.

“If there is one characteristic that all great President’s have shared, it is a profound love and instinctive appreciation of this great idea and its fundamental role in the life and history of America. … Lincoln exhibited it when he abolished slavery and the country had to live up to the values and ideals enumerated by its founders; …”

Excuse me, but on what date did Lincoln “abolish slavery”?

Was this before or after he defeated the whole Army of North Virginia singlehandedly using his superhuman strength, invulnerability to bullets, and ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound?