Slavery Reparations

came across this article, while somewhat dated, I thought the points were interesting and worthy of some discussion, as the issue of reparations keeps arising from time to time. Written by Fred Reed:

On the Web I find that Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the chairman of Afro-American Studies at Harvard, is demanding that whites pay reparations to blacks. It's because of slavery, see? He is joined in the endeavor by a gaggle of other blacks.

I guess he'll send me a bill, huh? I feel like saying, Let me get this straight, Hank. I'm slow. Be patient. You want free money because of slavery, right? I don't blame you, I'd like free money too. Tell you what. I believe in justice. I'll give you a million dollars for every slave I own and anther million for ever year you were a slave. Fair enough?

But tell me, how many slaves do you suppose I have? In round number, I mean. Say to the nearest dozen. And how long were you a slave? Oh? In other words, I owe you reparations for something that I didn't do and didn't happen to you. That makes sense. Like lug nuts on a birthday cake.

Personally, I think you owe me reparations for things you didn't do and never happened to me. I've never been coated in Dutch chocolate and thrown from the Eiffel Tower. I'll bet you've never done that to anyone. I want reparations. Kinda silly, isn't it?

But if we're going to talk about reparations, that's a street that runs in two directions. You want money from me for what some other whites did to some other blacks in another century. How about you guys paying whites reparations for current expenses caused by blacks? Not long ago blacks burned down half of Los Angeles, a city in my country. Cities are expensive, Hank. Build one and you'll see what I mean. Whites had to pay taxes to repair Los Angeles for you. You can send me a check.

Now, yes, I know you burned LA because you didn't like the verdict in the trial of those police officers. Well, I didn't like the verdict in the Simpson trial. But I didn't burn down my house and loot Korean grocers. Over the years blacks have burned a lot of American cities: Newark, Detroit, Watts, on and on. Now add in the fantastic cost over the years of welfare in all its forms, of large police forces and jails and security systems in department stores. I can't live in the capital city of my own country because of crime committed by blacks. Toss in the cultural cost of lowering standards in everything for the benefit of blacks. See what I mean?

Now, I'd view things differently if you said, "Fred, blacks can't get anywhere in a modern country without education. We know that. We need better schools, smarter teachers, harder courses, books with smaller pictures and bigger words. Can you help us?"

I'd say "Hallelujah! Hoo-ahh! Not just yes, but hell yes. Let's sell an aircraft carrier and get these folks some real schools and get them into the economic mainstream." I'd say it partly because it would be the right thing to do, and partly because I'd like to add you guys to the tax base. The current custodial state is expensive . I'd just love for blacks to study and learn to compete and stop burning places. But is it going to happen?

You may not believe it, but I, and most whites, don't like seeing blacks as miserable and screwed up as they are. I spend a fair amount of time in the projects. Those places are ugly. It's no fun watching perfectly good kids turn into semiliterate dope dealers who barely speak English. It just plain ain't right. But, Hank, what am I supposed to do about it? I can't do your children's homework. At some point, people have to do things for themselves, or they don't get done. Maybe it's time.

I'll tell you what I see out in the world, Hank. I think blacks are too accustomed to getting anything they want by just demanding it. True, it has worked for over half a century. Get a few hundred people in the street, implicitly threaten to loot and burn, holler about slavery, and the Great White Cash Spigot turns on.

Thing is, whites don't much buy it any longer. Most recognize that what once was a civil-rights movement has become a shakedown game. Few people still feel responsible for the failings and inadequacies of blacks. Political correctness keeps the lid on -- but everyone knows the score.
Which scares me, Hank. On one hand, blacks hate whites and incline toward looting and burning. (The whites you hate are the ones who marched in the civil-rights movement. Ever think about that?) On the other hand, whites quietly grow wearier and wearier of it. Not good.
On the third hand (allow me three hands, for rhetorical convenience), blacks keep demanding things. As I write, you demand reparations for slavery. Blacks in Oklahoma (I think it was) want money for some ancient race riot. Other blacks reject the Declaration of Independence, blacks in New York hint broadly at burning and looting over a trial, yet more demand the elimination of the Confederate flag, and the federal equal-opportunity apparatus, which means blacks, wants to sue Silicon Valley for not hiring nonexistent black engineers.

That's a lot of demanding for one month, Hank. What happens if whites ever say, "No?"
Now, how about you? You've got a cushy job up there at Harvard, and you can hoot and holler about what swine and bandits whites are. I guess it's lots of fun, and you get a salary for it. But don't you think you might do blacks more good if you told them to complain less and study more? For example, if you want blacks to work in Silicon Gulch, the best approach might be to find some really smart black guys, and get them to study digital design, not Black Studies.
That's how everybody else does it. It works. Then blacks wouldn't feel left out, and racial tensions would decline. Sound like a plan?

