Context is for the weak

[james_davis_nicoll]

Even I know the difference between Stephen Douglas and Frederick Douglass.

Somewhere a Fox news editor's history teacher is weeping.

Comments

[autopope.livejournal.com]

*Blinks* ... Who?

-- C. (Victim of a British history education, for what it's worth.)

[paraleipsis.livejournal.com]

HAHAHAHAHA

[shsilver.livejournal.com]

I didn't think those 1858 Illinois Democrats were that forward thinking!

[movingfinger.livejournal.com]

Frederick Douglass was handsome. My. My.

[winterknight.livejournal.com]

That was my first thought. DAMN. And, I looked him up, so now I know who he is!

[elynne.livejournal.com]

Agreed - though I have a fondness for that eyebrow thing Lincoln has going on. Spock eyebrow ftw!

[xiphias.livejournal.com]

I am convinced that that is one of the reasons he was so THREATENING to the anti-abolitionists. The whole narrative of "Dem Black Men Gonna Come And Have Sex Wit' Our White Wimmins" thing was a deep fear, I think, and Fredrick Douglass was threatening since, well, you gotta figure that there were quite a few White Wimmins who might not have objected.

He was also, of course, smart, well-educated, well-spoken, a witty conversationalist, and passionate.

[heron61.livejournal.com]

This is a spoof, right? They didn't actually use that image?! If this is true, then that state of education in the US is far more sad and pathetic than I had imagined. Wow...

[aisb23.livejournal.com]

I am afraid they actually did use that image.

[bibliofile.livejournal.com]

Cool!

(We must take our amusements where we find them.)

[tekalynn.livejournal.com]

Oh gawd, they (Fox) DIDN'T. Did they?!

What am I saying, this is Fox. *headdesk*

[ladyholmwood.livejournal.com]

that is fucking hilarious!

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln-Douglas_debates_of_1858)


Mind you, the odds are pretty good that I first heard about them from a SCTV sketch or some other source of equal solemnity.

[autopope.livejournal.com]

Right. The school history syllabus I was subjected to was much more obsessed with the Schleswig-Holstein Question (and Answers Thereto), probably because of its more immediate historical impact, and I will confess to not having subsequently studied 19th century US history.

But who's the other Douglas guy, this Stephen?

[argonel.livejournal.com]

I agree, who is this Stephen Douglas? As an american should I even care?

[tekalynn.livejournal.com]

Stephen A. Douglas: prominent mid-nineteenth century politician, today almost exclusively remembered for being the "Douglas" of the Lincoln-Douglas debates.

[matgb]

Stephen covered above, Fred was a freed slave and activist who did a lot of "look, we don't eat people" style campaigning in the north. Top bloke.

If you're interested in learning a bit more, can I recommend one of my favourite books? Dead good on covering all the bases, even the clost liberal-socialist nature of some of the early Republican party (esp Lincoln).

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

And we have The Frederick Douglas House Historic Site here in DC. It has a lot of his stuff and explains about what he did. There was a recent foofooraw because historians finally found out what color the house was painted when he lived there, and painted it that, and the neighbors don't like it.

[redknight.livejournal.com]

"Page Not Found I'm sorry that page could not be found, but you may want to try the NPS homepage here http://www.nps.gov."

Apparently the neighbors hated it so much that they even got the web page taken down! :-)

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

I clicked on the link and it worked for me. Maybe you should try again.

[redknight.livejournal.com]

It's much happier (working) now.

[carloshasanax.livejournal.com]

Dude. Douglass loved Scotland, and the Scots loved him. His last name is even taken from "The Lady in the Lake".

[carloshasanax.livejournal.com]

Of, not In. Though Chandler mashed with Scott would be interesting.