tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4819134478257447800.post864748182478187620..comments2013-05-29T20:07:42.096-06:00Comments on Now Look What You've Started: David Horowitz Revisitedbrandthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10703958900167777021noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4819134478257447800.post-55496458179005658192008-04-29T16:04:00.000-06:002008-04-29T16:04:00.000-06:00James - Thanks for your comments. I felt as thoug...James - <BR/><BR/>Thanks for your comments. I felt as though a lot of my words jumbled together, so permit me this chance to perhaps clarify and expand on some of my comments.<BR/><BR/>Re: <I>...lump all "whites" when they come from all over</I><BR/><BR/><B>However, all whites in the U.S., even those arriving after slavery had ended, benefited from the tremendous economic opportunities generated by the contribution of slavery to the development of the U.S. economy, and from the institutionalized racism which denied opportunities to blacks in favor of whites for a century after slavery had ended.</B><BR/>You know, I do agree with you there. I think my comment might have come off as "all whites" from "all over" putting all races on the same playing field. Honestly, there still is some of that racism today. I don't deny that even those whites who came from different parts of the world to America contributed. Well stated.<BR/><BR/>Re: <I>Others gave their lives to free them</I><BR/><BR/><B>The U.S. Civil War was not fought to end slavery, and very few soldiers volunteered in order to free the slaves.</B><BR/><BR/>Again, you have caught me. I reference my original comment about history being written by the victors. I am more likely than not a victim of this. I was under the impression when I was in elementary through high school that the Civil War was to end slavery. The more I read, the more I find out that slavery was indeed part, but not the whole, of the Civil War.<BR/><BR/>Re: <I>This is the best argument that Horowitz makes (namely, America is multiethnic nation)</I><BR/><BR/><B> The legacy of slavery is very much with us today</B><BR/><BR/>You're right. It is with us today. In reference to "feeling guilty for being white," I do feel that way. Now, those feelings are probably propogated by the media, but should I, a 24 year old male from Detroit, be responsible for reparations? What connection do I have to any of that?<BR/><BR/>I guess I look at personal heroes such as Chris Gardner, author of <I>The Pursuit of Happyness</I>, Dr. King, and model my life after them.<BR/><BR/>I'm hoping this didn't come off as a racist post, or a white-power rant. I'm just saying at what point do we begin to come together as human beings. Perhaps Utopia is farther off than I, in my naieve state-of-mind, thinks.<BR/><BR/>Thanks a ton for the comments James. I really enjoy your blog about asking questions, something that I probably do too much.brandthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10703958900167777021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4819134478257447800.post-63320634495451747152008-04-29T10:26:00.000-06:002008-04-29T10:26:00.000-06:00I think this is a very thoughtful analysis of Horo...I think this is a very thoughtful analysis of Horowitz's arguments against slavery reparations, Brandt, and I really enjoyed reading it.<BR/><BR/>I can't resist commenting on a couple of issues, though. :-)<BR/><BR/><I>How can one lump all “whites,” when they come from all over?</I><BR/><BR/>It's true that the benefits of slavery were <I>not</I> equally distributed.<BR/><BR/>However, all whites in the U.S., even those arriving after slavery had ended, benefited from the tremendous economic opportunities generated by the contribution of slavery to the development of the U.S. economy, and from the institutionalized racism which denied opportunities to blacks in favor of whites for a century after slavery had ended.<BR/><BR/><I>others gave their lives to free them</I><BR/><BR/>The U.S. Civil War was <I>not</I> fought to end slavery, and very few soldiers volunteered in order to free the slaves.<BR/><BR/><I>This is probably the best argument that Horowitz makes.</I><BR/><BR/>See my comment above. While I appreciate your reasoning, the simple fact is that the legacy of slavery is very much with us today. <BR/><BR/>I agree that there's no reason to feel guilty for being white. But whites have had opportunities for generations to build wealth in this country, while blacks were systematically denied such opportunities until well into the lifetimes of people alive today. <BR/><BR/><I>What injury does an African American face because of his or her ancestors over 100 years ago? </I><BR/><BR/>That answer is that, on average, blacks in this country still suffer significant injury because of the treatment of their ancestors.<BR/><BR/>To cite just one statistic, at current rates, blacks won't achieve equality in terms of homeownership for another 1,664 years.<BR/><BR/>This doesn't mean, of course, that money should be handed out to people on the basis of who their ancestors were. The injury, and not distant blood ties, are the key.<BR/><BR/>As I said, I really enjoyed your comments on Horowitz. In particular, we definitely see eye-to-eye on such issues as treating people as individuals, not as members of groups, and I think this causes both of us to side with Horowitz on some arguments, and against him on others.Jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03180927671866095059noreply@blogger.com