Again, Who Cares?
Most of the time, we like Mark Brown's writing. Most times he strikes us as a temperate middle-of-the-road kind of guy.
In Sunday's column though, the supposed liberal guilt is just too much to believe:
In Sunday's column though, the supposed liberal guilt is just too much to believe:
- Before Friday, I did not know that my ancestors owned slaves. Now that I know, I almost wish I didn't. As they say, ignorance is bliss. I don't have that luxury anymore. Now I'll have to deal with it.
- My great-great-great-grandfather David E. Richardson was the last of my direct forebears to own slaves. It appears he inherited them from the estate of his father Charles (my great-great-great-great-grandfather) just months before selling them on Feb. 25, 1853, to one of his brothers for $170.
- I just hadn't counted on the examination hitting so close to home.
Let's get out the old SCC calculator
- 2007 minus 1853 = 154 years.
One hundred fifty four years. And Mr. Brown says he didn't really think about his ancestors owning slaves until last Friday. But now that he's discovered this "shame," he's going to ... what? feel guilty about it?
Sorry, we don't buy it. First of all, slavery was a legal endeavor in those days. Repugnant? Yup. Morally reprehensible? Probably all that and more. But still a legal and accepted practice. Fortunately, through industrial advances and moral growth, America progressed to not needing slave labor in it's agrarian economy. And why would anyone feel guilty about what someone SIX generations or more in the past did? What's the point? You aren't going to change anything without a time machine.
This is as much a non-story a story as Strom Thurmond ancestors owning Al Sharpton's ancestors. Or Mitt Romney's great-grandfather having multiple wives under what was then a commonly accepted practice - and a practice still actively promoted by islam. Or Obama's mama's people owning Obama's daddy's people. We aren't getting into this.
Judge the candidate by their own words, actions and deeds. Obama is part and parcel of the Chicago Machine and anyone who doesn't see that is being willfully blind. Hillary has more baggage than we can account for. McCain is a egomaniac who has done more to hamstring free speech than any democrat in recent memory and Rudy is a three time married philanderer who was a gun grabber in NYC. Each and every one of the candidates should be judged on what they've said in the past and actions they've undertaken in support of those positions, not what their ancestors did.
Sorry, we don't buy it. First of all, slavery was a legal endeavor in those days. Repugnant? Yup. Morally reprehensible? Probably all that and more. But still a legal and accepted practice. Fortunately, through industrial advances and moral growth, America progressed to not needing slave labor in it's agrarian economy. And why would anyone feel guilty about what someone SIX generations or more in the past did? What's the point? You aren't going to change anything without a time machine.
This is as much a non-story a story as Strom Thurmond ancestors owning Al Sharpton's ancestors. Or Mitt Romney's great-grandfather having multiple wives under what was then a commonly accepted practice - and a practice still actively promoted by islam. Or Obama's mama's people owning Obama's daddy's people. We aren't getting into this.
Judge the candidate by their own words, actions and deeds. Obama is part and parcel of the Chicago Machine and anyone who doesn't see that is being willfully blind. Hillary has more baggage than we can account for. McCain is a egomaniac who has done more to hamstring free speech than any democrat in recent memory and Rudy is a three time married philanderer who was a gun grabber in NYC. Each and every one of the candidates should be judged on what they've said in the past and actions they've undertaken in support of those positions, not what their ancestors did.
Labels: national politics
posted by SCC at 12:01 AM
30 Comments:
* 2007 minus 1853 = 154 years.
One hundred fifty seven years....
Ummmmm......think your calculator is fine, keyboard might be broken.....
You caught us in the middle of amending the post - we were correcting it as we went. Thanks though.
Screw that kind of guilt!! What does Brown or anyone for that matter have to feel guilty about?
If an anscestor of mine had killed the pope, or caused the bubonic plague, I could give a shit. I wasn't born yet, so I have nothing to feel guilty about.
And if any of my decendents should every feel guilty about something I may have done, may do, or whatever....they can go pound sand. I don't need their forgiveness.
More political correctness bullshit!! And that's for real!
Rudy gives me the creeps. He was enjoying 911 way too much. Sometimes, he couldn't keep the smile off his face. Phony!
OFF TOPIC, BUT(T):
Happy Jennifer Hudson Day to everyone on the blog.
We should just run this broad for President...
Maybe daley will start a tax in honor of her.
my family never owned slaves! the african people sold their own people and they were bought probably had it better than they had it in africa anyway! i am so tired of this bullshit!
I wonder if those who beat the drum about slavery want to go back to africa?
If you hate America that much just leave. Oh wait no social entitlement programs elsewhere.
