North State Journal for Wednesday, December 13, 2017
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north STATEment Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor | Troy Kickler, deputy opinion editor
VISUAL VOICES
EDITORIAL | FRANK HILL
Confessions of a classical liberal POLITICAL THOUGHT mutates and evolves over time. We are in the midst of such a transition. No one seems to know precisely what a Democrat stands for today as the party drifts leftward toward more socialism far away from what pragmatic moderate Democratic philosophy was 25 years ago. No one can pinpoint exactly what a “true” Republican is today as the party drifts more to the right on social issues The Trump voter has thrown up their hands in disgust with both sides, thrown caution to the wind and said, “Blow it all up and fix it! I don’t really care how you do it but just do it!” Millions of North Carolinians have abandoned their former party affiliation and registered as unaffiliated, roughly 2.1 million in number. They are the second largest registered bloc of voters in the state. At current rates of decline in Democratic voter registration, unaffliliateds may soon be the majority voting bloc in the mid-2020s. Michael Cromartie, a dear friend with a vibrant mind and lust for life, called himself “a conservative for liberal reasons.” He grew up in the ’60s, lived in a Christian commune outside of Durham after college, and generally embraced the anti-Establishment mindset of the time as well as an enhanced welfare state. While working with the new Prison Ministry Fellowship started by former Nixon aide Chuck Colson in 1978, he
was attacked and held hostage in a hotel room where he said he was “mugged by reality” and started to move his worldview from one of enlightened liberal state utopia that didn’t seem to be working to a more conservative worldview based on faith, values and freedom of the individual. The word “conservative” nowadays turns many millennials and younger people off. To them, after years of indoctrination in academia and the media, the word conservative conjures up visions of Bull Connor in Birmingham using firehoses and German shepherds to put down the civil rights marches of the ’60s. Young people eventually grow up. They get mugged by the reality of taxes, mortgages, debt and the general matterof-factness that comes with working in a capitalist society where anyone can be fired at any time and any business can be overtaken by technology or a competitive idea. What would these young people think about conservatism if they knew that the true philosophical DNA of an American political conservative derived from the classical liberal freedom thinkers of the 19th century? Young people love the destructive power of the capitalist marketplace even if they don’t recognize it as such. Uber and Lyft are “destroying” taxi cab monopolies at airports. Amazon is “destroying” the concentration of the
marketplace at shopping malls which “destroyed” the concentration of the marketplace in downtowns all over the country in the 1970s and 1980s. That is classical liberal freedom — plain and simple. Without mentioning Adam Smith or John Locke at all. If conservatives of today want to attract more younger voters, perhaps they should talk more about being free from concentrations of power in any sector. Young voters are inherently skeptical of anyone in authority anywhere to begin with … the recent list of forced resignations in Congress, Hollywood and the news media reinforce their skepticism. “Why give anyone more power to tell you what to do?” should be a winning message to young voters. The classical liberal concept of standing up for the individual rights of everyone within a democratic republican structure of self-governance should be the goal of conservatives seeking to attract support from younger American citizens. Being a conservative should not be a dog whistle to make people think conservatives support the continuation of things as they are, warts and all. Freedom wins in American elections.
