Bobert old buddy, that was a rhetorical question, we all know who fired the first shot of the war. What you said reminds me of the one about the little boy who came home with a black eye. Dad says "How did you get that black eye"? boy says, "It all started when he hit me back."

Seriously, much of it WAS politics. The south had a huge advantage in their slave labor, but, the way I see it, both sides made a huge mistake. The south believed that Lincoln would never be elected. They were dead wrong. The north believed that the south would not leave the union. They were dead wrong. As a result, 600,000 were dead dead.And we still look to politicians for guidance.
..."When will they ever learn, oh when will they ever learn...