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The Northern motivations were still a bit curious, since they clearly had enormous zeal in their opposition to slavery, so you'd think that they would be more stalwart in supporting civil rights back then.

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But how would that gain any wealth for the bankers and industrialists? Racism and misogyny are actually bad for business, so from a purely capitalist point of view, it's hard to fathom that those are their goals. I actually think that conservatives themselves are somewhat divided, between the social conservatives and the fiscal conservatives.

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In other words, on the issues that really matter to the monied interests, both parties seem pretty much the same. Wherever they might disagree (particularly on social issues), I would perceive that as bunkum for the masses, giving the people something to argue about and keeping them divided against each other. As long as it doesn't fundamentally challenge our economic/political system or our foreign policy, people can argue over any other subject until they're blue in the face, but I doubt it will bring about any civil war, since the monied interests seem pretty unified on the things that would be important to them.

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Judging by the results of the war, it was clear that the South was not equally powerful to the North (although they were still pretty wealthy), since the North utterly defeated and decimated the South. It should have ended years sooner than it did, but perhaps the North was too overconfident at the beginning, along with Lincoln's struggle to find a competent general to lead his army.

I would also suggest that the South was hoisted by its own petard, as the Confederate-style government emphasizing States' Rights turned out to be an inferior method of organization for waging a full-scale national war along a 2000-mile front. An agrarian state which depends on imports for manufactured goods just won't survive a war with an industrialized power.

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In the Postbellum era, the U.S. moved forward and surged to the top in its industrial might, which is really what put us in a favorable position by the time of the World Wars.

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I think a lot of what's going on with the demographic groups you mention is that a lot of people in America have gotten used to things being a certain way, yet have also seen many changes taking place during their lives. Demographic changes, political changes, social changes, cultural changes...the world, the country, even their own communities are changing before their eyes, and they're unsure how to respond or what to do about it. People are afraid for the future;

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Trouble is, the Democrats also have their share of manipulative politicians, pundits, and preachers, so they've just been selling a different kind of bullshit. They pay lip service to the poor and working classes, but that's about it. They stopped being the party of the working man a long time ago.

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ORIGINAL: vincentML

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But how would that gain any wealth for the bankers and industrialists? Racism and misogyny are actually bad for business, so from a purely capitalist point of view, it's hard to fathom that those are their goals. I actually think that conservatives themselves are somewhat divided, between the social conservatives and the fiscal conservatives.

Hasn't capitalism had a long history of racism and misogyny? Bad for business? Was a time when Jews could not get employment in the banking and financial industries, if you recall. Can't say that racism is rational.

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In other words, on the issues that really matter to the monied interests, both parties seem pretty much the same. Wherever they might disagree (particularly on social issues), I would perceive that as bunkum for the masses, giving the people something to argue about and keeping them divided against each other. As long as it doesn't fundamentally challenge our economic/political system or our foreign policy, people can argue over any other subject until they're blue in the face, but I doubt it will bring about any civil war, since the monied interests seem pretty unified on the things that would be important to them.

You make a sound point. However, the monied interests do lose control from time to time, doncha think?

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In the Postbellum era, the U.S. moved forward and surged to the top in its industrial might, which is really what put us in a favorable position by the time of the World Wars.

Thanks to a massive wave of immigration of low wage labor from Europe.

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Trouble is, the Democrats also have their share of manipulative politicians, pundits, and preachers, so they've just been selling a different kind of bullshit. They pay lip service to the poor and working classes, but that's about it. They stopped being the party of the working man a long time ago.

Perhaps because Big Industrial Labor has been decimated by right-to-work state laws and robot technology? Now the public employee unions are targeted.

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ORIGINAL: vincentML

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The civil war was about gaining collateral to take out the next battery of bonds against the debt which had nearly doubled by that time rather than being paid off. Not that it was impossible to pay off they simply "didnt" paid it off and instead defaulted until everything in this nation including you was pledged against the debt. (slavery)

We have differing views of history, you and I. There are many forces and motivations at the root cause of events other than some cabal of bankers manipulating strings. Or else Bear Sterns and Lehman Bros were not in the club.