The problem is that people to day think the U.S.A is a democracy. It's not. It's a Constitutional Republic and that's not the same thing. A Democracy implies a rule of the land by the majority, a Constitutional Republic implies a rule of the land by THE RULE OF LAW. The rule of law is not negotiable, it can't be suspended, removed, or invalidated. It is binding to all men both small and large. You can not disregard the Constitution and claim to uphold it. It's a lie if you claim as such. Slavery is evil this is a FACT. The draft is a form of Slavery, as it says that you (A person) are the property of an other (The Government). Therefor the idea that Lincon fought a war to defeat slavery is null and void given that , through the draft, he USED slavery to fight the South. All that said if you look at the writing of many soldiers on BOTH sides you will see a reacquiring sentiment that the Civil War was a Rich Mans war. Rich men taking the masses and sending them forth to slaughter to preserve their fortunes. ON BOTH SIDES. People have it in their heads that there is this imaginary line in the country back then, and on the North side was all slavery hating heroes fighting for the liberation of the slave population and on the South Side was all slavery loving racists. This...is a bloody fallacy and a lie, no little strip of land can so widely separate ideology. There were many pro-slavery people in the north and many anti-slavery people in the South. But when people invade your home and kill your people you don't stop to point that out. Lincon's freeing of the slaves is demonstratably, by his own words and writings, a means to an end of his objective. To keep the Union together no matter the cost. Was he a man TRYING to build an Empire and TRYING to destroy the Constitution? Personally I don't think so. I think he was a man that was trying to do what he thought was best for the country, and I can respect that even though I disagree with his methods.