President Obama has praised a Senate resolution offering a formal apology for what all agree was a grievous wrong -- slavery.
But as this AFP account notes, that's not enough for some:
[I]n a step that has angered some African-American lawmakers, the measure takes pains not to fuel the push for the US government to pay reparations to the descendants of African slaves.
So these "lawmakers" -- who are angry that reparations aren't forthcoming -- are demanding what? That people who themselves didn't suffer under the yoke of slavery be entitled to take money by force of law from another group of people, who didn't themselves enslave anyone?
In a different time, honest people would be ashamed to try to claim other fellow citizens' money for a historical wrong perpetrated by and upon long-dead forbears. What's more, in some circles, using coercion to take from people who owe you nothing -- and to whom you yourself have provided nothing of value -- is called stealing. Look into it.
As for the "lawmakers" who stand forth with open palm to collect money they haven't earned, how much "reparation" are they going to pay to the descendants of the Union soldiers who died for their ancestors' freedom?
The whole idea of "reparations" is beyond ridiculous. It's contemptible.
|