Jeff Davis and the Confederates could have 'avoided or ended at any time" as well, but they didn't
Don't mean to turn this into a Civil War thread, but if Lincoln hadn't done what he did, would this nation turned into Bosnia-Serbia-Croatia third world hell hole where they all speak the same language but just hate the s*** out of each other for no other reason than hate?
Give Lincoln credit for stopping that.
I agree, many could have done something to avoid or stop the war and carnage but only one of them was President.
Lincoln essentially killed states rights and established, by force, the dominance of the central federal government.
And that has led us directly to where we are today.
In fact, I think it is clear that we are close to turning into something like a "Bosnia-Serbia-Croatia third world hell hole where they all speak the same language but just hate the s*** out of each other".
Just listen to the hateful rhetoric from the left and from the government itself about conservatives, the Tea Party, and critics of Obama and the government.