# What would an American "civil war" look like? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 3, 2018, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213 "2018-07-03T03:28:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/161 "2018-07-09T22:00:20Z")
Do you think that urbanites are incapable of setting food outside the urban centers? The dirt is not politically “on your side,” nor are the resources under it. It’s not enough for the land to be bigger; your men have to be enough better to defend the land. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/162 "2018-07-09T22:50:16Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > Do you think that urbanites are incapable of setting food outside the urban centers? The dirt is not politically “on your side,” nor are the resources under it. It’s not enough for the land to be bigger; your men have to be enough better to defend the land. Again, cities are not homogeneous. I doubt the left could even deal with factional urban warfare much less push into and hold the countryside long enough to extract wealth. Plus the reds would have Russian help and much of the military is from the South. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/163 "2018-07-09T23:03:04Z")
Congratulations on getting Octopus to admit to Russian meddling on the side of the Right. Well played, foolsguinea! ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/164 "2018-07-09T23:09:29Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Congratulations on getting Octopus to admit to Russian meddling on the side of the Right. Well played, foolsguinea! Like my acknowledgement of the $50k or so of hacking the Russians did means anything. What’s sad is the $1 billion that Clinton raised and all the free press she received couldn’t overcome that major obstacle. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/165 "2018-07-09T23:19:26Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > So if rural areas with access to raw materials are vulnerable to supply chain disruption how would cities fare better? They can’t even exist without importing water. I didn’t make the case that cities are better, just that contrary to the conservative imagination, the hinterlands are just as screwed for food and supplies as anyone else. But cities at least have seaports and airports and human labor. The countryside will ravage all the game animals for about a month and then collapse while they’re trying to remember how actual non-factory farms work. For every one actual country-boy survivor, there are 50 Wal-Mart greeters. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/166 "2018-07-09T23:20:23Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Like my acknowledgement of the $50k or so of hacking the Russians did means anything. What does the dollar cost of Russian election meddling have to do with anything? The 9/11 attacks only cost Bin Laden & Co. maybe half-a-million bucks; I guess that means they weren’t that big of a deal, huh? ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/167 "2018-07-09T23:26:31Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Plus the reds would have Russian help Oh God, you think they love you and that’s just so freaking adorable. No I’m sorry, the “reds” are just Russian tools. Useful idiots, I think someone said. After the US collapses they’ll be left to twist in the wind like every other instrumental third-world shithole. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/168 "2018-07-09T23:26:38Z")
Lol, that’s some pretty weak sauce, guy. In a thread about a hypothetical civil war you _still_ have little more to say than “B-b-b-but, Obummer! B-b-Hillary! Th-th-th-thpeecheth!” (Obviously, in the real world, Russia would sell arms to both sides.) ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/169 "2018-07-09T23:28:29Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > I didn’t make the case that cities are better, just that contrary to the conservative imagination, the hinterlands are just as screwed for food and supplies as anyone else. > > But cities at least have seaports and airports and human labor. The countryside will ravage all the game animals for about a month and then collapse while they’re trying to remember how actual non-factory farms work. For every one actual country-boy survivor, there are 50 Wal-Mart greeters. Lol. Well when the shooting starts I guess we’ll see. > [@MEBuckner](#): > > What does the dollar cost of Russian election meddling have to do with anything? The 9/11 attacks only cost Bin Laden & Co. maybe half-a-million bucks; I guess that means they weren’t that big of a deal, huh? Well, unlike 9/11 a few hacked emails aren’t a big deal. It does illustrate that IT security is somewhat important. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/170 "2018-07-09T23:30:16Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Oh God, you think they love you and that’s just so freaking adorable. No I’m sorry, the “reds” are just Russian tools. Useful idiots, I think someone said. After the US collapses they’ll be left to twist in the wind like every other instrumental third-world shithole. Nice snipping. You conveniently ignore the part where the majority of US military are not leftists. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/171 "2018-07-09T23:34:05Z")
… same could be said about the FBI, but God knows your side argues differently. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2018, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/172 "2018-07-09T23:55:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Can anyone name any conflict in history between an urban and a rural side where the rural side was the one that won? Defining what “won” means is problematic but … Khmer Rouge? Chinese Communist Revolution? ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/173 "2018-07-10T14:21:55Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > Nice snipping. You conveniently ignore the part where the majority of US military are not leftists. How does that relate to your hope that Russia is going to help out the red (I assume you mean Republican) states? Do you seriously believe that’s true? What’s the inconvenient pertinent bit that I left out? I mean, wow. Russia is going to help the red states. That’s where things are now. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/174 "2018-07-10T14:32:53Z")
Well, as he admitted, Russian interference in American politics has benefited his side greatly, so why wouldn’t they want continued Russian support of the modern American connedservative movement? ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/175 "2018-07-10T14:41:57Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > You conveniently ignore the part where the majority of US military are not leftists. The majority aren’t terribly partisan either. Nearly half are minorities. And the military is a machine that depends heavily on specialized skills. What happens when you remove half the parts of your car at random? Do you get a car that goes half as fast? ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2018, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/176 "2018-07-10T17:31:15Z")
There is a big gulf between “not leftists” and “people who would be willing to fight for some dictatorial regime in an American Civil War.” I think the vast majority of the military would fight to preserve the Constitution and the established political order that has been cumulatively built up over the past 200-odd years. Of course, even just a _few_ well-trained military officers and NCOs in various specialties, on the other side, could cause a tremendous amount of trouble. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2018, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/177 "2018-07-11T00:30:02Z")
And, remember, the Commander-in-Chief of the “red-hats” would be Donald J Trump. And they would be fighting for the right to be ruled by Donald J Trump. When you’re lying awake the night before the big battle, with random thoughts of what might lie ahead coursing through your brain, that’s gotta put a damper on things. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2018, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/178 "2018-07-11T12:32:14Z")
Who is the other side going to be fighting for - Bernie Sanders? Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2018, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/179 "2018-07-11T12:48:06Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Who is the other side going to be fighting for - Bernie Sanders? > > Regards, > Shodan No, they’d be fighting for Hillary. It’s her turn. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2018, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213/180 "2018-07-11T12:48:15Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Who is the other side going to be fighting for - Bernie Sanders? Probably the Constitution, civil rights, and science. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-an-american-civil-war-look-like/817213.md?page=10)