[October 19, 2017] On this date, October 19, 1864, during the American Civil War, Confederate General Jubal Early launched a surprise attack against Union General Philip Sheridan’s forces. After a furious battle, Early’s forces were routed and at the conclusion, the Confederate invasion of the North was effectively ended. Today, there are those in the U.S. who want to erase the history of that battle.
The Battle of Cedar Creek itself is worthy of study for those interested in the effect of great leadership (like General Sheridan) on troops in battle. It is also worthy for how this particular event resulted in the final destruction of the Confederate’s strategy to “bring the fight to the enemy.”
But that is not what this post is about.
This past Sunday morning, hundreds of Civil War reenactors concluded their “battle” near Middletown, Virginia1 (where the battle took place in 1864). Reenactors have been coming here for at least 20 years, enjoying their time outdoors, educating us on how the Civil War era soldier lived, and providing entertainment for all.
Last week, organizers of the reenactment announced they had received a letter threatening “bodily harm” to attendees. A suspicious item was also found at the battlefield which looked like a pipe bomb. From all indications, the threats are part of a larger movement to selectively destroy parts of U.S. history and to bring attention to how minorities are treated here. Tactics used by such groups have been described as similar to terror organizations.
“We wanted to show the U.S. that we aren’t going to let some terrorist, or some nut, stop the event.” – Keith MacGregor, reenactor playing a Union infantry captain
This is where good leadership comes into play. Good leadership means taking a stand to say that violence such as this and the ideologies that support it are unacceptable … and saying it forcefully and with clarity. Sadly, we are witnessing many senior political leaders who openly support such groups and often times their violent tactics.
As long as American political leaders (and those from other Western nations) continue to use violent groups to garner votes and power for themselves, such behavior will continue. U.S. media is also complicit in this problem. America is at a cultural crossroads that is being debated. However, it is sad to see so few politicians that are showing the leadership required to stop the violence from such dangerous fringe groups like the antifa protest movment or neo-Nazis.
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