It was some of the states deciding that they no longer wanted to be part of the United States. Just like the 13 colonies had earlier decided to no longer be part of Britain. There was no "illegal" conduct. Read up on jus gentium.
Some of the Union states had slavery - were you aware of that? Only during the war did Lincoln change his mind about slavery.
Final question: pre-Civil War: some 100% free, some 100% slave. Now: all are taxed equally at rates that make every one of us 50% slave. How is this an improvement?
It was some of the states deciding on arbitrary secession. It was illegal. Read up on Texas v. White.
Some of the Union states had slavery - were you aware of that? Only during the war did Lincoln change his mind about slavery.
You're new here, aren't you? Obviously you have never read any of these civil war forums before. Of course I knew that some of the Northern states were slave states. Four to be exact - Deleware, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri. When West Virginia was admitted with a constitution that allowed some slavery that made 5. I also know how many southern states were slave states - 11. As for Lincoln, he was personally against slavery before and during the war. He also recognized that he lacked the authority or the political support to do anything about it until well after the war began.
Final question: pre-Civil War: some 100% free, some 100% slave. Now: all are taxed equally at rates that make every one of us 50% slave. How is this an improvement?
Lincoln enacted conscrition and an income tax. Jefferson Davis did all that, too, with levels of taxation far higher than anything Lincoln ever proposed. Davis enacted forced levies on farm produce for the war effort and conscripted personal property in the form of slaves to work for the war effort for free. What makes you think, given this beginning, that the south today would have been any better that the United States today had the south won?