My take: I vehemently oppose reparations on principle. I probably could not support this plan in good conscience. I also think it is brilliant real politik. By making reparations in tax cut form, you create real and long term problems for our political opponents, and real and potentially significant benefits for our side. In addition to the long term encouraging work ethic and the family sructure, reducing dependence on gov't etc, it would create real short term benefits in the form of shaking up the black so-called 'leadership'. I really doubt upper and middle class blacks would tolerate the likes of Reveruhn Zhackson fighting their tax cut. I think we would finally see the black community split the way the white community is....the productive supporting the right, and the parasites supporting the left.
What do you think of my idea of giving government land? It seems to me that it would "punish" the only actual "guilty" party still around (the government), since average people get zero benefit from potentially productive land being locked away, and would get more land into private hands, helping the economy.
That's the exactly the point I've been trying to make.
I think a lot of people oppose this because of the word "reparations", it conjures up the antics of Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, and it turns them off, and they say "never".
But remove that emotional baggage. To me this issue is not about "reparations" at all, it's abou tax cuts. Think of it this way, what if the proposal was "Everyone whose last name begans with the letter 'S', gets a tax break". See, I would *still* be for it. Even though my name doesn't start with "S". But I like it whenever anybody gets a tax cut, as long as my taxes don't go up.
But giving all the "S" surnames a tax cut would be just as arbitrary and unfair in principle as "reparations". Except giving it to the "reparations" groups accomplishes something just giving it to the "S" crowd does not, namely fissuring the Democratic coalition.