Greg. You do not appear to have read the same post I did...at least not all of it.

Your use of quotes strikes me as a little selective, and misrepresents a few things itself. One of the author's key points is that the song is not best considered a patriotic ballad, that it's not really a political song. Your comments ignore all the rest in the song and in the post that contradicts your point. I came away thinking that you were implying that the post was making such a "redemptionist" argument, which I don't see any evidence for, and I hope you were not intending.

I wonder if the use of quotes around the word "happy," might be to indicate that the word is being used from inside the perspective of the song, and are not the author's position? The blogger says he is a history teacher, who spends a good bit of time teaching his students Civil War history--so, it's likely he has a very good idea of the broader context and the consequences on both sides.

The other thing that strikes me as odd about your argument is this: If the song really is what you say it is, why do you think Tim Eriksen (a New England-based singer), or Wendy Arrowsmith, who is English, choose to sing it? It seems to me that the song has more to it.