The New-found Search for Historical Villains
History is meaningless without historical context and can be twisted any way one wants . . . It's one of the plays in the Democrat Playbook . . .
Let’s explore some other notables in American history and see what laurels should be stripped from their legacy.
Published 4 months ago on August 10, 2021
Some time around 2028, freedom pioneer Harriet Tubman could appear on the $20 bill. In her perilous role as a scout and spy for the U.S. Army during the Civil War, and as an abolitionist and humanitarian, she earned it. She risked re-enslavement at least 19 times in helping others to escape.
Tubman would replace Andrew Jackson, a favorite target of some people who rail against his slave ownership – perhaps totaling up to 150 people – while ignoring the context. Nearly everyone in Jackson’s environment was racist at the time. What’s more, Jackson championed the Indian Removal Act that displaced nearly 46,000 Creeks, Chickasaws, Cherokees, Seminoles, and Choctaws from their ancestral lands. Because he ascended to the presidency, perhaps it is time for him to vanish from our currency.
Villains as Viewed the Future
Nearly everyone has transgressed to some extent, so perhaps the vital issue is, “At what point does the transgression overcome the good?” Or put more positively, “At what point does the good a person has done outweigh the misdeeds?” Suppose that Hispanics working in America today as house cleaners, maids, nannies, gardeners, and lawn keepers, 200 years from now, are regarded as having been exploited.
What if 200 years from now, whatever deeds that Hispanic domestic exploiters otherwise accomplished, are looked upon with disdain. This is not fair you say? “You don’t understand the context.” “We gave them employment, and we helped their families to prosper. It was all for the good.” Tell that to future ‘progressives.’
Besides Andrew Jackson, who else should be defamed? Let’s explore some other notables in American history and see what laurels should be stripped from their legacy.
I Have A Thesis Dream
Martin Luther King, Jr. plagiarized vast sections of his doctoral thesis, as has been well documented by major liberal newspapers and even by the institution that honored him with his doctorate. Boston University has admitted knowledge of the transgression, that MLK plagiarized large portions of his doctoral dissertation and that the university had knowledge of such plagiarism at the time.
Yet, the decision was made to award him a doctorate. After all, he was an otherwise brilliant, promising student, and Boston University was pleased to have had him in its program.
One hundred percent of other students in graduate school programs found to have plagiarized vast portions of their doctoral dissertations would be expelled from the respective programs: No doctorate, no graduation, no honors, in fact deep dishonor.
Bye Bye, So Long
Is it not appropriate to relieve Martin Luther King, Jr., posthumously, of the legions of awards and distinctions bestowed upon them? Virtually every major metro area has a Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Scores and scores of schools are named after him, not to mention community centers, libraries, and other civic and social institutions. Numerous scholarships are named after him.
Indeed, MLK is revered as the foremost civil rights leader of our time: America celebrates his birthday in January, as a federal holiday, while stripping Abraham Lincoln and George Washington of such distinction, in favor of the little-acknowledged “President’s Day.”
Can someone who cheated his way to academic distinction be allowed, posthumously, to retain such honors? Once again, “Not fair,” you say, to put MLK under the spotlight posthumously. Surely his brilliance was evident to everyone, and he made a distinct and positive impact on our culture.
Transgressions Abound
Great men are not always good men and the corollary is true for women as well. If we’re embarking on a witch hunt of the famous men and women in history, and then defaming them when we find something heinous, or merely unpalatable, we might have no one left.
John F. Kennedy’s transgressions are legion. Besides being a serial philanderer, his constant patronage of prostitutes put him in the path of extortionists. He also initiated sex with White House interns (as young as 18) on numerous occasions. A former JFK intern, Mimi Alford, among many others, has documented his unforgivable behavior.
Nevertheless JFK’s likeness remains on our 50¢ piece and the so-named Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts sits un-mired on the Potomac River in Washington. The so-named JFK Airport in New York, JFK Federal buildings, schools, libraries, awards, and distinctions all named after him remain intact.
Mostly Good?
“Wait,” you say. According to many people JFK was a force for good. Is that so? During his time, and even today, according to many people, Andrew Jackson was a force for good, otherwise he would not have become the standard bearer on the $20 bill in the first place.
What about Edward Kennedy? He was negligent in the suffocation death of Mary Jo Kopechne. Forensic evidence, suppressed at the time, reveals that she suffocated slowly; she did not drown. Kennedy had time to save her, but waited an astounding nine hours before reporting the incident to the Edgartown authorities.
In 2009, A non-profit educational institution and museum was named for him: the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate. Years before Mary Jo, Edward Kennedy was concerned about his athletic eligibility at Harvard for the coming year. He arranged to have a friend sit in for him to take a Spanish language final examination.
The ploy failed, and, unlike Martin Luther King, Jr., Kennedy was expelled. Nothing stopped a majority of voters in Massachusetts from continually re-electing him and enabling him to become the fourth longest serving senator in United States history, a tenure of nearly 47 years, ending with his death.
Undeserving and Honored
If you’re steadfast in outing historical figures who are undeserving of posthumous accolades, consider J. Edgar Hoover. He became a life-long career criminal who, by the way, incessantly hounded Martin Luther King, Jr.
Hoover kept his post intact for decades by extorting one U.S. President after another. After all the revelations of Hoover’s lifelong propensity to break the laws that he was entrusted to enforce, why is the FBI building still named after him? If you can answer that one, we can get back to Andrew Jackson.
https://flagandcross.com/the-new-found-search-for-historical-villains/
Ineptocracy
A system of government where the least capable to lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a diminishing number of producers.