The Question of Reparations

In a recent episode of The Real News, Jacqueline Luqman interviewed Adolf Reed, a professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania, on the issue of reparations for the descendants of slaves in America.  Overall it was a rather wide-ranging discussion, but the primary focus was on the response of Bernie Sanders in comparison to the other Democratic Party candidates for the 2020 Presidential election.  The main question is whether Sanders should have a specific answer or policy on that issue instead of denigrating the idea of "writing a check".

A salient point that was mentioned in the interview is that there is no consensus on exactly what is meant by reparations.  This was discussed in some length comparative to the length of the interview, and what was apparently agreed upon is the need for further discussion, and perhaps legislation aimed at coming to a conclusion on what would be appropriate in this day and age, as well as the political viability of tackling this idea as a society.

I have a few questions on this issue.  Some might think that the question of Sanders' response would be foremost, but they would be wrong making that assumption.  It's well-known among my friends, colleagues, family acquaintances both on-line and off that I'm a strong supporter of Senator Sanders and the progressive agenda.  But here I wasnt to focus specifically on the issue of reparations.

As noted, both here and in the interview, there is no consensus on the issue.  If I recall my history classes correctly, the original solution to slavery after the Civil War was to give the freed slaves, as the once-popular saying goes, "40 acres and a mule".  (As an aside, this was actually done in South Carolina, until after Abe Lincoln was assassinated and the new President, Andrew Johnson, took back the land and the mules.) 

The question then should logically turn to how that solution could be translated to fit our modern-day society.  In other words, what would be an equivalent, in today's societal and economic terms, to those 40 acres and a mule?  Further, we need to ask ourselves and society as a whole if it can be done; and if so, how we can do it.

In my view, we the people should be the ones to find solutions, for the very simple reason that the greatest positive changes in human society have come about, not from the leaders, but from the people, in movements of the masses.  So we should be the ones to not only find the solution to this issue, but to then communicate that (or those) solutions to our elected representatives, including (and perhaps especially) to those who are seeking the Presidency.

© March 30, 2019 by Donald C. Rice Jr.

Jacqueline Luqman's interview can be seen here:

Bernie and the Reparations Debate

 

The Mad Doctor Returns

Rhames Blond
as
Agent Double-Zero 9-1/2
in

The Mad Doctor Returns

A Satire
by
Don Rice Jr.

