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I recently made a trip to Disney World with some of my family and grandchildren. It was an enjoyable experience and though I have my criticisms of Disney and all it represents, I was left with an overall positive view of Disney's accomplishments and enterprise. I was especially appreciative (and somewhat surprised) of the theme park's adherence to a traditional and positive view of American history. I had wrongly assumed that Disney would have succumbed to the pressures of political correctness and toned down its patriotism. I was pleasantly proven wrong.

The drive to Brownsburg, Virginia from my home is always a pleasant one. Driving south on Route 252 through the rolling hills and farmland of Augusta and Rockbridge Counties is like taking a trip back in time. Much of the landscape appears as it did 150 years ago. It is simply beautiful. But my most recent trip had an added benefit: I was headed to the home of Robert (Bob) J. Driver, Jr. to chat with him about his most recent book: The Confederate Soldiers of Rockbridge County, Virginia: A Roster . Driver’s circa 1795 home in the quaint village...

North of the River Tweed, on the border with England, lies the hauntingly beautiful land of Scotland. A land inhabited by a hardy breed of Celts whose history is rich with romantic stories of bravery and heroic struggles for freedom—a land so full of legends and myths, it’s sometimes difficult to separate true history from the romanticized version. During the 13th and 14th centuries, the Scots fought two bloody wars with their neighbor to the South, England, in Scotland’s struggle for independence. In recent years there has been a renewed interest about Scottish history, thanks in large measure to Mel...

So if we use the same logic used in regards to Confederate figures and icons in the South, Yale should change its name. Why don't we hear that demand from the "historians" in the blogosphere? That's simple. It does not serve the purpose of their agenda, at least not yet. And maybe, in this instance, the administration at Yale realized that Calhoun was the low-hanging fruit and once he had been vanquished, the offended would aim higher - at Elihu Yale. And what might alumni benefactors have to say about that? All that there moral reformin' could get expensive. Virtue-signaling...

Let me offer a very simple explanation of the Trump phenomenon: There's a strong dynamic now working in Trump's favor that may be almost impossible to overcome. All the establishment powers in the media (which everyone hates), the political establishment (which everyone hates), and much of the corporate establishment (which almost everyone hates) are seen as "piling on" against Trump. They're also seen as elitist and illegitimate critics who are all responsible for our current mess. They have ZERO credibility with the average working American.

Not only is the assumption "a fundamental mistake", it, by necessity of logic, transfers that same assumption and guilt to many more organizations and persons than just the one displaying the flag . . .

No, they're not. The question is, of course, a rhetorical one. I subscribe to several popular Civil War publications and enjoy all of them very much. However, if you agree with the "logic" of some folks, one might be able to at least make the accusation. Allow me to explain.

While watching this latest production, I couldn't help but chuckle about some of the misconceptions many Americans have about Boone due, perhaps, to that old TV series. Brown explodes some of those misconceptions in this project: Boone was not the first white man to explore or settle Kentucky (then part of Virginia). He did not care for coonskin caps and never wore one. He was court-martialed, refused an attorney, defended himself, was acquitted and then promoted. He never used tobacco and though he did not totally abstain from alcohol, he was never known to abuse its use. He was red-headed...

Foote's narrative is such a breath of fresh air when compared to much of the politically motivated and agenda driven Civil War history of recent years. That alone would make it bad enough but, in addition, much of what is being written is not only poor history, it is poor literature. (Foote remains of the few adults in a room of Civil War historians populated by juveniles.)

“Then arose that do or die expression, that maniacal maelstrom of sound; that penetrating, rasping, shrieking, blood curdling noise that could be heard for miles and whose volume reached the heavens such an expression as never yet came from the throats of sane men, but from men whom the seething blast of an imaginary hell would not check while the sound lasted.” ~ Confederate Colonel Keller Anderson of Kentucky's Orphan Brigade There are few aspects of the Civil War which have been engrained in American culture and remembrance more than the Confederate soldiers’ Rebel Yell . . ."

Dr. Bryon McClanahan reviews Pryor's work on Lee. He is quite critical and discusses major problems with the book as well as the "trendy" practice by modern historians of "humanizing" (tearing down) American heroes . . .

In the truest spirit of Christmas, I wish you peace and the gift of the Saviour. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." ~ Luke 2:14. May God have mercy on fallen man.

"Patton's familial ties to Confederate veterans is quite fascinating (Chapter One is titled, "Ghosts of the Confederacy") and had a significant impact on his view of history, as well as his role it it. (An extremely important and influential factor, despite what some think.) Patton's great-grandmother once wrote, "I am crying because I have only seven sons left to fight the Yankees."

"American exceptionalism is a fact of America’s past, not something that you can choose whether to “believe in” any more than you can choose whether to ‘believe in’ the battle of Gettysburg. Understanding its meaning is indispensable for anyone who wants to understand what it has meant to be an American." ~ Charles Murray

On November 25, 1947 bids for the reconstruction of the McLean House were opened and on April 9th 1949, eighty four years after the historic meeting reuniting the country, the McLean House was opened by the National Park Service for the first time to the public. At the dedication ceremony on April 16, 1950, after a speech by Pulitzer Prize winning historian Douglas Southall Freeman, Major General U.S. Grant and Robert E. Lee IV, direct descendents of Robert E. Lee and Ulysses Grant, cut the ceremonial ribbon. The event was attended by an audience of approximately 20,000 . . .

However if one truly wants to make such a big deal out of what we call the armed conflict which occurred in America from 1861 to 1865 , and if its historical accuracy and honesty that one truly seeks, then I think Douglas Southall Freeman is, perhaps, the truest to historical accuracy in coining the proper term . . .

Why is the national pride of that era gone? Could it possibly have anything to do with . . .

"our most important orientation toward time is a positive appreciation of the past. The more we savor memories of relationships and let go of grudges ... the more we connect to our roots and let go of our forebears' failings ... the more we treasure their legacy and let go of the myth that we are self-made: the stronger our sense of a positive past, the better grounded and centered we will be." ~ Dr. Dr. Christine Chakoian Doesn't this explain a lot of what professional and academic historians are writing these days?

Born as a symbol of rebellion, the Confederate battle flag retains much of that symbolism to this very day. What is even more intriguing is the fact that the very commissioning of the original Confederate battle flag was itself, an act of rebellion. This little-known part of the flag’s story is told in a fascinating new documentary written and produced by historian Kent Masterson Brown.

The powers of government should be so divided and balanced among several bodies of magistracy, as that no one could transcend their legal limits, without being effectually checked and restrained by the others. ~ Thomas Jefferson writing in Notes on the State of Virginia Some historians are either woefully ignorant about our Republic or intentionally deceitful. You're reading false claims that the House of Representatives "shutdown the government" . . .