Scott W.Owens
Of Human Depravity....and Ineptitude
Wed Jun 27 21:48:55 2001


The more I read on the Late Unpleasantness, the more devout Calvinist I become: the depravity of human beings is indeed total and complete. Certainly brutal behavior occurred and prehaps might be expected on the part of guards who had nothing but contempt for their charges, poor wretches that they were. Never veteran or battle-hardened troops, many had no motivation to serve their cause or country but the demands of conscription placed upon them by their respective governments. Certainly Rebel guards had the knowledge that the bluebelly invaders had wantonly pillaged their Southland, particularly as the third year progressed. What basis for the same brutality did Federal Military Prison guards have?

The official policies of the respective govenments toward captive enemy combatants bears examining. Conditions in the hell-holes in the north were a calculated policy of neglect-this much is documented; those in the south by and large occured by lack of supply. How could southern commandants withhold that of which could hardly be supplied their own front-line troops? And the numbers which accumulated in southern pens did so at the deliberate calculation of the general-in-chief, to prevent like numbers of southerns from leaving the hell-holes of the north.

I don't want to get into any exchange of howitzer barrages (though I am sure that will be preciptated) over this, remember too that the brightest lights on the respective trees were not placed in control of military prisons.