:50:22
All these thousands of men.
:50:25
Many of them not much more than boys.
:50:28
Each one of them some mother's son.
:50:30
Some sister's brother.
Some daughter's father.
:50:35
Each one of them a whole person,
loved and cherished in some home far away.
:50:42
Many of them will never return.
:50:48
An army is power.
:50:52
Its entire purpose is to coerce others.
:50:56
Now, this kind of power cannot be used
carelessly or recklessly.
:51:01
This kind of power can do great harm.
:51:06
We have seen more suffering
than any man should ever see...
:51:11
...and if there is going to be an end to it,
it must be an end that justifies the cost.
:51:18
Now, somewhere out there
is the Confederate Army.
:51:24
They claim they are fighting
for their independence, for their freedom.
:51:29
Now, I cannot question their integrity.
:51:32
I believe they are wrong,
but I cannot question it.
:51:36
But I do question a system that defends
its own freedom while it denies it to others.
:51:40
To an entire race of men.
:51:44
I will admit it, Tom, war is a scourge.
But so is slavery.
:51:49
It is the systematic coercion
of one group of men over another.
:51:55
It has been around since
the book of Genesis.
:51:58
It exists in every corner of the world.