EDITORIAL | TROY KICKLER
The forgotten governor NORTH CAROLINA HISTORY enthusiasts have definitely heard of Zebulon B. Vance, the Confederate colonel turned wartime governor in 1862. Many have also heard of John W. Ellis, the longtime politician and judge who died during his second term shortly after North Carolina seceded from the Union. Some may have heard of the lesser-known Henry Toole Clark, president of the Senate — the position of lieutenant governor did not exist until 1868 — who succeeded Ellis as governor. Only a few have heard about Edward Stanly, a wartime governor who had the ability to make friends as easily as he could make enemies. (As a well-dressed and charming Whig Congressman, he once traded punches with Henry Wise of Virginia on the congressional floor.) His gubernatorial tenure lasted less than eight full months (May 26, 1862, to Jan. 15, 1863). While Clark was serving out his term and Vance prepared to be the next governor, Abraham Lincoln appointed Stanly — the self-styled inveterate “old line North Carolina Whig” — as military governor of North Carolina. According to U.S. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, the New Bern native’s goal was to “re-establish the authority of the federal government in the state of North Carolina.” The assignment proved to be difficult. Edward was the son of esteemed congressman and well-known Federalist John Stanly, the namesake of Stanly County, who famously dueled Richard
Dobbs Spaight in 1802. The political quarrel resulted in the death of Spaight and the outlaw of dueling in the Old North State. During the Civil War, many revered the father and loathed the son. In Halifax County, Catherine Ann Edmonston penned poetry about the “false Stanley” dishonoring the family name: “Stanley the patriot shall be by men — Forgot — in Stanley — the Traitor!” Prior to his appointment, Stanly had been in California. (He had unsuccessfully run for governor there in 1857.) When war broke out, Stanly offered his services to Lincoln. By early summer 1862, Gen. Ambrose Burnside and his troops had captured much of eastern North Carolina, including Roanoke Island, New Bern and Fort Macon. (Wilmington remained a Confederate port until Fort Fisher was captured in early 1865.) In late June, Burnside was ready to attack Goldsboro, an important rail hub that had always attracted the attention of Union commanders. Lincoln, however, needed Burnside to go to Virginia and help out a struggling George McClellan. During Stanly’s brief tenure, he disagreed with Union authorities, had difficulty spreading Unionist sentiment, tried protecting private property from pillaging Federal troops, and opposed the Emancipation Proclamation. In Stanly’s view, the role of the military governor was to “restore the old order of things.” North Carolina laws forbade teaching slaves how to read and write.
So he opposed, for instance, a school for African-American children started by a man of “good Samaritan inclinations,” Vincent Colyer, superintendent of the poor for the Department of North Carolina. The effort, he believed, “would do harm to the Union cause.” During the war, many runaway slaves fled to Union lines. In particular, many fled to occupied New Bern, and their numbers grew rapidly. Union officials had what they considered a “perplexing” problem that required “discretion.” Stanly was in favor of returning slaves to their owners, as long as the owners took the oath of allegiance. Stanly was outraged by and spoke against the conduct of some Union troops in eastern North Carolina. His speaking tour to foster Union sentiment was not well received in Union-occupied towns. Secessionist sympathizers were not moved; they deemed him the traitorous, rival sovereign. Meanwhile, Union allies believed Stanly was too soft on Confederates. After the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation, Stanly believed the mission of his office had changed. He resigned on Jan. 15, 1863. Lincoln did not appoint another wartime governor of North Carolina.
LETTERS President Trump should watch ‘Darkest Hour’ “DARKEST HOUR” is clearly not a movie for the masses, especially today’s masses, who create whole movements and imaginary enemies out of myth (hands up, don’t shoot!) or, essentially, nothing. Gary Oldham, once and for all, takes his place among the pantheon of great film actors, and no doubt will win the Oscar for his portrayal of Winston Churchill. So many members of parliament and British statesmen actively plotted to undermine Churchill’s administration. They sought to portray him as isolated, alcoholic, self-aggrandizing and much worse. Had they prevailed, the world would be a totally different and desolate place today. It is almost inconceivable that Churchill, alone, held out the only hope for the Western world for more than 18 months, and, if not for him, the Third Reich might have begun its 1,000-year reign. What is overwhelming to me, in viewing this movie, are the countless parallels between what he faced in attempting to get Great Britain to understand that there was no compromise with the Third Reich and what Donald Trump faces today, amidst multi-millions of people who refuse to understand the worldwide threat that now befalls us. Trump is already decimating ISIS in the Middle East and around the world — with little fanfare — but the battle is far from over. It’ll take at least a generation to clean out the radicals, the sleeper cells, those bent on the downfall of Christianity, Judaism and Western civilization, and even longer to maintain the sovereignty of nations that have opened their borders to those who would undermine their democratic institutions at the first opportunity. I fervently hope that Mr. Trump watches this movie. Jeff Davidson Raleigh
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