PARDON JOHN BROWN!!

Thanks for your recognition of Brown as a heroic figure. As a biographer and student of his life, it is much more common for me to see blog entries filled with ignorant prejudice, including the accusation that Brown was a “terrorist.” I am enjoying reading your article explaining Libertarianism and appreciate the opportunity to correspond w ith you. I’ve never known a libertarian to so fully support Brown, although I have read some thoughtful words on Brown by Murray Rothbard. I am interested in your positive view of Brown and would like to know the why’s and how’s, particularly how you would view him from your perspective in more breadth and depth. FYI, my books are entitled, “Fire from the Midst of You”: A Religious Life of John Brown (NYU Press, 2002) and John Brown–The Cost of Freedom (International Publishers, 2007).

Obama and Kaine should not contemplate this pardon for several reasons aside from the historical facts:

To issue this pardon would first of all further alienate southern voters for whom John Brown still represents a terrifying figure. In our increasingly divided nation where the South seems to represent a different demographic on almost every salient issue, this is unnecessary.

Moreover, I worry that the message this sends is fundamentally wrong in this time in our nation’s history. First of all, domestically we are dealing with a tea party movement that is styling itself as the new revolutionary movement in America. Do we really need to give right wing groups legitimacy in their desire to perpetuate acts of violence if they believe their cause to be just. If we pardon Brown for his actions, we are sending the message that it is ok to do whatever it takes even launch insurrection and violence if it is for a just cause. Does the anti-abortion movement really need another hero to justify the murder of more George Tillers? They already use slavery as a representative symbol of abortion. We need to discourage such right wing violence and terror rather than encourage it.

Also, on a foreign policy level this act would signal to our enemies that if they view our war or occupation as unjust, that violence and even terrorism are justified. Remember, John Brown murdered innocent civilians. Is that really something that we wish to condone in this time of strife and conflict.

A pardon is not an ahistorical action based merely on facts. The political implications need to be thought through.

Would John Brown support equal rights for homosexuals? I think not, he was after all a conservative Christian that took to heart the idea that all “good” men should be treated as brothers. I believe he would “roll over” in his grave at the mere thought of equal rights for sexual degenerates.