Keyes has plans for reparations

Chicago Tribune ^ | 8/17/04 | Allison Benedikt and David Mendell

[Aquinasfan]

One day after their first meeting, U.S. Senate hopefuls Barack Obama and Alan Keyes were back on the campaign trail again Monday.

Speaking at a news conference at the Hotel InterContinental in Chicago, Republican Keyes added to his now familiar talking points his stance on slavery reparations.

Prompted by a reporter's question, Keyes gave a brief tutorial on Roman history and said that in regard to reparations for slavery, the U.S. should do what the Romans did: "When a city had been devastated [in the Roman empire], for a certain length of time--a generation or two--they exempted the damaged city from taxation."

Keyes proposed that for a generation or two, African-Americans of slave heritage should be exempted from federal taxes--federal because slavery "was an egregious failure on the part of the federal establishment." In calling for the tax relief, Keyes appeared to be reaching out to capture the black vote, something that may prove difficult to do, particularly after his unwelcome reception at the Bud Billiken Day Parade Saturday...

[ApesForEvolution]

My experience is that words only hurt if they're true...fwiw.

[ApesForEvolution]

Final note to AM: my apology was rejected. So be it...

[HitmanLV]

Are the descendants of slaves worse off than the overall black population?

The issue isn't who is worse off than another person - it's to make amends for a cultural wrong on their ancestors. So a multimillionare person in the class deserves the same reparation and benefit as a descendant of slaves making minmum wage.

This isn't a plan to remedy bigotry, it is to make reparations for a wrong against a discrete class.

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

I'm quite certain that your words didn't "hurt" anybody.

[HitmanLV]

I explained the legal authority in detail.

[Hillary's Lovely Legs]

I just got a fundraising letter from Keyes.

I told him to take his cut out of my reparations.

[Chad Fairbanks]

It's a mystery to me because it runs counter to everything this nation stands for, or SHOULD stand for - Liberals always want a progressive tax scale, and for years Conservatives have been up in arms over it, claiming it to be wrong.

Why is it now right, if it's been wrong for so long before?

It is not equal protection - it's a special benefit applied to one group. Period. Unconstitutional. Period.

[ApesForEvolution]

So, if there's no foul, who mashed the abuse button?

I know how it works around here...

[HitmanLV]

The argument is to make amends for a cultural wrong against their ancestors.

[cyborg]

The government does make distinctions based upon one's class in a lot of ways. Why isn't it valid? Which other group can run an operation tax free on specially set aside land?

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

And what a sincere apology it was:

To: DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet

My experience is that words only hurt if they're true...fwiw.

701 posted on 08/17/2004 12:11:42 PM PDT by ApesForEvolution

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

I mashed the abuse button.

Believe me - it wasn't because I thought she cared what you thought of her.

(Congratulations. Except for newbie trolls, I rarely use it.)

[Chad Fairbanks]

it's to make amends for a cultural wrong on their ancestors.

And where is the constitutional authority for that? I don't see that as one of the duties of government anywhere... I believe that anything not enumerated in the Constitution resides with the states, correct? Well, I don't see anyting about "making amends for a cultural wrong..." in there anywhere.

There is nothing Conservative, American, or Constitutional about your plan.

[Lurking Libertarian]

What specifically am I ignoring in the USC with this reparations plan? You lost me - maybe I called in sick that day in law school. There is nothing at all unconstitutional about this plan.

U.S. Constitution, Article I, section 8, cl. 1: "all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States."

[traviskicks]

There must be some reason for him doing this. I hope it isn't to test the waters for the Bush Admin to come out with something like this for political reasons. I understand it would be good for political reasons, but the ends never justifies the means and if your not going to stand for principal then what do you stand for.

Freedom, Liberty and Equality for all is what the Republican party is supposed to stand for. Reparations doesn't stand for that. If the national party takes this up(which I doubt it will by the way), I'm voting for the Libertarian candidate (whoever he is).

This must have been something that Keyes thought about for some time.. I am just very curious as to why he said it.

[Chad Fairbanks]

Indians pay all the same taxes that you do, except on reservation land (which does not normally fall under a states jurisdiction, unless treaties say otherwise) where they do not pay state taxes - taxes that the state has no legal ability to collect since it's not state land...

I don't necessarily agree with it, but it's constitutionally sound, and has been for hundreds of years.

[Carolinamom]

Read your history. African-Americans do not own the slavery issure. There have been slaves throughout history, but calling for reparations is both unique and unconstitutional in this country.

What do you say about those BLACKS who ALSO owned slaves?

[traviskicks]

"I just got a fundraising letter from Keyes.

I told him to take his cut out of my reparations"



LOL - yea and send the rest to W

[Right_Handed_Writer]

"The bottom line is, Keyes is flip-flopping on things. The Carpet-bagging Flip-Flop, now the Reparations Flip-Flop... What next?"

I'm not gonna go TigerEyes on you, but you fail to understand the carpet bagging issue. I strongly suggest you read his speech from Arlington Heights. Hillary went hunting for her state, Illinois hunted Keyes down.

Here are Jerry Kohn's views.

http://www.vote-smart.org/npat.php?can_id=MIL70251&PHPSESSID=48bebc49938f08d84eca4d7e790c1046#0

I don't like the vote-smart organization and its affiliates as the questions are somewhat skewed, but it shows where he is coming from. Take it for what its worth. I prefer Keyes over this choice.

Other than Kohn's term as a library trustee and condo board president, I don't think he could be controversial if he tried. So if book burning or landscaping become hot topics we may get the chance to rip Kohn a little.

And every night Barack hears Keyes' voice in his dreams, or should I say nightmares. He is well aware of him. His gravy train has been derailed!