That................is a total bunch of BS. The "slave issue" was present at the very beginning of the country. In the original Declaration of Independence (Thats correct, if you want to see the original DOI, don't go to the Archives, go to the Library of Congress) there was a line that said "he has waged cruel war" that was hotly debated before Jly 4th. The Southern States would not sign until it was removed... Then you had the Dredd Scott case in the 1840's....Uncle Tom's Cabin in the mid 1850's and finally Harper's Ferry on the eve of war. Slavery was on everyones mind from 1776 - 1865. The Emancipation Proclamation DID NOT FREE A SINGLE SLAVE. The slaves freed themselves. People who fly the Confederate Battle flag are simply attention starved and uneducated. The flag is a pure symbol of FAIL That would be "Old Glory", The Stars and Stripes.........the spirit of 76............not the cruel, inbred, hypocritical, failed experiment that was the Confederacy and it's flag. Also, In case anyone was interested, "Dixie", the anthem of the Confederacy..........was written by Daniel Emmet........from Mt Vernon, Ohio.