It would appear that California’s reparations task force has arrived at another dollar figure to atone for our “national sins.” The latest demand stands at $1.2 million per black person in the Golden State. And since California doesn’t have nearly enough cash on hand, you will undoubtedly bear at least some of the brunt of that when the federal government gallops to the rescue. It will also be interesting to see how this will be played as a pilot program for the rest of the U.S. I expect that the Biden administration will float the idea a bit closer to the election.
The debate about reparations has been around for years, so that in and of itself is nothing new. This is the first time it has ever been seriously entertained. This of course has been made possible by the events of the last few years and a media that is the willing servant of the state. And the Left. But I repeat myself.
You can the full story from Ben here.
My great-great-grandfather John fought for the Union in the Civil War. He was a non-slave-owning Indiana farmer who went to fight a war to end slavery. His letters are interesting to read. In some, he talks at length about the terror of “this iron hail that flies over our heads day and night,” and his exhaustion at spending days on end trying to take some unknown ridge from a group of rebel soldiers. In other letters, he pleads to know how his loved ones are, if the farm is doing well, and if the chickens are all right. My great-great-grandfather would not farm after the war. He took a Confederate Minié ball to the leg and lost the leg to the doctor’s saw. He lived out his days in a wheelchair. At least, unlike thousands of others, he got to live out his days.
My question then is, with this in mind, do I and my surviving cousins have a claim? Do we have a right to a back pension? In addition, can I declare that my student loan from grad school should be canceled on the strength of my grandfather’s wound? Can I refuse to pay income taxes because of his service?
The answer, of course, is no. For three reasons. My grandfather, who was understandably bitter about losing a limb, would say no since held that he went to war to right a wrong. The reparations crowd would say no, because my grandfather, who again, held no slaves and never traveled outside of Indiana for his entire life barring his tour of duty, benefitted from white male privilege and the labor of slaves he gave a leg to free.
To the reparations crowd, losing a leg would have been the least my grandfather could have done. He owed them that leg. I would say no because I had nothing to do with that moment in history. When my grandfather was shot in the leg by Johnny Reb, the people who would give birth to the people who would give birth to me weren’t even a twinkle in someone’s eye. I deserve none of the credit for my grandfather’s sacrifice, and I share none of the blame of the people against whom he fought. By the time I came along, the Civil War and the events that gave rise to it were long over.
It is ludicrous to hold people responsible for crimes they did not commit, just as it is ludicrous to praise them for heroics they never performed. But then, of course, there is the issue of systemic racism and privilege. For that, I refer you to the video below:
As Luke said of the riot at Ephesus in Acts, “The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there.” Americans have been taught that the greatest of all virtues is rage, which makes finding common ground impossible.
Finally, you cannot legislate prosperity. Presuming that by some miracle, there was enough money in the state or national budgets to accommodate these payments, what would they accomplish beyond revenge and a dopamine hit for the Left? Probably nothing.
Case in point:
Years ago, the members of the tribe where I lived were each given a massive payout from a lawsuit against the Department of the Interior. The issue had something to do with water rights. I forget the actual amount, but it was more than many people I knew made in a year. That money could have been invested, used as a downpayment on a home, to pay down bills, start a business, or set aside for emergencies. Or even meet some urgent needs.
But a tribal member told me that no sooner had the disbursements been made than the “fun buses” were lined up in one of the tribal parking lots, filled with people ready to go to the casinos in Wendover, Nevada. The money was being spent as fast as it had come in. But it was, after all, the members’ money. If they wanted to throw it at the casino owners and the state of Nevada, that was their business. However, the question must be asked: did they come back better off financially than when they left? Probably not. To those people who boarded the buses, booked a high-end room for the weekend, and found a seat at the tables and slot machines, the payout, which was no mean sum, was not a tool but disposable income.
What reparations will do is further stoke the flames of racial animus, a clear goal of the Left. And it will reinforce the idea that there is no good thing that does not come from the government and that those good things are best gained through tantrums and threats of violence. There will be no pride of ownership, no accomplishment, and no self-determination. Furthermore, there will be no opportunity for these people to maximize their God-given potential. And reparations will solidify future votes for Democrat senators, representatives, governors, and presidents. But I suppose that a large sum of money, no matter how transient can help one ignore a plethora of things. Including the fact that one has sold one’s soul and self-determination.