http://www.congress.org/congressorg/issues/bills/?bill=12489961&cs_party=all&cs_status=C&cs_state=ALL

because the government is flush with cash and there really isnt much else going on.

1/29/2009 8:59:45 AM

hope, change, unearned income

1/29/2009 9:17:46 AM

Seems kind of silly to me. Don't these representatives have better things to worry about? Then again, silly shit like this gets drafted every day in congress. Most don't make it anywhere.

1/29/2009 9:23:45 AM

There needs to be a minimum IQ for all congressmen.

1/29/2009 9:42:29 AM

This makes me sad.
$8-million for this bullcrap.

Quote :

"To carry out the provisions of this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated $8,000,000."

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 9:48 AM. Reason : ]

1/29/2009 9:46:48 AM

lol hell yes

I've been waiting for some good legislation to come through

1/29/2009 9:50:02 AM

Asian senators need to get on the ball... yellow folk need reparations too!

1/29/2009 10:01:15 AM

Quote :

"There needs to be a minimum IQ for all congressmen."

Do you have a J.D. or military combat and merit citations? What, exactly, do you propose this minimum IQ should be? I don't, pragmatically, agree with the idea of slavary (sic.) reparations, but your comment is just idiotic.

Quote :

"After graduating from Northwestern High School in Detroit, Conyers served in the Michigan National Guard 1948–50; US Army 1950–54; and the US Army Reserves 1954–57. Conyers served for a year in Korea as an officer in the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and was awarded combat and merit citations.[2] Conyers grew up in Detroit, and received both his B.A. and his J.D. from Wayne State University. He served as an assistant to Congressman John Dingell prior to his election to Congress. Conyers was present in Selma, Alabama on October 7, 1963, for the civil rights movement voter registration drive known as Freedom Day.[3]"

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 10:08 AM. Reason : .]

1/29/2009 10:07:59 AM

where is my Eastern European reparations dammit, my relatives busted their asses in Gulags

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 10:09 AM. Reason : .]

1/29/2009 10:08:43 AM

Quote :

"slavary (sic.) "

lol on a message board, seriously?

1/29/2009 10:10:40 AM

If he can be a dick, I certainly can.

1/29/2009 10:12:31 AM

Reparations for slavery? I can't imagine it would cost that much, there are not any legal slaveholders in the country, and any claims should be long past the statute of limitations. Besides, its prohibited by the 14th Amendment:

Quote :

"But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void."

1/29/2009 11:16:26 AM

We already give reparations for slavery, as well as to the native Americans.

1/29/2009 11:27:51 AM

Like this is actually going to pass.

This is just pandering to the base -- nothing more, nothing less.

1/29/2009 11:28:59 AM

$8 million is just to create a commission to assess potential damages and recommend reparations to Congress. Reparations themselves are a whole different story.

If they ask for just straight money, I think its a real waste of time. If a committee seriously takes into consideration other measures already in place from affirmative action and other minority benefits from education to government contracting, and perhaps recommends a delta on top of it in terms of policies, grants, scholarships, and investments into education and whatnot, I don't see anything particularly wrong with the idea assuming that this ends the entire debate on the subject once and for all.

1/29/2009 11:41:55 AM

Quote :

"assuming that this ends the entire debate on the subject once and for all."

lulz

1/29/2009 11:57:03 AM

If they called it a different name, I don't see a problem with the gov. formally codifying the effects of institutionalized racism, including the crack/powder cocaine laws, and other more subtle attacks on black people by the government.

Considering the shrinking of the black population though, it might be too little too late.

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 12:02 PM. Reason : ]

1/29/2009 12:01:30 PM

Quote :

"If they called it a different name, I don't see a problem with the gov. formally codifying the effects of institutionalized racism, including the crack/powder cocaine laws, and other more subtle attacks on black people by the government."

Huh? I'm not sure I understand what you are saying. Unless you have a different definition of "codifying" than I do.

