Perpetuating the Lincoln Myths. Why?

[Old Movie Fan]

Another Presidents Day has come and gone and with it, another series
of endless documentaries that claim to have brand new facts to tell.
Last year, one documentary set out to show that Lincoln was a
homosexual; and now this year, there's one that suggests that Ann
Ruthledge actually died from syphilis and old Abe was afraid to marry
Mary Todd, because he might pass the disease on to her too.
In one of the more interesting ones that I saw a few years ago
concerning the 'real end' of the Civil War (where Sherman meets with the
Confederate representatives), they first began by saying that there were
no witnesses to the meeting. Then they proceed to give the most
intimate details as if someone had actually observed the meetings.
In a very telling documentary, "Looking for Lincoln," black author,
Henry Louis Gates Jr. actually gets this group of 'documentary
historians' to sit down at dinner and discuss why they continue to
distort the real American history and perpetuate the myths. They pretty
much admit that this is what they do, because they believe it's the
right thing to do.
As long as this conspiracy continues, Americans will always be taught
that Lincoln had a brutal father, that the "Emancipation" was an
original idea (what about the "2nd Confiscation Act" already passed by
Congress), and that it was Lincoln, who freed all the slaves. The way
they like to put it: "Even if that's not exactly what he said; that's
what he meant."

Surely anyone here who has read more than one book on the subject or
done any research on the writings and speeches of Lincoln, knows full
well that the truth is much different from these distortions, even when
they include some facts.

The real truth about everything is out there, available to anyone who
wants to know what really happened. It doesn't hurt Lincoln's image.

Rich Wagner

Another interesting issue (where both the legends and the real facts
are all available), is the "40 Acres & a Mule" myth. The real facts
first began with Sherman's Field Order, and then later, what was
introduced as an amendment to the Freedmen Act.
Actual copies of the original Congressional documents are available on
the internet. They don't exactly support the myth that so many believe
to be true. This was the famous bill that Johnson vetoed, but even this
bill did not provide what many believe it did.
There was no land give-away, and those who were living on land under
Sherman's Order, would be required to return the land to the rightful
owners after three years.

Facts; not opinions.