Lincoln never said that!...
I very rarely go on about politics of any sort, especially on this journal as I view it as our studio journal firstly. But this event is one of those things that I felt a need to speak about. I feel that the content of what I am trying to get across shouldn't be anything about the political "right or left", but the roots of American history and our commitment to the truth of it.
This morning I received a chain email. I wasn't sure who I received it from. I didn't recognize the address, nor any of the addresses in the long list of other emails it was sent to. For all I know it could be one of my readers here. If so, I apologize if my reply offended anyone, but I find the sort of email that it was....well...offensive.
This rash of radical political chain emails, almost exclusively containing misquotes, misconstrued events, and outright fabrications, I find to be very destructive to American politics and culture. This constant "Us Versus Them" mentality on both sides of the political spectrum merely empowers and encourages the special interests and lobbyist that what their agendas pushed in the halls of government bypassing the issues that really matter to the vast middle.
Below the line is the intial email. Please read through it. I have pasted it in exactly as I recieved it, overuse of capitlization and all. After it, you will find my response.
TAKE A FEW MOMENTS AND READ THIS LETTER. THESE ARE STRONG, POWERFUL AND COURAGEOUS WORDS COMING FROM A RETIRED COLONEL, AND READ WHAT LINCOLN HAD TO SAY AT THE END. WOW!
33 Senators Voted Against English as America 's Official Language on June 6, 2007.
On Wed. 6 June 2007, Colonel Harry Riley, USA, Ret. wrote:
Senators:
Your vote against an amendment to the Immigration Bill 1348 ... to make English America's official language is astounding.
On D-Day, no less, when we honor those that sacrificed in order to secure the bedrock, character and principles of America, I can only surmise your vote reflects a loyalty to illegal aliens.
I don't much care where you come from. What your religion is. Whether you're black, white, or some other color ... male or female ... Democrat, Republican or Independent .... But I do care when you are a United States Senator representing Citizens of America ... and vote against English as the official language of the United States.
Your vote reflects Betrayal. Political Surrender. Violates Your Pledge of Allegiance. Dishonors historical principle. Rejects Patriotism. Borders on traitorous action and, in my opinion, makes you unfit to serve as a United States Senator ... impeachment ... Recall ... or other appropriate action is warranted, or worse.
Four of you voting against English as America 's Official Language are Presidential Candidates: Senator Biden, Senator Clinton, Senator Dodd and Senator Obama.
Four Senators vying to lead America, but won't, or don't, have the courage to cast a vote in favor of English as America's Official Language when 91% of American Citizens want English officially designated as our language.
This is the second time in the last several months this list of Senators have disgraced themselves as 'political Hacks' ... Unworthy as Senators and certainly unqualified to serve as President of the United States.
If America is as angry as I am, you will realize a backlash so stunning it will literally 'rock you out of your socks'.... And preferably totally out of the United States Senate....
The entire immigration bill is a farce. Your action only confirms this really isn't about America ... it is about self-serving politics ... despicable at best. It has been said: 'Never Argue with an Idiot ... They'll drag you down to their level!'
PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN SAID: 'Congressmen who willfully take actions during wartime that damages morale and undermine the military are saboteurs and should be arrested, quickly tried and hanged!!!'
PLEASE KEEP THIS GOING AROUND THE UNITED STATES UNTIL THE ELECTION IN NOVEMBER!
What follows is my response. Please read it carefuly to learn the facts of President Lincoln's supposed quote.
Hello,
We recently received the attached email from this address. We didn't immediately recognize the the initial sender's email address, nor any of those in the bulk reply list, however, we can only assume that we know you personally, so I hope this is understood in a friendly tone.
We must ask that you please not use our email to send us political spam.
We pride ourselves on our independence and non-affiliation with a political party. I have often said, and will repeat it now, I hope I will die an independent, as no politician recognizes or understands the needs or issues of the people that really matter to me, that is, my immediate family. My politics are, like my vote, a private matter, where I exercise my deep and abiding patriotism in the voting booth. And let me assure you, I am deeply patriotic.
That said, I think this ridiculous call for the execution of serving senators is one of the fundamental things that is wrong with today's politics. This constant impingement of honor and patriotism is foolishness in the extreme. It is divisive and destructive to national unity when our nation needs it the most. And it seems to be a standard tactic of political radicals and mis-educated individuals on all sides. And as any who really studies politics knows, the radical right is as foolish as the radical left, leaving the rest of us to struggle in the middle to make a living.
I know the destructive nature of this sort of comments, as I have have been the target of such ignorant attacks on my honor and patriotism before. Which is truly a misinformed idea in the extreme as my education on our political foundations, American History, and founding fathers is rather extensive. I dislike being called a traitor in general, and especially by anyone who hasn't actually read any of the biographies of any of the great men and women who have shaped this country. The term "traitor" carries precise legal qualifications and consequences and is NEVER a term that should be used lightly our outside of a legal proceeding, IMHO.
