"The Civil War" (Ken Burns' documentary)

I'm 20 years behind the times.
I've been watching Ken Burns' documentary "The Civil War",
first broadcast over five nights on PBS in 1990.

Forty million Americans watched the original broadcasts,
and visitorship to Civil War battlefields measurably increased as a result.
This is what a great documentary can do.

The horror of war is revealed here in a way most Americans seldom see,
for personal lives and letters are juxtaposed with black and white photos of battlefield carnage.

Maybe it's time for you to watch it again (or for the first time).
It's available on DVD or on Netflix instant download.

We see:
(1) the suffering of American slaves and the horrors of slavery
(2) the roles of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
(3) battlefield tactics well explained
(4) the skilled leadership of Robert E. Lee and Confederate generals
(5) the vanity of Gen. George McClellan, and his seeming fear to engage the enemy
(6) the rise to prominence of Ulysses S. Grant
(7) the insightful and entertaining commentary of historian Shelby Foote
(8) the authentic photography of Matthew Brady and others
(9) outstanding narration by David McCullough
(10) voiceovers by Morgan Freeman, Garrison Keeler, Jason Robards and others
(11) the misery and pain of war in general, and civil war in particular

If you want deep insight into the USA's most painful years, you should watch this magnificent documentary.