41% of Americans believe that slavery was not the primary cause of the Civil War.
51% of Republicans don't believe Barack Obama was born in America.
Initially, these stats would not appear to have much in common. Although we suspect that many of the 41% in column A are well represented in column B, there is no data to support that allegation. Nevertheless, these numbers taken both individually and collectively paint a troubling picture of how Americans see themselves and how they see the country's history.
Most Americans think that Iran's denial of the Holocaust is ridiculous. You cannot refute facts. There are pictures, records, survivors all testament to the horrors of Nazi Germany. To refuse to accept facts makes anyone look foolish. Yet the same situation arises regarding the Civil War's origin and the President's birth. If one person says "the Civil War was fought for states rights" he is dismissed as a crank. If thousands say it, it becomes an alternate view of history. The fact that the Articles of Secession passed in South Carolina specifically discuss the institution of slavery becomes irrelevant. The history as taught for the last 150 years becomes revised, softened. The devolution goes like this:
1) Slavery was a prime cause of Southern Secession and the subsequent Civil War.
2) Slavery was a contributing factor in the War Between the States.
3) Slavery was a factor but not the determinate factor in the War of Northern Aggression.
4) Most Southerners didn't even own slaves. The War for Southern Freedom was about state's rights.
It hasn't been necessary for Southerners to accept the corrupt cause that resulted in the deaths of 620,000 Americans. Time and stupidity have molded the facts to fit a feeling. If Michele Bachmann were from Alabama we would have a whole new set of details justifying the attack on Ft. Sumter in 1861. Hell, John Adams would be a featured player for the South. Hang around long enough and get enough yahoos to agree with you and any fantasy can become alternate reality.
The "Obama isn't a citizen" foolishness is cut from the same cloth. If enough people with access to a microphone say it enough times, voila, the President is a Kenyan or an Indonesian or a Martian. The disingenuousness of this stuff is irrelevant. Even Donald, the multi-married, multi bankrupt, knows this bird won't fly. Nevertheless in the world of Fox and the 24 hr news cycle, facts clearly don't matter. A reasonable Donald Trump discussing issues like Libya and the debt couldn't get an interview on Nick at Nite. However, talk like a batshit street corner preacher and you're all over CNN.
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