Mark Brown is hung up on his family history because he probably doesn't have much of a life. It takes him 20 minutes a day to write a column, and then he has a lot of time on his hands. He has time to think about this sort of shit, who his great great great great grandfather was. He should worry more about whether his kids are on dope. Someing in the here and now.
We give free school,link card,medical,housing what more do people need! tired of this shit! we pay the taxes! promotions on this dept are done according to race even if the person is stupid! why take a test if you ahve no clout and are no a deprived race? democrats have done this to this country! how about doing something for the working people! now blago is giving everyone free insurance we will pay dearly for this these lazy fucks don't want to work but are living freely off us! We are the minority in chicago look at the stats WHERE"S MINE? WHERE"S OURS?
07:44-Whatever you think about "Rudy," you know nothing about 9-11. Implying that his popularity is high because of a tragedy, fine. Implying that 9-11 made him happy is ignorant. Like many of us from New York, he lost friends and family members, attended HUNDREDS of funerals, and could barely get a smile on his face for months after. Disagree with the man if you want, but he is the farthest thing from a phony in politics as is possible. He says how he thinks and feels, and you can feel free to disagree-but the man is not a Hillary or Kerry who take polls before answering any questions. I think it's creepy you can't think for yourself and will keep voting Democrat and hurting yourself and your family.
A 3rd cousin of my grandfather was a high ranking nazi in the 3rd reich and responsible for thousands of jews being killed.
Grandpa fought for the USA in WWII and was wounded twice in battle. He didn't fight out of guilt. He fought for the pride of this nation that gave him an oppurtunity to make a better life. He hated Nazis!!!!
I can bank that my grandmothers side of the family owned slaves back in the 1800's.
She never had a bad word to say about blacks or any other percieved minority.
Should I feel guilty for what a distant relative did??? Should I feel guilty about the actions of relatives that were dead a hundred years before I was born??? The answer is hell no!!!!
I've done nothing to hurt anybody nor do I aprove of anybody doing someting immoral or illegal. The apologist liberals needs to shut up!!!! If I need to apologize for something, I will.
My ancestors were slaves to the British for centuries, and victims of their abuse...where's MY money???
Looking at the cast of characters both democratic and republician that are in the race for president, we are in serious trouble.
I am deeply disappointed to learn that my ancestors from Eastern Europe on my Mom's side were poor farmers. My dad's family came from Ireland. . . . not many plantations there either. Aren't we paying reparations everyday? They are called Social Security Disability.
Me and my family also are "ashamed" that my family from long, long ago owned slaves. As a matter of fact, we're "ashamed" that great-great grandpa didn't own a couple of dozen more.
I would like to come up with some great post but however I have been drinking the bulk of the night. That being said who cares what your ancestors many times removed did. I do not like barak(SP?) but it is not his fault his family had slaves many generations before he was born. What it boils down to is a Political party who caters to peoples emotions and not facts. It will be a fun race. Hillary will do her best to destroy Barack and when the dust settles once again a Republican will be President.
The Greeks where slaves to Muslims for from 1453 to 1826. They have a nation, and millions came here. The Greeks where freed around the same time as blacks (1830's). The US forced them to change thier names. My grandad washed dishes.
Everyone has an obstacles to overcome. "Irish need not apply" the Japanese where placed into camps and had their propery taken.
The Jews where almost wiped off the face of the planet 60 years ago.
Everyone has been poor, slaves, or had a problem getting a job in the majority of the American story.
Work Ethic, self realance, community, and education, and not commiting crime creates untold opportunity.
Remember, one sees "flipping burgers is an opportunity" while others see it as go no where work.
My ancestors were Assclowns...just like me. I love the police. I love the police. I love the police.
Here we go again. SCC it seems your destined to never get it. I touched on this subject briefly in the first "Who Cares" thread but this time I'll just leave you with the best analogy I've ever seen on the topic courtesy of political scientist Roy L. Brooks:
“Two persons – one white and the other black – are playing a game of poker. The game has been in progress for some 300 years. One player – the white one – has been cheating during much of this time, but now announces: ‘from this day forward, there will be a new game with new players and no more cheating.’ Hopeful but suspicious, the black player responds, ‘that’s great. I’ve been waiting to hear you say that for 300 years. Let me ask you, what are you going to do with all those poker chips that you have stacked up on your side of the table all these years?’ ‘Well,’ said the white player, somewhat bewildered by the question, ‘they are going to stay right here, of course.’ ‘That’s unfair,’ snaps the black player. ‘The new white player will benefit from your past cheating. Where’s the equality in that?’ ‘But you can’t realistically expect me to redistribute the poker chips along racial lines when we are trying to move away from considerations of race and when the future offers no guarantees to anyone,’ insists the white player. ‘And surely,’ he continues, ‘redistributing the poker chips would punish individuals for something they did not do. Punish me, not the innocents!’ Emotionally exhausted, the black player answers, ‘but the innocents will reap a racial windfall.’”
