IIRC, the LDS Church admitted the massacre. The historical fact is that when the US Army rode in and found the blood soaked cloths of the slain stored in a warehouse, that it was difficult for the Cavalry officers to restrain the troops.
With the discovery of the clothes, all LDS claims of non-participation in the Mountain Meadows Massacre were rendered transparent falsehoods.
Had the officers not restrained their troops, the murders would have been avenged at that moment.
History was. Politics is.
Given that the LDS members had been on the receiving end of numerous attacks including murders and arson, property de facto confiscation, etc., I am surprised that the LDS and the Feddies didn’t make a historical site with the history of the entire chain of religious motivated murders culminating at Mountain Meadows.
The Mountain Meadows site could/should be an example in our American history of what happens when religion is allowed to become a motivating factor in public policy rather than a private matter of the individual citizen.
I hope to hear from some LDS FReepers as to their perspectives on this rather hasty post.
***With the discovery of the clothes, all LDS claims of non-participation in the Mountain Meadows Massacre were rendered transparent falsehoods.
Had the officers not restrained their troops, the murders would have been avenged at that moment.***
This is told by an eye witness “Indian” John Nelson in his book, Life Among the American Indians: Fifty Years on the Trail : a True Story of Western Life”
http://www.archive.org/stream/lifeamongameric00oregoog/lifeamongameric00oregoog_djvu.txt
the LDS Church admitted the massacre
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No, they have not. The LDS church never ever admits doing anything wrong, they make excuses but never admit being wrong.
What they did, was state they were sorry it HAPPENED. They still deny any LDS involvement (outside John D. Lee who was a scapegoat) even though the facts show many other LDS were culpable and Brigham Young knew about it and other LDS leaders planned, authorized, and carried it out.
Another example of this half witted apologies is a few years ago, some LDS missionaries vandalized a Catholic shrine and took pictures of them mocking and desecrating the chapel. LDS response was “We are sorry that the missionaries were involved in damaging property”. No apology, nothing. They were sorry there was property damage not that the even occurred.