Roger+Taney

Name: Roger Taney Age: 74 Gender: male Occupation: the fifth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court If in politics, what was your occupation prior to that: eleventh Attorney General of the United States and Secretary of Treasury under Andrew Jackson, House of Delegates Social Class: high wealthy class that owned lots of slaves Financial Situation: very wealthy--for instance, born from a tobacco-raising southern top class family that owned slaves Appearance: very aristocratic, elegant, but not so luxurious Location: Calvert County, Maryland Daily Routine: read books, take a walk to relax from the court cases, sometimes stay overnight because of his temper from disputes with his political opponents Personality/Quirks/Unique Personality Traits: firm-minded, supports slavery & states' rights but still supports the union, has temper Past/Individual and family history: elected at age 22 to the House of Delegates, graduated first in his class at Dickinson College, not only emancipated his own slaves, but gave pensions to those who were too old to work, his family has traditionally been a slave-owning southern wealthy class Family: a slave-owning top wealthy class in South that raised tobacco, he was the second son so his elder brother inherited the land while he decided to major in law because of that. Social relations with others: great relationship with Andrew Jackson and his close supporters Religion: Catholic Education: was educated at Dickinson College Conflicts/Enemies: anti-Jacksonians, abolitionists, Lincoln, Republican Party



-bibliography "Roger B. Taney." __Biography Base__. Wikepedia. Nov. 10, 2009. 
 * Journal #1** - The time frame is sometime during the year 1850. Consider all of the things that have taken place during the previous five years (Mexican-American War, Mexican Cession, Wilmot Proviso, Compromise of 1850, Fugitive Slave Act). You are free to write about any one (or more) of these things in your journal entry. Be sure to include your actions in response to one (or more) of these events.

Nowadays, the political affair regarding the territories is a mess--not only does the resolution seem far away from resolving the fundamental issue regarding the restriction on slavery but also is unconstitutional; I CANNOT stand Congress attempting to extend its power by attempting to impose restrictions on slavery in any territory. Such action is quite ridiculous if not ludicrous. How dare do they try to infringe upon the most sacred rights of men--the Bill of Rights. No figure or institution shall infringe upon people’s right to property--and considering that slaves are sacred properties of men, even the most uneducated man should be able to easily deduce that any restriction on the ownership of slavery by the government is unconstitutional (if it is not, then what is?) Thus, proposals like the Wilmot Proviso must be disregarded absolutely. However, what is GOING on these days? Oh my lord, fool’s ignorance of the most profound respect required in a republican nation has brought a ‘legitimized’ policy like the Compromise of 1850--how ABSURD is this idea. Has the nation relinquished the most fundamental Republican principle--upholding the constitution-- in order to bring ‘justice’? If such conspicuous and deliberate violation of constitution is a ‘justice’, what is NOT a justice? No matter how many times I go out for a walk or read a mind-soothing book, this rage that every republican should have as well leaves me disgusted at the way the polarization of this nation that is bringing apathy towards the most significant issue. Although I cannot take any action with the unfortunate lack of my jurisdiction right now, I shall demonstrate a true justice to the nation when the opportunity arrives--I shall declare fools’ proposals like the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850 unconstitutional and set the guideline for the unstable future of this shattering Union.

**Journal #2 -** The year is now 1852. Continue your story as you began in Journal #1. For this journal entry and all subsequent entries, you must interact with at least two other characters in each journal entry. When you interact with another character, provide a hyperlink to that character's page in your journal entry.

After all the silly political affairs regarding the Compromise of 1850 and the Wilmot Proviso, it seems like I can finally relax a bit without staying up late due to the relentless flow of frustration tearing off my head as if it was tearing off the Constitution of the United States--I just simply cannot stand those unconstitutional ‘reforms.’ But at least, it seems my mind will be more at peace so that whenever I go out for a walk, I do so not because I cannot bear the outrage at a fool like David Wilmot but because I can enjoy the crispness of the night air. This year, 1852, a good political event is finally seeming to happen--Democrats have won over the Whigs in the presidential election. I always have known the Whigs are too ambiguous on their stance to be the dominant party of the United States--like they did before, they indeed nominated a war-hero of the Mexican-American War, General Winfield Scott, to win the election but their fundamental flaws in their stance on a diverse number of issues have cause them this humiliating (well, refreshing for me) defeat to Franklin Pierce of the Democratic Party, who definitely holds a far more realistic view on the slavery issue that thus would not bring any damage to the solidarity of the Union. Also, I am very satisfied with how these Fugitive Slave Laws are functioning. Although not many fugitive slaves are being sent back, these laws are definitely illustrating how slaves are ‘properties’ that obviously must belong to a man and thus must be returned if stolen as indicated by the sacred words of the Bible as well as the Constitution of the United States--also, knowing (not assuming) that slaves do not deserve egalitarian treatments, it seems like a spot-on decision to deny slaves’ rights to a trial (just think about what kind of nonsense it would be to have your pet returned to you after having a trial that proves the pet belongs to you--that would be quite frustrating AND inefficient). I now just wish that I can soon contribute to solidifying the justice according to the Constitution of the United States.


