And where were the Confederate armies? Hood decided not to face Sherman and headed north, to be destroyed by Thomas. Joe Johnston was brought back from the ranks of the "living dead" to command an force that tried to outmaneuver Sherman but couldn't, wouldn't, and didn't face Shermans until after Charleston had been taken and Sherman turned north to join Grant. Who left the civilians to face the wrath of Sherman's Bummers? The elite and the military of the Confederacy. All of that in other words, "We can't be blamed for all the crimes we committed against civilians. The confederates made us do it by failing to stop us."
I suppose you also blame rape victims for not being able to hold off their attackers during the crime.
I don't adhere to the belief that atrocities were committed against the civilian population as a whole (at least, in anything in excess of that which was normal for the times when large armies moved through populated areas). The plantations provided food and raw materials for the Confederacy, the towns and cities .. with their factories .. provided finished products and armaments for the Confederacy. In many instances, factories were making uniforms, arms, and equipment for the Confederate Army right up until the time Sherman's forces entered them. In one .. Columbia, I think .. they continued to make uniforms right up until the time that Sherman told the workers to take whatever cloth they wanted before the factory was destroyed.
"I suppose you also blame rape victims for not being able to hold off their attackers during the crime."
So, I suppose, by that line of thought, you also would have opposed to bombings of Germany and Japan during WWII as well, right?