Inside the museum at Gettysburg National Military Park, I make the innocent mistake of answering my fiancé's history question:
"So, Lincoln was a Republican? That seems strange."
"Well the party names of 'Republican' and 'Democrat' are fluid. 'Conservative' and 'Liberal' are more accurate ways of describing a person's political beliefs. At the time, the Republican Party was the more liberal party. But if Lincoln were alive today he'd probably have more in common with the Democrats."
My friend pipes in, "Yeah, now it's more about picking one or two issues, like abortion, and if you feel a certain way about it you're automatically stuck in one party or the other."
Our conversation was brief, and fairly quiet. However, a nearby woman overhears us, gives us an evil glare, and hurriedly shuffles away. In a museum dedicated to the country divided, I was reminded that we are still very much a country at war with itself.
I actually do wonder sometimes what our previous presidents would think if they were alive today. I'm sure they would all have an opinion, but none more so than old Honest Abe. What would he think of how divided this nation has become? Would he even think that the most divisive issues of today-- abortion, gay marriage, tax reform-- are worth fighting over? Would he be discouraged that a mere 150 years after the Civil War, we are once again at each other's throats?
Maybe America's legacy is that of fighting. Devoid of a common enemy, we turn to our neighbors. We fight because it's what we were bred to do from the start.
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