Just out of curiosity, how many hours a week do professors of Afro-American Studies spend in the projects, encouraging poor black kids to study real subjects, Hank?

Why is it not a shock...

That the MSM has failed to cover the story of the German hostage Susanne Osthoff who was recently freed by her Iraqi "kidnappers." The worst kept secret was that the German government, doing it's best French imitation, paid ransom to the kidnappers and made a deal to release the murder of Navy diver Robert Stethem -Mohammad Ali Hammadi.

Now however, we find out, immediately after being freed, while she was taking a shower in the German embassy, some of the money paid in ransom was discovered in her baggage and clothing. That's right - the serial numbers matched the bills given to the "kidnappers."

Hmmm.... She converted to Islam, was "kidnapped", then she's filmed talking about how her kidnappers weren't "criminal" because they couldn't get in the green zone to "kidnap Americans."

I say the next time she's "kidnapped" we talk the Germans into letting the followers of the religion of peace keep her. Promise them they can keep France the next time they take it.

Gotta wonder if the Germans hold any other murders of Americans in their prisons....

Reuters has a brief blurb about the "freedom fighters" ($1 to mikey moore), so far haven't seen a thing elsewhere.

Outstanding read (excerpt) from the Belmont Club:

"One of the biggest factors of instability in the world today is that the other major political party in the United States has no 21st century foreign policy. Wikipedia, in its survey of American liberalism, notes that the Cold War was fought very much on a bipartisan basis.

To begin with, Vietnam was a "liberal war", part of the strategy of containment of Soviet Communism. In the 1960 presidential campaign, the liberal Kennedy was more hawkish on Southeast Asia than the more conservative Nixon. Although it can be argued that the war expanded only under the less liberal Johnson, there was enormous continuity of their cabinets.
Roosevelt, Truman, JFK. The party which dropped the A-bomb, fought the war in Korea, built the Minuteman, started the race to the moon were in the end represented by John Kerry, who began his acceptance to the nomination for Presidency in 2004 with these words (actual audio transcription):

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, so much. Thank you. Thank you, so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I'm John Kerry and I'm reporting for duty. Thank you.

But insofar as the world was concerned his party was (is - my edit) missing in action. "

And a hearty thanks to Kerry, who so eloquently details why he is the vocal and intellectual leader of modern liberals. Someone must explain to me how the leadership of this group, so devoid of honor, courage and wit can continually muster the support of 25 to 30% of the American populace?

While your doing that, 'splain also how he won 3 Purple Hearts without spending a day in a hospital or getting nothing more than a band aid for them and his Bronze Star.

Al Quaeda wishes to thank the NY Times...

as well as Senator Reid and the rest of the liberal dims, who continue to leak confidential information concerning its intelligence gathering methods and who work tirelessly to gut the Patriot Act. This legislation is dreadful due to it simply gives the government the same power to track terrorists as it does drug dealers and allows inter-agency cooperation. How unconstitutional is that?

With the NY Times detailing how we track domestic individuals who are talking with known AQ individuals, is it not logical for the terrorists to adopt their tactics to avoid detection? Apparently there has suddenly been an increase in the demand for disposable cell phones. ABC News is reporting large purchases of disposable cell phones by individuals of Middle Eastern or Arabic descent. These phones, paid for by cash, are impossible to track and also are the phone of choice for Iraqi and Hamas IED's (remotely detonated bombs.) Individuals are coming in buying 60 or 160 phones at once.

I'm sure the NY Times will simply ignore this, refusing modestly to take credit where credit is due and the Dims will simply condemn those reporting it by saying it is grossly wrong to profile individuals and ascribe evil motives to innocent business transactions. I can think of a lot of reasons why Arabic individuals would want to buy 160 disposable cell phones at once, can't you?

IT"S SNOWING IN HELL!!!!!!!!

I hope you are sitting down, maybe had some of your favorite 41 year old scotch (doesn't matter what time of day...) Are you ready for this?

The AP (not a missprint, the Associated Press) actually interviewed and QUOTED some troops on the ground in Iraq, as to their opinions on the war and early withdrawal. The resounding sound in AP's ears?? "Finish the job we came here to do" and yes, the AP actually reported it. This article doesn't slam the troops or President Bush for speaking the obvious truth. Surely this slipped by the AP editors or something. Or maybe, maybe they're just tired of continually declining readership and decided it would be best to get back to reporting the news, rather than trying to shape it in a Bash America First Fest. We can only hope.

A good read and credit to the character of our troops, who actually understand what is going on in Iraq and what is at stake. Great read and good work by the AP (can't believe I said that.) Click on the link.

AP Finally Reports