THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 11, 1996 TAG: 9602100024
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J4 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 32 lines
Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. ``Stonewall'' Jackson were Virginians who sided with their native state when President Lincoln unconstitutionally raised an army to invade the South. They led the Army of Northern Virginia during the Second War for Independence against overwhelming odds and proved themselves to be among the greatest American military men of all time. Their tactics are still taught today at military schools all over the world.
Not only did they have great military minds, but their high morals and religious beliefs made them the role models that we so seldom find in today's world.
Neither Lee nor Jackson endorsed slavery; they did not endorse secession until Virginia decided that it could not bear arms against its sister Southern states.
For Virginians, the official holiday on the third Monday in January is Lee-Jackson-King Day, honoring three men who strived to help their people during times of crisis. Too often, the ignorance of history or the desire to be ``politically correct'' causes people to ignore the contributions made by those whom the holiday honors.
COLLIN PULLEY
Courtland, Jan. 31, 1996 by CNB