Ms. Holley, Compliments,
If my response to your "mild invitations" in anyway offended you for that I,m truly sorry. Sometimes my ignorance gets the better of my objectivity.
Being of ancestral blood of those "long deceased" Missourians, who else is left to stand up and try to explain the "cause", be it right or wrong in hindsight, that they felt so strongly about as to the point of protecting and defending their hearth and home to the point of the use of "sword and buchlor"?
I guess my point is that too little attention is paid to the grief that was suffered, on both sides, in this truly the first forgotten war.
One could conceivably argue that this situation had been going on since 1854 and surely 1857. Quite a period of time before the nation itself was plunged into the civil nightmare. To further my concern is the influences of "proxy" segments in the society, be them N.E. abolitionists or Mississippi Unionists.
"War is Cruel" as Sherman belabored the obvious but none so cruel as to be controlled by puppet masters from afar for their own self righteous agenda.
As in the case of this regional conflict, in my humble opinion.
Oh, by the way the lord knows I,m not from above, but I pray at the same time I am not from below (A feeble attempt at levity C-your previous post as to my description).
Once again I stand by my words, but if the tenor of my statements in any way assaults your honor or you find offensive, for that I apologize. It truly was not my intention. I am here to learn from others and possibly participate and share with others.
I am,

Your Humble Servant,

Gaus