1/29/2009 12:36:10 PM

^^

Quote :

"(1) Examine the institution of slavery which existed within the United States and the colonies that became the United States from 1619 through 1865. The Commission's examination shall include an examination of-- (A) the capture and procurement of Africans; (B) the transport of Africans to the United States and the colonies that became the United States for the purpose of enslavement, including their treatment during transport; (C) the sale and acquisition of Africans as chattel property in interstate and instrastate commerce; and (D) the treatment of African slaves in the colonies and the United States, including the deprivation of their freedom, exploitation of their labor, and destruction of their culture, language, religion, and families. (2) Examine the extent to which the Federal and State governments of the United States supported the institution of slavery in constitutional and statutory provisions, including the extent to which such governments prevented, opposed, or restricted efforts of freed African slaves to repatriate to their homeland. (3) Examine Federal and State laws that discriminated against freed African slaves and their descendants during the period between the end of the Civil War and the present. (4) Examine other forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors against freed African slaves and their descendants during the period between the end of the Civil War and the present."

how is any of that what you just said

1/29/2009 12:38:24 PM

UNFUCKING BELIEVEABLE.

No one alive was a slave nor where any of their parents or grandparents. African Americans should be grateful for the sacrifice their ancestors made for them in order to provide them with a substantially better life than if they were living in Africa where civil wars and diseases like AIDs plague the land.

I would say Japs or were interned during WW2 and the remaining remants of the native american population have more of a right for reparations than today's black population.

Besides many already receive kind of a form of reparation its called their weekly welfare check. If Obama supports this bill than i would lose all respect for him.

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 12:49 PM. Reason : a]

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 12:49 PM. Reason : a]

1/29/2009 12:47:58 PM

^there is that one old lady who they kept hyping up during the elections who is 125 years old and her parents were slaves. Given that i imagine some people are alive whose grandparents were slaves as well, but you point is well take. i'm just bored and at work.

1/29/2009 1:50:36 PM

^^^^ I don't mean "codify" in any legal sense, just to clarify if/how some policies came to be that might have been enacted for racist reasons.

^^^ 1d, 3 and 4 fall under what i was saying.

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 2:08 PM. Reason : ]

1/29/2009 2:06:46 PM

Quote :

"who is 125 years old "

125 i don't think so

1/29/2009 2:18:13 PM

Quote :

"(A) the capture and procurement of Africans;"

what about the africans that were captured and sold by fellow africans. do they get reparations too?

1/29/2009 2:28:37 PM

^ what about them?

Do you excuse a user just because of a dealer?

1/29/2009 2:42:39 PM

Quote :

"Examine the institution of slavery which existed within the United States and the colonies that became the United States from 1619 through 1865. The Commission's examination shall include an examination of--"

shouldnt we only be concerned with 1776-1865 or maybe 1787-1865 not 1619-1865

the country cant be responsible for a time period (1619-1776) before it was a sovereign nation

1/29/2009 2:43:10 PM

Please to visit this thread of mine:

message_topic.aspx?topic=467745

(About reparations)

1/29/2009 2:47:43 PM

I know it will never even come close to getting passed, but if it did... I could see a huge Republican majority in 2010, even if the Repubs don't get their shit together.

Hell, if by some miracle of miracles a reparations bill were to pass the House in Senate, I am pretty sure Obama would veto it.

1/29/2009 2:56:33 PM

Quote :

"Do you excuse a user just because of a dealer? "

of course not, just punish and reward people who had nothing to do with either. Sounds like a winner. LOL

1/29/2009 2:56:41 PM

^^ why would we want to visit and read a pointless thread that can't even be replied to?

^ reparations aren't really about "rewards" and the goal and execution shouldn't be about "punishment." It's about "reparation."

It's odd that you insist on looking at things from an "us vs them" type of mentality, when the situation doesn't really call for that... interesting...

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 3:02 PM. Reason : ]

1/29/2009 2:58:18 PM

Quote :

"^ what about them? Do you excuse a user just because of a dealer?"

haha no, just curious if we owed any reparations to the people enslaved by tribes and not Americans.