Lets be honest, without addressing the complicated issues of why a senator might vote this way, the lies and the liars who tell them is the real official language of Washington, DC. And there are few, if any, lobbyist in the service of the people.
I have learned from friends of all bents of the political spectrum that each person's honor, character, and patriotism is their own, and it is not my place to challenge them. I will let each person's character speak for themselves, and my grandfather, whose wonderful and dedicated commitment to public service is one of the deepest influences in my life, taught me that only men of low character would call for the death of someone in this context. I believe that using and defaming the words of President Lincoln in this manner is impingement of what the President and the deep issues of that time.
Especially as the quote is UTTERLY FALSE and Lincoln never said it!
Which is the type of political ignorance often espoused in such emails from both parties supporters. A simple bit of research has turned up that the quote was really that of modern writer who falsely attributed it to Lincoln, and it has been misused, misquoted, and bantered about buy those on the extreme right since 2003. The original writer,J. Michael Waller, has come forth and admitted the mistake, the political candidate who falsely attributed it has retracted it, and it has been discredited by Lincoln historians.
Here is one of several websites discrediting this: http://www.factcheck.org/misquoting_lincoln.html
and your welcome to do some research yourself. I suggest contacting the The Senate Historical Office and the Legislative Resource Center of the House of Representatives, Biographical Directory of the US Congress, or perhaps, the Abraham Lincoln Association, whose magazine publishes a regular column called "Lincoln never said that" precisely because this great American president so often misquoted to serve political agendas.
And I would counter it with an actual quote by President Lincoln:
"Let us hope ... that by the best cultivation of the physical world, beneath and around us; and the intellectual and moral world within us, we shall secure an individual, social and political prosperity and happiness, whose course shall be onward and upward, and which, while the earth endures, shall not pass away."
Once again, I ask, please leave us off any future emails of such aggressive and divisive nature. We really don't like reading death threats for anyone. And if in future, you do choose to pass on such information, I would suggest, that for the good of the country, and to show your dedication to national pride, that fact checking the words of a president of such great moral character would be in order.
In fraternal sincerity, as the early citizens of the U.S. called each other Brother and Sister, an attitude we would be well judged to readopt,
Shane Odom
I will leave you with another ACTUAL quote of a great US President,
"It is a great importance to set a resolution, not to be shaken, never to tell an untruth. There is no vice so mean, so pitiful, so contemptible and he who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual, he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all it's good dispositions."
-Thomas Jefferson
This morning I received a chain email. I wasn't sure who I received it from. I didn't recognize the address, nor any of the addresses in the long list of other emails it was sent to. For all I know it could be one of my readers here. If so, I apologize if my reply offended anyone, but I find the sort of email that it was....well...offensive.
This rash of radical political chain emails, almost exclusively containing misquotes, misconstrued events, and outright fabrications, I find to be very destructive to American politics and culture. This constant "Us Versus Them" mentality on both sides of the political spectrum merely empowers and encourages the special interests and lobbyist that what their agendas pushed in the halls of government bypassing the issues that really matter to the vast middle.
Below the line is the intial email. Please read through it. I have pasted it in exactly as I recieved it, overuse of capitlization and all. After it, you will find my response.
TAKE A FEW MOMENTS AND READ THIS LETTER. THESE ARE STRONG, POWERFUL AND COURAGEOUS WORDS COMING FROM A RETIRED COLONEL, AND READ WHAT LINCOLN HAD TO SAY AT THE END. WOW!
33 Senators Voted Against English as America 's Official Language on June 6, 2007.
On Wed. 6 June 2007, Colonel Harry Riley, USA, Ret. wrote:
Senators:
Your vote against an amendment to the Immigration Bill 1348 ... to make English America's official language is astounding.
On D-Day, no less, when we honor those that sacrificed in order to secure the bedrock, character and principles of America, I can only surmise your vote reflects a loyalty to illegal aliens.
I don't much care where you come from. What your religion is. Whether you're black, white, or some other color ... male or female ... Democrat, Republican or Independent .... But I do care when you are a United States Senator representing Citizens of America ... and vote against English as the official language of the United States.
Your vote reflects Betrayal. Political Surrender. Violates Your Pledge of Allegiance. Dishonors historical principle. Rejects Patriotism. Borders on traitorous action and, in my opinion, makes you unfit to serve as a United States Senator ... impeachment ... Recall ... or other appropriate action is warranted, or worse.
Four of you voting against English as America 's Official Language are Presidential Candidates: Senator Biden, Senator Clinton, Senator Dodd and Senator Obama.
Four Senators vying to lead America, but won't, or don't, have the courage to cast a vote in favor of English as America's Official Language when 91% of American Citizens want English officially designated as our language.
