"Chattel slavery was not practiced exclusively in the south"
My question assumes nothing of the sort. I was merely trying to distinguish from antiquity. Feel free to add whatever other venues where a comparable institution exists. I don't give a shit..
"who honestly believe that chattel slavery was ONLY practiced in the American south"
I don't believe that. Nor is that relevant to the question.
"and that southerners in particular and the US in general is intrinsically evil for having participated, with all other history thrown completely out the window."
I DAMN sure don't believe that. I think your inability to criticize this particular point of US history is the more relevant shortcoming.
"There is no one on this thread saying anything in defense of the practice."
This is flatly wrong. Read a bit more closely.
"You're pinning an intrinsic evil on one geographic locale" No I'm not.
"And, this false impression is being used, and used, and used again to tear down anything that southerners stand for and have ever stood for... individual rights, freedom of association, private property and on and on. Things that you stand for as well."
See my posts about liberalism and the Soviet Union. That is all true.
But you still have to chime in on the fundamental question.
Just as you do on the question of life. Is abortion intrinsically evil or not? If you say, "it depends" then you are, like it or not, a defender of the institution. If you say it is evil, then the next much more difficult and perhaps a question which can't be satisfied in our lifetime is...what are you gonna do about it? Part two is always harder. But unless you are willing to take the first step morally, then you never even get there.
Oh, well, it's been fun...but if I don't stop posting here, I'm going to have to sell myself into chattelslavery because I have to work.
Later all.
"I think your inability to criticize this particular point of US history is the more relevant shortcoming."
Maybe you didn't intend to sound so heated, with the profanity and all, but it comes across that way... I'm curious as to why, because my reply to you contained nothing other than a calm explanation of where I'm coming from, and an acknowledgement that human bondage in the form of chattel slavery was and is intrinsically evil. Was that not the response you sought? Regarding criticism, there seems to be no lack of criticism, on this thread or in the world at large. It happened, it's history, the world moved on and human bondage was rightly judged, in the US at least, as inhuman and the practice was put to an end. The political repercussions continue to reverberate, and will continue so long as people such as yourself remain so myopic, regarding the perhaps-unintentional direction all this has led, and will continue to lead. I refer specifically to the socialist wet dream of mass wealth redistribution known as reparations. The people and institutions of the United States did not begin chattel slavery; on the contrary, we paid the highest price of all in order to end it. Whether that was the sole or even primary purpose of the war is highly debateable, as this thread demonstrates. But, it was the practical end result. So, we do agree on most things, or at least I would say so, whether you give a shit or not.