Say what you want about Lincoln. If not for his foresight there would be no "United States" as we know it today.
Are you happy with the United States as we know it today?
You have no idea what divided states would actually be like.
You are right, we don't know.
It couldn't be worse than what we became. At least we wouldn't be able to go all over the world getting involved in war.
Maybe we wouldn't be financially insolvent.
Maybe we would be 3 or 4 different countries getting along well enough but not strong enough to threaten peace all over the globe.
No.
You would have been invaded and would not be independent.
What country would have been strong enough to invade either the north of the south?
Great Britain? Not likely. They had just struggled through the crimean war, and a few decades later struggled to defeat the boers?
France? Okay.
Germany? And leave themselves open to invasion from their European enemies?
Russia? See crimean war.
Mexico? Their biggest holiday is the day they beat the French.
France from the north, Spain from the south, injuns everywhere.
This country United for strength, been pretty successful for the last several hundred years.
Imagine a mix of countries, vassal states, border crossings, different laws. Different rights.
You can own a gun in Virginia, but not west Virginia.
If they had just left religion out of it, we would all be better off
