[CatoRenasci]

I think your professor was undoubtedly right. I think the solid preponderance of the evidence establishes Thomas Jefferson is not the father the Hemmings children. I'm not sure why you see it as an open question when an historian you respect, who dislikes Jefferson but looked at all the evidence carefully, concludes Jefferson could not have been the father.

What I find interesting is that our actual understanding after the Blue Ribbon Commission, hasn't really advanced much from what Dumas Malone wrote some 50 years ago: it was a Jefferson male, but almost certainly not Thomas.

[Clodia Pulcher]

It is all VERY silly and merely a reflection of the worthless level of academic games these days.

One can't even blame it on Black Americans. They may be this age's reigning criminal class (it has been Irish and Italians at other times), but academia is forever trying to lower the standards for them down to whatever level allows them to crawl into college, having been cheated out of a decent public education.

So why not spread sheer nonsense like this as received history? Good for their self-esteem.

[petitfour]

Hubby and I are usually inclined to agree with our dear, distinguished professor. However, I do not buy the Jefferson was an old man theory and incapable of carrying on with the nanny. After visiting Monticello, we had a different sense of Jefferson. I could certainly use with more study, however.

Speaking of Monticello, I would recommend to anyone who wants to know about American history to go there. Jefferson's vision for this new nation came from the vision he could see atop his mountain. Beautiful place. And that is an understatement.