Jim Macklin wrote:
Traditional slavery would have ended when Briggs & Stratton
built their small engines.

That's what they said about the cotton gin. Didn't happen.
Small engines can be assembled by slaves cheaper than
by free labor, just like slaves could operate cotton gins
cheaper than free labor. Frederick Douglass worked in
Baltimore as a shipwright, alongside free men.

Aside from which, there was a moral imperative to end slavery,
period, instead of hoping and waiting for it to die out on its own.

Those states that voluntarily abolished slavery all did so prior
to 1820. From that time forwad slavery became increasing
more entrenched, even in Virginia which in the House of Burgesses,
came within one vote in the House of Burgesses of abolishing
slavery in the 18th century.

But, the sex slave trade goes on.

This, despite the ubiquitous availability of a cheap alternative--
what does that tell you about the Briggs and Stratton argument?

Slavery is rampant in other parts of the world today,
primarily Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The UN and the
Muslim religion support slavery.

Please elaborate on how each does. But let's change the
newsgroup to one where this is on-topic.

For perspective, damn near every slave in the US and every
slave owner was 'Christian.' Douglass had a bit to say
about this.


Importation of slaves was illegal in the USA after 1807, but
ownership was still legal. The South's economy was based on
hand labor agriculture, cotton.

And slavery had the effect of devaluing labor putting a ceiling
on the economic opportunity to free laborers. It was an institution
the ultimately demeaned the free man as well.

A lot of white people
fought and died to free the slaves. A lot of Southerners
fought and died to preserve their life-style. Both were
honorable. But slavery was still wrong and it ceased to be
the same after 1865. But there was still economic "slavery"
for many people working for low wages in company towns,
buying food and clothes at the company store on credit.

And sharecropping which was America's version of serfdom.


Laws change, society changes, hopefully for the better. We
should remember the past, so we don't continue to make the
same mistakes, but we must get over the anger and personal
feelings about what happened 50, 100, 150, 500, 2000 years
ago.


--

FF