[Marie]

“I also don’t like Cain’s comments about black Empowerment Zones, but those things aside, I like Cain.”

They’re not BLACK empowerment zones. The zones would apply to ANY community where there is very high unemployment and few opportunities for the people living there. As I understand it, the states themselves will choose which areas are in the greatest need - they put in an application and the fed will pick the best ones.

Black, white, Hispanic... I’m quite sure some American Indian areas will qualify.

Empowerment zones are race neutral.

[txrangerette]

Except, why does the Federal Government have the power or the right to do that?

Except, if you are poor, including the working poor, and you don’t live in a chosen empowerment zone, you are out of luck.

Except, areas tend to be racial or ethnic in large portion, with those of a particular race or ethnicity dominating that area.

From my observation, those areas are usually not white, not anglo. There can be exceptions such as maybe in poor appalachia or the ozarks or some places like those, but for the most part there aren’t large areas of poor whites, rather, whites who are poor tend to be scattered.

A mixed neighborhood...one that is old, built before houses were mass produced that were all the same, contains a mix. Right next door or down or across the street from each other are rich, poor and in between.

The Federal Government needs to mostly go away out of lives, rather than be empowered with empowerment zones...

[normy]

Then why did Cain refer to them as places with a high concentration of blacks on October 14 th in his CNN interview? Oh right another joke or misunderstanding. Too bad he said it twice.

[normy]

“I believe in empowerment zones. Most of the unemployed black Americans in this country are in these mostly economically depressed areas. It could be, and I’m only using this as an example, because we haven’t finished establishing the parameters yet. Instead of in a designated empowerment zone, it being 9-9-9, it could be, as an example only, 3-3-3.

What this does, because you have a lot of African-Americans located in cities like Detroit, disproportionately, it would encourage businesses to stay in business there or to move there. It would encourage people to work there, because if you live in the empowerment zone, you’re going to pay a smaller percentage in taxes. Herman Cain Oct. 14th CNN

[CharlesWayneCT]

Herman Cain on black empowerment zones:

I believe in empowerment zones. Most of the unemployed black Americans in this country are in these mostly economically depressed areas. It could be, and I’m only using this as an example, because we haven’t finished establishing the parameters yet. Instead of in a designated empowerment zone, it being 9-9-9, it could be, as an example only, 3-3-3.

What this does, because you have a lot of African-Americans located in cities like Detroit, disproportionately, it would encourage businesses to stay in business there or to move there. It would encourage people to work there, because if you live in the empowerment zone, you’re going to pay a smaller percentage in taxes.”

Maybe they are for all of us, but Herman Cain, who likes to call himself a "black American", because apparently being black is as important to him as being American (OK, that was sarcastic, but he could call himself an American black), specifically mentioned black people when talking about his empowerment zones (I'm still getting used to not calling them "enterprise zones", like they were called until Cain's group did some research and found that people thought "enterprise zones" sounded too liberal).

I guess it is too much to ask that a black person think of themselves as just American, like us insensitive white people do, or that they not think of every liberal government giveaway they dream up as being for everybody.

Of course, I want to figure out who I have to donate money to to buy off the politicians so my county gets to be an enterprise zone and I can pay less in taxes.

I feel sorry for businesses who are just outside of these "empowerment zones". Everybody will just cross into the zone to shop, because they'll save 6-9% sales tax. And so sooner or later, the areas surrounding these zones will be economically depressed, and they too can be an "enterprize zone".

I seen a statement that Cain wants the whole country to be an empowerment zone, but I don't know if Cain actually said that. If it means paying lower taxes, I think we all want to be in an empowerment zone. But apparently you can only be "empowered" if you live in a failed economic area. Successful people SHOULD pay more in taxes to support the economically unsuccessful businesses and individuals. That's the New American Way.