This is the second time in the last several months this list of Senators have disgraced themselves as 'political Hacks' ... Unworthy as Senators and certainly unqualified to serve as President of the United States.
If America is as angry as I am, you will realize a backlash so stunning it will literally 'rock you out of your socks'.... And preferably totally out of the United States Senate....
The entire immigration bill is a farce. Your action only confirms this really isn't about America ... it is about self-serving politics ... despicable at best. It has been said: 'Never Argue with an Idiot ... They'll drag you down to their level!'
PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN SAID: 'Congressmen who willfully take actions during wartime that damages morale and undermine the military are saboteurs and should be arrested, quickly tried and hanged!!!'
PLEASE KEEP THIS GOING AROUND THE UNITED STATES UNTIL THE ELECTION IN NOVEMBER!
What follows is my response. Please read it carefuly to learn the facts of President Lincoln's supposed quote.
Hello,
We recently received the attached email from this address. We didn't immediately recognize the the initial sender's email address, nor any of those in the bulk reply list, however, we can only assume that we know you personally, so I hope this is understood in a friendly tone.
We must ask that you please not use our email to send us political spam.
We pride ourselves on our independence and non-affiliation with a political party. I have often said, and will repeat it now, I hope I will die an independent, as no politician recognizes or understands the needs or issues of the people that really matter to me, that is, my immediate family. My politics are, like my vote, a private matter, where I exercise my deep and abiding patriotism in the voting booth. And let me assure you, I am deeply patriotic.
That said, I think this ridiculous call for the execution of serving senators is one of the fundamental things that is wrong with today's politics. This constant impingement of honor and patriotism is foolishness in the extreme. It is divisive and destructive to national unity when our nation needs it the most. And it seems to be a standard tactic of political radicals and mis-educated individuals on all sides. And as any who really studies politics knows, the radical right is as foolish as the radical left, leaving the rest of us to struggle in the middle to make a living.
I know the destructive nature of this sort of comments, as I have have been the target of such ignorant attacks on my honor and patriotism before. Which is truly a misinformed idea in the extreme as my education on our political foundations, American History, and founding fathers is rather extensive. I dislike being called a traitor in general, and especially by anyone who hasn't actually read any of the biographies of any of the great men and women who have shaped this country. The term "traitor" carries precise legal qualifications and consequences and is NEVER a term that should be used lightly our outside of a legal proceeding, IMHO.
Lets be honest, without addressing the complicated issues of why a senator might vote this way, the lies and the liars who tell them is the real official language of Washington, DC. And there are few, if any, lobbyist in the service of the people.
I have learned from friends of all bents of the political spectrum that each person's honor, character, and patriotism is their own, and it is not my place to challenge them. I will let each person's character speak for themselves, and my grandfather, whose wonderful and dedicated commitment to public service is one of the deepest influences in my life, taught me that only men of low character would call for the death of someone in this context. I believe that using and defaming the words of President Lincoln in this manner is impingement of what the President and the deep issues of that time.
Especially as the quote is UTTERLY FALSE and Lincoln never said it!
Which is the type of political ignorance often espoused in such emails from both parties supporters. A simple bit of research has turned up that the quote was really that of modern writer who falsely attributed it to Lincoln, and it has been misused, misquoted, and bantered about buy those on the extreme right since 2003. The original writer,J. Michael Waller, has come forth and admitted the mistake, the political candidate who falsely attributed it has retracted it, and it has been discredited by Lincoln historians.
Here is one of several websites discrediting this: http://www.factcheck.org/misquoting_lincoln.html
and your welcome to do some research yourself. I suggest contacting the The Senate Historical Office and the Legislative Resource Center of the House of Representatives, Biographical Directory of the US Congress, or perhaps, the Abraham Lincoln Association, whose magazine publishes a regular column called "Lincoln never said that" precisely because this great American president so often misquoted to serve political agendas.
And I would counter it with an actual quote by President Lincoln:
"Let us hope ... that by the best cultivation of the physical world, beneath and around us; and the intellectual and moral world within us, we shall secure an individual, social and political prosperity and happiness, whose course shall be onward and upward, and which, while the earth endures, shall not pass away."
Once again, I ask, please leave us off any future emails of such aggressive and divisive nature. We really don't like reading death threats for anyone. And if in future, you do choose to pass on such information, I would suggest, that for the good of the country, and to show your dedication to national pride, that fact checking the words of a president of such great moral character would be in order.
In fraternal sincerity, as the early citizens of the U.S. called each other Brother and Sister, an attitude we would be well judged to readopt,
Shane Odom
I will leave you with another ACTUAL quote of a great US President,
"It is a great importance to set a resolution, not to be shaken, never to tell an untruth. There is no vice so mean, so pitiful, so contemptible and he who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual, he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all it's good dispositions."
-Thomas Jefferson