Nuff said.
We're afraid you don't get it.
You are ascribing guilt and responsibility to present day persons who (A) had nothing to do with their ancestors playing the game and (B) their ancestors were doing something that had been LEGAL AND PRACTICED FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS across the globe.
Throughout history, didn't every single conqueror enslave the loser? The "noble" American Indians enslaved each other for thousands of years. The Greeks took slaves constantly from other Greek city-states. Carthage sacked and looted much of Europe taking slaves along the way. China and Japan committed some of the worst atrocities upon their slaves. Rome enslaved the world, but gave slaves the opportunity to gain freedom and full citizenship. How many times were the Jews enslaved? Weren't Africans enslaving Africans for millenia before selling slaves to willing buyers fo all races? And isn't the koran used as justification for a thriving slave trade throughtout the Middle East, Asia and Africa even to this day?
And what about the people who weren't even in the game while it was being played? We were bequeathed two things from our parents and grandparents - a nice clock and a decent work ethic. Our people didn't even make it to this side of the Atlantic until the 20th century.
Your wealth redistribution is freaking fantasyland. Lets all be poor and miserable together? No thanks. You want to see what redistribution looks like? Check out Mao's "Great Leap Forward." The Chinese are only now recovering from that debacle.
TODAY IS JENNIFER HUDSON DAY.I JUST SPOKE TO MAYOR DALEY, AND ON THURSDAY 08MAR07, WILL BE CAPT.C. WHITE AND CAPT. M. ROZELLE DAY. ALL WORKING P.O.S WHO HAVE BEEN F-CKED OVER BY THESE BITCHES SHOULD ATTEND THEIR PARTY, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THEY HAVE NOT DECIDED IF THEY ARE GOING TO HOLD IN A TELEPHONE BOOTH OR A CLOSET. I THINK THE CLOSET MIGHT BE TOO BIG.
What is it with your fascination with the "It Was Common Practice And Perfectly Legal" defense SCC?
In Nazi Germany it was once "perfectly" legal to dispossess Jews of their property and other possessions, relocate them to concentration camps, and bake them extra crispy. Dispite the fact that the overwhelming majority of the German public had no voice in the decisions of the Nazi hierarchy, it was the public who bore the brunt of reparations.
The fact that these reprehensible practices were codified into "law" in no way legitimized them--hence the need for reparations, a way to make right for past wrongs.
So let's carry the analogy to its logical conclusion SCC. A German and his family now enjoy the rolling hills and streams of his country estate which was "abandoned" by liquidated Jews some 70 years ago. Out of the blue, decendents of the original Jewish owners arrive to petition the German government for compensation for the loss of said property and its accrued value. The German owner protests reasonably that while persecution of the Jews was an unfortunate chapter in the nation's history, it was after all perfectly legal and accepted practice at the time. Furthermore, neither he nor any member of his family ever laid a hand on a Jew much less roasted one in an oven. Therefore he should not be financially inconvienced in any way for crimes in which he played no part--in fact was not even born during the commission thereof. Its time to let bygones be bygones.
Sound familiar?
PS. Professor Brooks' analogy had nothing to do with "wealth redistribution" please re-read it--this time carefully. As far as China is concerned it's quite clear by your answer (to a question that wasn't asked) that you have absolutely NOTHING to contribute to a discussion about the Great Leap Forward and what Mao and Chou En-lai accomplished in reversing millennia of fuedalism followed by nearly two centuries of western domination and exploitation; any more so than I have anything to contribute to a discussion on quantum physics--I know nothing of the subject.
Stay safe.
Nobody cares! Except your bullshit ass!!!
Are we liable for the sins of our fathers???
NO NO NO!!!
Everyone has an obstacles to overcome. "Irish need not apply"
Screw you jag-off! get your history right the Irish were slaves and indentured land servents to the british before, during and after American slavery!
THERE IS STILL AN OCCUPYING BRITISH ARMY ON IRISH SOIL TODAY!!!
KISS MY IRISH ASS!!!
WORK HARD! LIVE THE AMERICAN DREAM!
It was never perfectly legal to round up Jews, take them to camps and bake them, hence the Nuremburg Trials and subsequent hangings.
Logical conclusion? You wouldn't know a logical conclusion if it bit you in the ass. The European courts have routinely ruled in favor of property from slaughtered Jews goes to the survivors. So once again, your example has no basis in reality.
