Good question David. And a good point from Joe. I personally think this "feeling of dominance and supremacy" by the yankee north began with FDR. And add in World War Two and you can see the development of the all powerful United States. With FDR came the birth of the modern entitlement mentality and the welfare state. FDR was nobel in his ideas and plans (much as our President now is) to bring the country out of destitution and poverty with government spending. The problem there was the general population couldn't afford to feed it's self much less the rest of the country. All told it was WWII that brought this nation out of The Depression, not FDR's social programs. Sure there were projects that put men to work and built a great deal of infrastructure in this country during the late 30s. But it was capitalism and WAR that pulled this country up by it's boot straps. Hitler showed what "a cause" and commitment could do for a country. His plan pulled Germany from the muck and made them into a World Power. But the socialistic structure of the society doomed it to fail when finally challenged on all fronts. Capitalism ruled America until taxes and tarrifs became the norm in the 1800s. This country flys best when the citizenry are at the controls. Government intervention only causes apathy and a population looking for sympathy and and a hand out. If the South was as "poor" in the 1800s as some historians would have you believe then why wouldn't the governing body just let them go their own way. Because in truth there was great wealth in the South and a great source of revenue in newly formed tax policies and tarrifs. Countries organize and armies are raised for power and control. Power and control come from money. Lincoln saw that individual states and localities would question Federal control and regulation of their existing capitalistic systems. Slavery was a mere "stain" on the system as industrialization would render it obsolete in due and natural time. You can look at the South today and point out poverty and need. But fact is that these same poor and in need are best capable of taking care of themselves when left alone by government intervention. Come on y'all. It's all about the money. It always has been and it always will be. Why else would people aspire to careers in government if there wasn't a handsome reward for it? Service? These people didn't and DON"T serve anything other than their own self interest. GOVERNMENT is control. Control keeps the purse. All we need do is look back at The Roman Empire to see the blueprint for America. At warp speed.

Keith