 * Journal #3 -** It's 1854... the Kansas-Nebraska Act has passed. Squatters are now moving into Kansas in an attempt to sway the vote. Continue your story...

Today was one of the most gratifying days I have had in quite a long time--Stephen Douglas was a “little giant” after all. I cannot help but be amazed at not only his boldness but also his genius--to settle the slavery issue, South needed to break that Missouri Compromise in order to re-balance the broken balance between the Northern and the Southern states. Also, he simply chose the perfect timing for it--just before the Free-Soilers rose and when the Whigs were breaking apart. If he had come up with such proposal couple years after from now, there is no guarantee that the pro-slavery Congressmen would make up sufficient proportion in the Congress to pass this bill. Yet, despite such great satisfaction, I cannot help but be distressed with my own slaves’ atrocious acts--it seems like the rumor regarding the Kansas-Nebraska act turned into some folk-tale among the slaves and made us, the slaveowners, look like bloodlust witches. Of course, these fools’ innate interiority to white’s intelligence level accounts for such idiotic rumors but it is their changed attitude that angers me greatly. How dare they rudely give that spiteful glance whenever they believe I am not staring at them--are they underestimating my ability to see through people’s mind? Also, it shocks me greatly that such modified stories seem to mimic Edgar Allan Poe’s stories--I bet these fools do not even know what kind of figure he is but believe that his stories are traditional African folk tales. How dare they stain white men’s literature with such disdainful words of theirs? I believe along with the political advancement of proslavery actions, we, the slaveowners,must discuss slaves’ abnormal actions these days--how can living men allow such disgusting words to emerge on in this world? I shall soon take an action.

**Journal #4 -** It's now 1856. Bleeding Kansas has just taken place and John Brown emerged on to the scene. Buchanan was just elected as the US President. Dred Scott is arrested and is about to be brought to trial. Continue your story.

These days, I cannot sleep because of these outrageous actions from these fools on negroes’ side. John Brown, the so-called Christian, should know a lot better than what he claims--does it not simply take a common men’s intelligence to realize that bible allows slavery? So, is he simply a savage or an ignorant fool who actually knows nothing about the bible? His actions are evidently unjustified and is nothing but an atrocity committed by an insane man’s undecipherable fantasy. If I could rule on this case, I would definitely sentence him to hanging and shall show the world the punishment for such defiance of God and violation of his most fundamental duty as a human being--his murders of innocent men are definitely an unforgivable sin and a shame for humanity. Through such unconceivable actions, he is no longer better than the silliest negro on the planet--Dred Scott. WHAT HAS HE BEEN THINKING? That negroes are equivalent to whites? Well, I should then make an argument from such nonsense that cotton plants should not be harvested because plant life is as precious as a human life. What really is the difference between a negro and a plant? They are both properties that are lawfully traded and safely raised by men--that ONLY refers to the WHITES. If a negro were to raise ITS own child, it would simply sell it because its craze with wealth would drive all of its actions. It is a definitely a wise decision, if not a common sense, to show the citizens that his claim itself that he is a citizen is a ridiculous if not a ludicrous idea at the Supreme Court. I sincerely hope this Scott v. Sanford ruling will prevent further ridiculous cases like this so that I can sleep peacefully for once in a long time during this period of nonsense.


 * Journal #5** - The year is 1860. Lincoln was just elected as US President, prompting South Carolina to secede. Write the next chapter in your story.

Tonight, I learned that all the headaches I have been having with the politics so far has simply been the beginning of much more severe ones--South Carolina seceded. As much as I would like to defend a slave state, their actions infuriate me even more than a fugitive slave--how dare they betray the Union? For my entire life so far, I have devoted all my efforts into creating a more just nation--and so did millions of other men of the present and the past. Yet, such efforts are now about to be turned into a meaningless fuss; has greed seriously blinded us to this absurd extent? It is true that North is in control of politics nowadays. Yet, simply seceding from the Union is same as saying that one does not agree with the majority rule--the very essence of democracy. Thus, secession inevitably means that one is defying the democracy of this nation, something that our ancestors have gave up their lives to attain. On the other hand, President Abraham Lincoln is not acting wisely either--rejecting Crittenden compromise was not a smart move. He should know that saving the nation from destroying itself should be the priority. Although the nation is in the brink of war, he is refusing South’s demand--something that is nothing but fair for both North and the South. But it is not like he is the only one who is not acting wisely. William Seward and other Republicans acted so indecisively that they let Lincoln make the final decision. If they knew what the very first priority should be, they would have not acted so irresponsibly and just let someone else do the decision for them--even if the compromise passes, North is the one that benefits more because a lot of the western lands are not farmable anyways. I have not felt so helpless in my life before. It almost seems like all I can do is to watch the union break apart. Ah, my head is aching again. I feel like simply stop writing this journal and resting for a while. I guess I should first go to sleep.

-bibliography "Roger B. Taney." __Biography Base__. Wikepedia. Nov. 10, 2009. 