Camp 1524 Camp Dispatch Commanders Column for January 2014
The New Year of 2014 brings us more than halfway through the
Sesquicentennial of the War for Southern Independence. One hundred and fifty years ago, the WBTS
saw some of the bloodiest battles of the War.
In the spring of 1864, Grant’s Union Army absorbed losses in troops
killed, wounded or captured totaling 61,315 in the Wilderness, Spotsylvania and
Petersburg campaigns as the Confederate forces inflicted heavy casualties on
the invaders in a desperate attempt to defend the Confederate capital of
Richmond. But the Confederate Army sustained
irreplaceable mounting losses of men and stores as the War dragged into its
fourth year. In November of 1864, the
Army of Tennessee under General John Bell Hood lost over 6000 troops in the
disastrous Battle of Franklin which crippled the Army in the western theatre
for the remainder of the War.
It was a darkening period but our Confederate ancestors
courageously persevered and struggled against the invading hoard. I would encourage you all in these final two
years of the Sesquicentennial to honor and commemorate their brave fight and
attend some of the myriad SCV events throughout the Southeast. The Confederate Heritage Rally will be held
in the fall in Franklin TN and will include a march following in the footsteps
of those in the Battle of Franklin. Also
in Tennessee in February will be another in the lecture series of the Stephen
Dill Lee Institute investigating the advent of the concept of Total War which
the U.S. forces brought to bear on the Confederate civilian populace. The Alabama Division Reunion will be held in
Athens AL in May and the National SCV Reunion will be held in beautiful
Charleston SC this summer. Of course our Prattville Dragoons camp will have
many opportunities to serve and fellowship locally including the Lee-Jackson
banquets and birthday celebrations this month.
The Sesquicentennial is an historic opportunity to advance
the Cause. I wasn’t listening to talk
radio too much over the holidays preferring instead to enjoy Christmas music
but I did tune into a Laura Ingraham broadcast and her guest pointed out that
the political climate today is much the same as it was 150 years ago which
precipitated the War of Northern Aggression.
The nation is divided into red states and blue states, by socio-economic
class warfare, by racial disharmony in a supposed post-racial era and, by militant
politically correct organizations like GLAAD and the ACLU lining up against the
“backwards peoples clinging to their Bibles and guns”. It seems the PC crowd with the help of the
main stream media has a free reign to rewrite history and twist the
Constitution to suit their distorted immoral agenda. The Sesquicentennial has certainly
highlighted the WBTS but unfortunately it seems with the victor’s bias
including a spotlight on Gettysburg and Lincoln as the Great Emancipator
including the release of a feature film featuring selective recollection and
exclusion of the facts. But just as our
ancestors experienced setbacks in the face of overwhelming odds, we have seen
victories in Selma with the Confederate Circle settlement and in Tennessee
where the state passed legislation to preserve historical parks including those
honoring Confederate leaders.
Commander in Chief Givens implored us to get connected as
SCV members and camps to be able to mobilize against the PC enemy whenever they
threaten our Southern heritage. It may
seem impossible and futile but see what recently transpired when A&E
Television and Cracker Barrel had to back down from their condemnation and
ostracizing of Phil Robertson for his outspoken Biblical viewpoints. Hundreds
of thousands of “backwards peoples” put down their Bibles and guns long enough
to write letters and emails and petitions to demand Phil’s reinstatement which
resulted. In the wake of the uproar and
the latest decision, the Duck Commander clan issued a statement that they were vindicated
and emboldened in their values and faith by the support of their
followers. We are heirs to a Southern
heritage fully embodying the great
Biblical faith and Constitutional values on which our ancestors established the
Confederate States of America. While
brave Confederate soldiers took up arms to fight for their homes and way of
life, will you take up a pen and paper or your computer to defend their honor
and the true history of the South and in a real sense, your way of life? The battlefield today is in information and
communication and the opportunities are nearly limitless from letters to newspaper
editors to writing local and national politicians and, sometimes even,
television stations and businesses. Every
voice is important to demonstrate the strength of our conviction. Embrace the Charge and advance the Cause in
this Sesquicentennial year of 2014. Wishing
you and yours a happy and prosperous New Year!
