"Loathing Lincoln: An American Tradition From the Civil War to the Present"

[Linda Anderson]

Loathing Lincoln: An American Tradition from the Civil War to the Present (Conflicting Worlds: New Dimensions of the American Civil War)
by John McKee Barr has been recently published.

"Along with George Washington, Abraham Lincoln has stood foremost in the minds and hearts of most of his countrymen during the century and a half since Lincoln's death. But as John McKee Barr demonstrates in this revealing study, an undercurrent of anti-Lincoln loathing has always existed, serving political agendas from post-Civil War Confederates to modern neo-Confederates and libertarians who use Lincoln as a whipping boy to promote their own causes. This is an important contribution to the history and memory of the Civil War. --James M. McPherson, author of "Battle Cry of Freedom"

http://www.amazon.com/Loathing-Lincoln-T...0807153834

[LincolnToddFan]

I am going to order this one TODAY! Thanks Linda!

Did you read what Michael Burlingame said in the editorial comments? YIKES....!

[Linda Anderson]

I am going to order this one TODAY! Thanks Linda!

Did you read what Michael Burlingame said in the editorial comments? YIKES....!

You're welcome, Toia.

No, I hadn't read what Burlingame said before I posted and I agree with your assessment of "Yikes!" I read Dr. McPherson's endorsement and stopped right there.

[Rick Smith]

Burlingame's assessment is a load of errant trash.

[Gene C]

I wish these editorial commentators would quit all the fancy analogies, the lengthy run on sentences, just tell us if it is well written and if arguments are properly presented and well documented, or just tell us if the book is a bunch of horse manure or not; anything else I need to add to my run on sentence?

I wonder if the author of this book takes the approach and tone presented in the editorial reviews. If so, I doubt I would enjoy it.
Personally, I am more interested in Lincoln's reaction to the just and unjust criticism he received, and the impact it had on him and the politics of his day.

[LincolnToddFan]

Gene...AMEN to your last sentence. I am always curious as to how the great man would react to both the adulation and the opprobrium that has been heaped on him in the 150 years since his death.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Personally, I am more interested in Lincoln's reaction to the just and unjust criticism he received, and the impact it had on him and the politics of his day.

Me, too. Grant writes in his memoirs: "He [A. Lincoln] always showed a generous and kindly spirit toward the Southern people, and I never heard him abuse an enemy. Some of the cruel things said about President Lincoln, particularly in the North, used to pierce him to the heart; but never in my presence did he evince a revengeful disposition."

[Wild Bill]

Can anyone tell me on what page in Loathing Lincoln the author (Not Burlingame) says "the right to own, exploit, and rape African Americans--forever"

I am not trying to start an argument--I simply have not found it.

Thank you!

[LincolnToddFan]

I don't think there is any such page in the book per se.

I think that comment sums up Prof. Burlingame's personal opinion of many neo-Confederate and Confederate sympathizers today.

I have ordered the book and will wait to read it before discussing it here in more detail.

However, I do agree 100% with James McPherson's comments.Abraham Lincoln is the favorite whipping boy of Right and Left, Black and White, in order to promote causes, air grievances, assign blame and grind axes.

[Wild Bill]

I agree with your analysis of Burlingame's feeling about the Confederacy but the dust jacket blurb is prefaced with "(as Barr puts it)" followed by the actual quote

I looked this up on Google Books and ran a computer search but could not find anything remotely like the comment, so you many be correct. That means as I read it we (readers) are misled that it is Barr's quote?

Thanks LTFan

[Linda Anderson]

Here is the Loathing Lincoln website.

http://loathinglincoln.com/

[Wild Bill]

I spent all day yesterday going over that Loathing book from stem to stern about 3 times and still did not find that alleged quote JM Barr was to have made. I am beginning to think LTFan was correct--it was Burlingame's quote, not Barr's

[Wild Bill]

For those who might be interested, I wrote John McM Barr about "the right to own, exploit, and rape African Americans--forever" and he answered promptly. "It is on page 253 in my discussion of William Appleman Williams, in the first full paragraph, in the sentence after EndNote 243.

[Linda Anderson]

For those who might be interested, I wrote John McM Barr about "the right to own, exploit, and rape African Americans--forever" and he answered promptly. "It is on page 253 in my discussion of William Appleman Williams, in the first full paragraph, in the sentence after EndNote 243.

Thanks for contacting him, Bill. I'm glad he responded so quickly to you.

[jmbarr]

This is John McKee Barr, the author of Loathing Lincoln. I'd be pleased to hear your questions, and comments (all positive, I'm sure), on my book. I'll be checking in from time to time, and if no one objects, I'll post the link to the discussion on my blog, www.loathinglincoln.com. And, thanks for taking an interest in my work. I appreciate it. I hope you like the book.