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History grants us only a few recent examples of absolute evil -- the Nazi holocaust and Communist tyrannies come to mind, but also American slavery.

I think slavery is/was evil but do not descend into such hyperbole as you. Read the Slave Narratives sometime. I think it would have been far better if the country could have peacefully rid itself of slavery shortly after its formation.

Of course you are free to argue the facts of history, such as constitutional sanctions and Supreme Court decisions (Dred Scott, etc.) legitimizing slavery.

You keep implying I favor the Dred Scott decision. Are you one of those posters who intentionally misstate what other posters say. If so, we have little to say to each other.

The only time I mentioned Dred Scott was to point out that a justice of the Supreme Court was so upset with the Dred Scott decision that he resigned from the Court. This same justice, however, was one who believed that the Massachusetts personal liberty law was unconstitutional. Since he disagrees with your position on personal liberty laws, that somehow made me in favor of Dred Scott? What strange logic. I'm beginning to get a picture of how you post.

But if you go further, to suggest that these are all good things and they morally justified such actions as Southern secession and war of rebellion, then you've gone too far -- and also make suspect your claim of defending black civil rights in the 1950s.

Believe whatever you want.

"The only time I mentioned Dred Scott was to point out that a justice of the Supreme Court was so upset with the Dred Scott decision that he resigned from the Court. This same justice, however, was one who believed that the Massachusetts personal liberty law was unconstitutional. Since he disagrees with your position on personal liberty laws, that somehow made me in favor of Dred Scott? What strange logic. I'm beginning to get a picture of how you post. "

You have ignored the question marks at the end of my sentences, and conditional phrases such as "if you believe." Now if you will take those into due consideration, you'll find my arguments entirely reasonable.

I found your arguments about Dred Scott and fugitive slave laws incomprehensible -- literally, I don't understand what you tried to say about them. So I ASKED, are you trying to defend those? Because if you are, then you have no business on Free Republic.

Well, thankfully, you deny defending those laws. But now it appears to me that your arguments justifying Southern secession because of unconstitutional laws of Northern STATES, falls apart.

If slavery is morally repugnant, then how can Southern secession be justified today based on enforcing fugitive slave laws?