Happy Birthday President Lincoln!

by right witch | 12:22 am, February 16, 2010 | Comments Off

In celebration of President Lincoln’s birthday, esteemed author, Dr. Thomas Krannawitter visited Colorado University to engage and delight both students and community leaders with a discussion on his most recent book, Vindicating Lincoln.

CU Regent, Tom Lucero introduced Dr. Krannawitter and discussed the importance of the Center for Western Civilization at the University of Colorado.  He espoused the significance of studying the fundamental principles upon which our nation was built and praised Dr. Krannawitter for his ground breaking work on Lincoln.

Dr. Krannawitter’s book starts by confronting racism and slavery.  “It might sound strange at first, but the problem of slavery in the American Founding and the years following may best reveal American’s goodness.  That is, slavery was clearly a problem to be solved in America, but slavery is a problem only in a good regime; slavery is not problem in a bad one.”

He described Lincoln’s beliefs that “there exists what he [Lincoln] called an ‘abstract truth applicable to all men and all time’.”  He asked the audience to consider whether we today believe that any truth can apply to all the people through all time.

The deliberation as to whether Lincoln actually believed in human equality “or whether he was, as many scholars today argue, a ‘typical racist’” is the basis for why Dr. Krannawitter believes Lincoln is in need of vindication.  He argued that the most important verity about Lincoln was not Lincoln the man, “but rather the principles for which he gave the last full measure of devotion.”

According to Dr. Krannawitter, Lincoln understood the “universality of human equality and believed that blacks were included in the Declaration’s principle of equality”.  Although some scholars believe this remains an “unresolveable question,” Dr. Krannawitter discussed the broad implications and reminded the audience that in America, we cast moral judgments on our fellow citizens based upon whether they affirm the founding principle of equality; “we might tolerate, but we tend to look down upon, citizens who disavow the equal rights of others.” He went on to establish that this “dedication to equality inspired in many Americans a belief in the moral superiority of America, a view that America should serve as a kind of political and moral role model for the rest of the world.”

He concluded “the lesson Lincoln offers is a lesson of American exceptionalism and goodness. “  He went on to explain “that through Lincoln, we can become better students of Western Civilization, and we can become better prepared to defend the Crown jewel of Western Civilization, the free United States of America.”

Dr. Krannawitter is a frequent and favorite speaker at Leadership Program of the Rockies, well respected author, Professor at Hillsdale College, Senior Fellow at the Claremont Institute and is nationally renowned for his passionate work on equality, natural rights and the American Founders.

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