And reparations are paid to the survivors of an injustice. Surviving Jews from Germany, relocated Japanese from the American government, Korean "comfort women" from the Japanese people. You find us a slave that suffered at the hands of the American people, we'll support his or her right to reparations. Until then, nothing doing. It's so much political noise to garner votes.
‘But you can’t realistically expect me to redistribute the poker chips along racial lines when we are trying to move away from considerations of race and when the future offers no guarantees to anyone,’ insists the white player. ‘And surely,’ he continues, ‘redistributing the poker chips would punish individuals for something they did not do. Punish me, not the innocents!’ Emotionally exhausted, the black player answers, ‘but the innocents will reap a racial windfall.’
That's two "redistributes" we count and that's exactly what Brooks is advocating. And if you knew anything about the Great Leap Forward (1958-1963), the primary engine behind it was the "First 5 Year Economic Plan" - confiscation and redistribution of the agricultural land to the peasants beginning in 1949. The Second Five Year Plan (or Great Leap Forward) was the follow up effort that resulted in the deaths of between 20 and 43 million people. Such are the casualties of the socialism you advocate.
"It was never perfectly legal to round up Jews, take them to camps and bake them, hence the Nuremburg Trials and subsequent hangings". -SCC
Of course it was legal SCC. The National Socialists were in power and passed the legislation that allowed Hitler to rule by decree. The laws he enacted had the force of the State behind them--thus full legality.
The Nuremberg trials were staged by the victors SCC--and they judged (correctly) that the Nazi persecution of the Jews was morally inexcusable and fundimentally unjust. The technical "legality" of the Nazi policies--like those of antebellum America--in no way obscures the fact that the obscene was once "normal".
POKER CHIPS
SCC for once could you at least TRY not to be so simple? The redistributed "poker chips" in Brooks' analogy refer to the opportunities lost and denied to an entire segment of the American population from before this nation's founding through the middle of the 20th century--400+ years. The hoarded and stolen chips represent the unequal advantages afforded the descendents of those who climbed the scarred backs of millions of slaves--without whom the US would never have become the economic powerhouse it became in the 18th and 19th century and beyond.
Cotton, tobacco, indigo, and rice are what made us king SCC. White men couldn't handle the work or the climate, Red men fell by the score under the whip, but the Negro--held safely under the barrel of a gun--proved just hardy enough. Show their descendents a modicum of respect.
Stay safe.
As usual, many comments/comparisons are made to Nazi Germany. Fact of the matter is ask those who lived through it who will tell you that those of the Jewish Religion leagally sold properties, artwork, and businesses. Now after years of lost records, every person who can wishes to make a claim on some "stolen" property.
Before you start crying that the next arguement is denial, the Holocost DID happen. But the numbers will never be true. The latest is that the powers that be in the Jewish circles want to claim that 13 million were slaughtered. Reality, the truth will never be told. Sealed records continue to be resealed under the premise of national security, what a crock. Records are sealed to prevent anyone who was actually there and knows the truth from telling thier story.
The arguements against Stalin's five year plans are true. Remember, Stalin is responsible for the deaths of 7 times more of his country men.
The round about point is that life is unfair. Slavery or imprisionment, man has abused man since the dawn of time. Eventually there is a change as to who is in charge and the new hierarchy looks for who will be exploited next.
But the politicaly correct and the media will always preface thier comments with colorful adjectives to set a darker mood than is reality. A reality that is "get over it", at some time and point everyone's ancesters were enslaved by someone elses.
Screw you jag-off! get your history right the Irish were slaves and indentured land servents to the british before, during and after American slavery!
THERE IS STILL AN OCCUPYING BRITISH ARMY ON IRISH SOIL TODAY!!!
KISS MY IRISH ASS!!!
WORK HARD! LIVE THE AMERICAN DREAM
----------------------------
Sir, get your history straight. This sign "Irish need not apply" means don't bother -you will not get hired ( i think that's an obstacle). I used the reference which most if not all Irish people have heard of. These signs would have been next to, or above hiring lines back during the 1800's at business most likely in New England. I'm not Irish, and I know this, which makes me question, are you even really Irish? Can anyone whose Irish back me up on this?
To 07:31 and 11:37 regarding we Irish: Your both right. Our land is still occupied by the British up north while they hammer out a Police sharing aggrement between the 26 south counties and the 6 counties of the north. Sinn Finn has made great strides in ousting the bastards who occupy our land but have failed to fully get the deal done. It's been over 800 years since they enslaved our people and stole our land. So while others bitch and complain about what is owed them, lets not forget our history. We came here and got over it and moved on through hard work and family values. Chucky Ar La.
(Our Day Will Come)
"We came here and got over it and moved on through hard work and family values. Chucky Ar La.
(Our Day Will Come)"
Being white didn't hurt.
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