January 27, 2004

" the U.S. government authorized a $20,000 tax-free payment to every SURVIVING Japanese American interned in camps during World War II. "

Perhaps, if the slaves were still alive, they might have a case....but, the decendants can be grateful for the OPPORTUNITY that being born in and living in the US affords them.

As an immigrant from Taiwan, I wondered what have my ancestors ever done to any descendant of Slaves? How about the genuine first generation African immigrant from Guyana? Least we forget, the immigrant from Jamaica whose ancestors are probably slaves, and are now asked to pay for someone else's mistake.

How would one pay reparations? Would it depend on the blackness of skin? Would payment be deducted depending upon what percentage of Caucasian/Indian/Asian blood ran through veins? Would a DNA test have to be done? Can a DNA test tell? Do white folks with a black person in the bloodline sometime in the distant past get paid? (I suspect that there are a whole heap of white folks in the south with black folks in their family tree.) What kind of records would have to be used to prove ancestry?

Finally, as a person with American Indian bloodlines mixed with European immigrants who came after the civil war, am I exempt from payment?

Then, after somebody gets finished paying reparations for slaves, guess what. The Indians were screwed over worse. Start diggin' deeper in them pockets, folks.

Good News/Bad News Department:

1. Good News: There's a beautiful bald eagle out in my pasture, looks like it's looking for a nesting site, checking out the tallest snags.

2. Bad News: The sumbitch done ate one of my lambs, and will probably finish up the whole batch before he/she is done. Shit. I knew this was going to happen when the iggle rehab folks started releasing injured iggles about 5 miles from me.

Acid,

I believe the phrase you were looking for was "Blacks" or "African-Americans" not "they."

What in heaven's name is going on with you, man?

Have you no pride left?

You are recycling rants. Your spelling, punctuation, and grammar have gone to hell.

The cat-bombed page was more coherent and interesting than you are these days. Get your shit together, will ya?

All Blacks who where slaves please stand up and I will gladly sign the check for you. I have aunts and uncles that had tattoos on there arms from the camps they where in germany. Am i crying for a check. HELL NO!!!
It is also shown that if we ever did pass that dumb ass law it would bankrupt this country.

of course Jedi, you would be petitioning the German gvt. for that.

But why make logic get in the way of a good one-liner? :-/

Hold up. Did that third paragraph say that she was three when her father died at the age of 90?!?!

Did I read that right? Some 87 year old was still spreading seed??

And Pascale, you really don't want to fuel my crusade like that, do you?

I gotta agree with Pascale. I guess I either have to "lower my standards of expectations that I have come to expect" or just find another blog to read. Damn shame too.

"Deny the fact if you wish, but slaves brought to this country got the best break they ever had in thier lives..."

Are you out of your cracker mind?

Regardless of how you feel about reparations you should really take another look at how forcing men and women across an ocean in chains while destroying any familiial bonds they had is giving them a break.

Hey Rob, I have probably twice the assets you do and live in a *much* nicer home. How about I come and capture you and your son and put you to work in my apple orchard? I can afford to dress you better than you are now, you can attend my church and we'll whip that atheism out you and save your soul and I'll see to it that your son has the best education this nation can provide (of course he won't be allowed to learn to read). In a few years I'll breed the boy a few times and sell his children, making sure to shoip them far enough away he'll never lay eyes on them again.

Of course I'll see to it that you fellows are well fed and housed in a somewhat more comfortable home than you have now -- you know, that's the break part. The added bonus is, you only have to live like this for two hundred years, after that you will be freed and allowed to reap the bounty of this great land, like all immigrants (willing or unwilling).

Though I rarely agreed with you, this weblog used to an interesting read -- now your just reciting recycled nonsense to get a rise out of people like me. How's that book coming anyway?

Well since I'm not the only one, I've got to admit this place is getting boring.
I used to look forward to visiting here a few times a day, but lately it's just the same old, same old, with bad spelling.
Dayum Acidman, what did you do? Fry your brain? With a young boy you still have to raise, I thought you'd exercise better judgment.

For some strange reason, I don't believe Rob Smith is writing these posts!

It would be nice to believe that, Jim T.

One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small,
And the ones that mother gives you
Don't do anything at all
Go ask Alice
When she's ten feet tall.
And if you go, chasing rabbits,
And you know you're going to fall,
Tell 'em a hookah-smoking caterpillar
Has given you the call
Call Alice
When she was just small.
When men on a chessboard
Get up and tell you where to go,
And you've just had some kind of mushroom
And your mind is moving low,
Go ask Alice;
I think she'll know,
When logic, and proportion
Have fallen sloppy dead,
And the White Knight is talking backwards
And the Red Queen's "off with her head!"
Remember what the door mouse said:
"Feed your head. Feed your head."

RisR- What the #^$@ was that?

Thank you Glenn for pointing out that it would be the Germans you'd petition about reparations for Jews. LIKE ANYBODY READING THE !@$!$@# POST DIDN'T ALREADY ASSUME THATS WHAT HE MEANT.

I guess now the ACID in ACIDMAN means something totally different.

As far as reparations go they should also go after the people whitey bought them from, (and who started the whole market for black slave to begin with) other African tribes and the muslims.

Hey Jawja.....nice rant, but what is your point.?
Not one person would bless the tragic nature of what took place. We could argue about whom to blame, but so what? The idea of reparations still sucks ass.........and I don't mean off to one side nyther!

Methinks adudes 'tude is a payback for the cataclizmic kitty turd debacle.

Rychuus!

Payback against whom?

It doesn't make much sense to trash your own weblog, who exactly here is suffering? It's not like there aren't another 10,000 weblogs to read and despite the syncophants contrary view, there isn't anything particularly unique about this one. There are lots of bitter old men tilting about at windmills, butchering sacred cows and complaining about about how life (and wimmen) have beaten them into husks of their former selves.

I imagine anyone sticking around here is doing it for the same reason I am -- public meltdowns are good entertainment. BTW, my issue was not with reparations (I don't know enough about the issue to have a worthwhile opinion) but rather with the contention that we somehow gave the slaves a 'break'.

Jawja -
I don't think the contention was that the slaves, themselves, were the beneficiaries; rather, that their descendants (those bringing the suit) are. AfAms that are the descendants of slaves are enjoying a longer life, better health, and more stable society than their non-slave-descended brethren still in Africa. The worst ghetto in America was still an improvement over any 'township' under South Africa's apartheid (even the "Jim Crow" laws were better than the laws of apartheid); gangs here in the U.S. never approach the violence and destruction of the 'liberation' armies of Africa; and so on.

As a decendent of the Cherokee/Choctaw Nations as well as all the Hillbillies in my family tree I was wondering who I'm supposed to be suing....

And have the nations of Israel and North Africa gone to court with Egypt over the whole generations of slaves?

And I have to agree with a few of the others. Someone went on vacation literate and came back ill.......

The real reason for doing so will be just to "shut those whining bastards up," which is a truly great reason for passing stupid legislation.

Well, if there was any chance whatsoever that they would actually shut up, then perhaps it would be worth it.

But... since when do blackmailers require only one payment from their victims?