Lincoln's arguments against secession -- refuted

Fellow Toastmaster George Desnoyers assembled an excellent speech that summarizes four arguments against secession that were promoted by Abraham Lincoln, refuting each. The arguments cited were:



1. That secession is anti-majoritarian. Mr. Desnoyers notes that secession will create two new majorities where one existed previously. In the case of the South during the War Between the States, each majority would have been happy within its own territory.



2. That secession tends toward anarchism. That is, that under the right conditions, there will be secessions from secessions from secessions from... well, you get the picture. He points out that the Declaration of Independence explains why this has not happened, and is not likely to happen in the future.

"Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed."

3. That reserving rights to the States could not include "destroying the government." Secession does not destroy the government for those who remain under it. If the secessionists had destroyed government, who put all those men in arms to fight each other during the War Between the States?



4. Finally, President Lincoln argued that the Constitution was merely a continuation of the union formed under the Articles of Confederation, which argued that the union was "perpetual". To use this as an argument against secession requires an ignorance of the nature of the union at that time. The Constitution was written precisely because the thirteen States were each independent nations, and acted like independent nations. The Constitution's call for a "more perfect Union" was intended to more capably defend against foreign invasion and to strengthen trade among the States.



On February 12, Americans will observe the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth. This would be an excellent time for us to set aside the idolatry many Americans have of him, and expose his statements and actions to the intellectual and moral scrutiny that they deserve.