MacRaven - Dave Haxton's Weblog

Tue, 11 Jul 2006

Before I go hit the sack (I'm f***ing exhausted) I'd like to pass on a big "Thank You!" to those who've commented on a little post I made concerning reparations for slavery. This has proven to be a far more interesting topic than I imagined: and the discussion has been polite, engaging and enlightening. And that happens far too infrequently these days!

I've got some more to add to the conversation, but due to current circumstances my contributions will have to wait. But it's very gratifying to see liberals, conservatives and libertarians having a meaningful dialog without the mud slinging that usually accompanies such discourse. So, thanks again!

/Home | 3 writebacks | permanent link

On 7/12/2006 06:10:41
Bjorngrímnir wrote

Liberal, Conservative, Libertarian...which one am I? Since I asked first, do I get to pick? I think politeness is determined as much from one's environment as anything else - thanks for creating and maintaining that kind of environment! :)

On 7/12/2006 12:39:13
Thorolf wrote

It's a difficult question, which is why I haven't posted anything myself until now. Bil Linzie raised this issue at a Moot several years ago, and indicated that by Germanic principles, we who live now do hold some responsibility via Wyrd and Orlog for what has happened in the past. The events happened; the layers were laid. We are part of a society that has made some mistakes, and we can't avoid responsibility simply by saying we weren't alive at the time. At the same time, holding everyone now living equally responsible financially isn't an ideal policy either - as Dave points out, several generations have gone by in the meantime, and not all of our ancestors were directly responsible for slavery - nor did they all benefit equally, even indirectly. Far better policy, I think, to educate people about the full extent of the issues involved (slavery may have ended 150 years ago, but Jim Crow enforced certain social conventions directly related to slavery, and that didn't officially end until the 1960's - and the unconsious ethnocentrism/racism that are still part and parcel of American society still need to be addressed and recognized) and dedicate resources to making sure the playing field really is as level as we'd all like to believe it is... The question I've always asked people who complain about affirmative action in principle (and I'll freely grant there are problems with it in practice) is "So do 50 years of lip service to equality really balance out 100 years of Jim Crow and hundreds more years of outright slavery?" My math's not great, but I tend to think "no", myself. But I don't think reparations are going to solve the problem either.

On 7/13/2006 18:21:51
sari0009 wrote

Link to mull over, if anyone wants it...

http://www.nlpc.org/view.asp?action=viewArticle&aid=468

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MacRaven
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Musings, Reflections, Rants and Comments from a Hoosier Heathen husband, father, grandfather, farmer and software engineer. There's really only one of me ...

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