Quote :

"of course not, just punish and reward people who had nothing to do with either. Sounds like a winner. LOL"

yup

1/29/2009 2:58:39 PM

wtf are you talking about moron? I think you need to look at your own meanings before implying racism in others... where exactly do i keep talking about US and THEM?

1/29/2009 3:23:30 PM

you're a little too defensive there eyedrb.

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 3:24 PM. Reason : ]

1/29/2009 3:24:48 PM

I'd like reparations from Italy. My ancestors were slaves to the Romans and suffered dearly.

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 3:37 PM. Reason : Give me a Ferrari and we'll call it even. Hell, I'll even take a used one.]

1/29/2009 3:36:43 PM

Quote :

"I'd like reparations from Italy. My ancestors were slaves to the Romans and suffered dearly. "

true that.

Also will the bill include any kind of procedure to ensure that African Americans receiving reparations are actually descendants from those that were slaves. Obama nor my Taxi driver from Nigeria are directly related to any of the people forced into slavery. Thus they should be excluded from the list of those receiving reparations unless this bill is just a blanket reparation settlement for ALL black people in the US regardless of ancestory.

Will those of mixed origin receive 1/2 or 1/4 reparation based on their percent ethnicity? Or would those with a mixed black and white parent be excluded from such reparation since one of their parents ancestors could have been a slave owner.)

[Edited on January 29, 2009 at 3:58 PM. Reason : a]

1/29/2009 3:55:35 PM

Quote :

"125 i don't think so"

^it was 109, my bad. either way shes old as dirt, and daughter of a slave so the point remains the same.

1/29/2009 3:59:38 PM

FU moron, you basically call me racist and I called you out on your bullshit claim. Your only response is im being defensive?...."interesting"

Quote :

"It's odd that you insist on looking at things from an "us vs them" type of mentality, when the situation doesn't really call for that... interesting..."

1/29/2009 4:01:48 PM

Wow, that's the first time I can ever recall getting a rise out of you, and I feel like i've tried much harder in the past.

1/29/2009 4:02:43 PM

It must be the pumps you are wearing today

1/29/2009 4:03:54 PM

I thought that with the election of Obama through a masterful campaign that shunned divisions and refused to play the race card, we had moved past the era of race-based politics.

I guess Conyers didn't get the memo.

1/29/2009 4:16:39 PM

^ he's from detroit. I've never been there, but I imagine it has quite a different political atmosphere than most other place in the country.

1/29/2009 4:20:53 PM

Conyers is a joke, but hell, it may pass. They are trying to spend 825 billion the country doesn't have for pork and calling it a stimulus. What's another 8 million?

1/29/2009 4:25:04 PM

^ you're crazy if think this will come remotely close to passing, at least no in its current form.

1/29/2009 4:28:46 PM

8 mil is to "study" reperations, the cost will be much higher imo. I too dont think this has any chance of passing.. but you never know these days. never thought Id see us waste money on freaking cable boxes either.

1/29/2009 4:39:57 PM

^ if you're talking about the converter box program, that's not a waste of money...

1/29/2009 4:41:21 PM

perhaps i can request 8 mil to study the effects of alcohol consumption on my ability to hit on chicks.

1/29/2009 4:44:39 PM

ok hur, but it would only make sense if you put it in a troop support bill... and add cable converters to it too.

1/29/2009 6:19:43 PM

I don't think we've had one of these threads in a while

1/29/2009 6:21:04 PM

Quote :

"^ you're crazy if think this will come remotely close to passing, at least no in its current form. "

just a little sarcasm

1/29/2009 8:55:29 PM

$8 Million is fucking chump change. We spend that much every HOUR in Iraq. wiht US population of 40 million blacks in this country, that'll get 'em each about $0.20 apiece. wont even buy a donut.

who teh fuck cares about this shit. i mean, seriously.

because before you forget, we're going to give $800,000,000,000 to corporations so the CEOs who drove their trains in a ditch can get personal bonuses of $8 Million EACH

1/30/2009 2:20:09 AM