   He moved from the office area onto the catwalk that ran through the assembly line, searching for an off switch.  He was confident he could find it before too many of the cyborg monstrosities were ready to be activated.  As a precaution, he held his portable E-M Pulse Cannon/Taser close to his chest, ready to aim and fire in any direction if necessary. 
   It looked oddly like the old, no longer made Walther PPK once carried by his fictional spy hero.  In fact, he'd had the weapon specially made to bear that resemblance.  But it was capable, in theory at least, of fending off both these infernal electronic machines and the equally deplorable living human beings who built them.  But he hoped it wouldn't be needed, he so strongly abhorred violence even against mindless automatons, living ot not.
   Just as he stepped off the conveyor walkway, looking strangely like an actor he'd seen in a slew of violent drama films over the years, a trap door opened beneath his feet, startling him.  He reached for the edge of remaining floor, but missed and plunged into utter darkness.  He heard the sound of gas jets spewing some foul concoction as he slammed into an unyielding surface, presumably another floor, and was almost instantly rendered unconscious.
   He was groggy when he came to, but only for a brief moment.  He quickly discovered that he was held in place by steel arm and leg bands, and had been stripped of all his fancy gadgets that might have aided in his escape.  He looked in awe as a wall the size of five football stadium viewscreen lit up, blinding him momentarily.
   When his vision cleared, he was staring into the super-sized face of his old arch-enemy, taking up most of the screen.  Half of the visage drooped motionlessly, the boxy jowls seeming to be in a state of decay.  The other half grinned evilly down at him, eyes agleam with a boundless, unwavering hatred.
   Calmly, with an air of nonchalance, the agent said, "Well, if it isn't the notorious Doctor Elizabeth Kissincheney.  Our best intelligence had it that you were dead."
   "Only the Kissinger half of me, Mister Blond.  I can thank you for that.   Seriously, I do thank you.  That part was getting more pedantic by the day, trying to lecture me on the subtleties of world domination.  He was acting like the reincarnation of Machiavelli, for God's sake!"
   Blond replied blandly, "No.  You don't say."
   "Oh, please, Mr. Blond.  Don't start with your insufferably snide conversational ploys.  They won't work this time, now that my other half is no longer in control of my speech center."
   "Well, since sarcasm won't work, would you be so kind as to satisfy my curiosity on one question?"
   "Since you're completely under my control at last, I see no harm in indulging you, Mr. Blond.  What is it you wish to know?"
   "You're obviously all male, the epitome of German Jewish American masculinity.  So how is it you came by such a feminine first name?  Why didn't you stay with the name your father gave you, Ernest?"
   The good doctor raised an eyebrow.  "Oh, that?  It was simply a matter of honoring the memory of my dear departed daughter.  You see, she had a deliciously demented man's brain, but it was trapped in a woman's body.  She always wished to be a man, but was never able to make the transition.  So when the ungodly Christian right wingers arranged her assassination for that thought crime, after a suitable period of mourning, I changed my name to hers as a means of eternal remembrance.  It's the least a good father could do, don't you think?"
   "Oh, indubitably.  The very least."
   "I'm so glad you approve.  But I must say, I'm rather disappointed.  I thought you, of all people, might have a more appropriate question, considering your current, rather precarious predicament."
   "Now that you mention it, I do have a question on that, too.  What are you planning to do once I'm out of the way?"
   "Oh, many things, Mr. Blond.  Through my international network of arch criminals, I'm going to destroy modern civilization as we know it, and then rebuild it in my image.
   "I'm going to sow discontent in the corrupt practices of world political systems.  I'll create a plethora of social justice organizations to rise up against them.  I'll call them Occupy, Black Lives Matter, Code Pink, Hashtag Resistance, and so forth, to engage the unwashed masses as a rebellion against the destruction and denial of civil liberties and human rights worldwide.
   "At the same time, I'll build an opposing force meant to quash that rebellion, and raise up leaders who will foment violence against all those social justice warriors.  I shall bring on the mythological Armageddon so long sought after by unthinking religious zealots the world over.  It will be glorious!"
   "That's juggling a lot of eggs in one basket, don't you think?"
   "That's what makes it so deliciously diabolical, my dear Rhames.  It's all right to call you Rhames, isn't it?"
   Blond nodded his head, encouraging the madman to continue.  "But how are you going to keep it all together, to keep all the different parts working properly?"
   "That's the best part, Rhames.  I'll partner with big industrialists, corporate managers, advertising executives  and entertainment moguls to brainwash people into turning on each other with different perspectives on how society should be run.  Together, we will bribe politicians and other world leaders to support these variously incompatible causes and solidify the chaos that will inevitably ensue."
   "That's a rather ambitious plan, isn't it, Liz?  I may call you Liz, mayn't I?"
   "Ah, flattery will get you nowhere, Rhames.  But I shall indulge it this time, because I have a secret weapon.  I have you, Rhames."
   "Me?  Now I truly am curious.  How do I fit into your sociopathic scheme?"
   "It's quite simple, really.  I will have my mad scientists turn your skin white, whiter than even the palest Nazi communist socialist Hitlerite who ever lived.  And I will program your brain to believe you are the the second coming of the Christian Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, and announce your miraculous arrival to the evangelicals of the world so they will all follow you."
   Blond shook his head, his pale dreadlocks waving and flopping.  "It will never work, Liz."
   "Why won't it work, Rhames?"
   "I won't lead them anywhere but off a cliff at the edge of this flat Earth.  And I ain't gonna be turned into no Got-damn cracker, muthafucka!"
   "Ah, but you will, my friend.  Do you see that steel motorcycle helmet lowering toward your head?  It's filled with wires and devices that will drill into your brain and change the neural pathways that control your thinking processes.  Your brain, such as it is, will be made over to conform to my will, and only to my will.  Oh, please don't struggle, Rhames.  You cannot escape my clutches.  If you think otherwise, you are mistaken.  Your faith in your puny abilities is sadly misplaced."
   Blond shook his head vehemently as the helmet continued its descent toward him.  "NOOOOO," he screamed.
   Then he saw in his mind's eye a little green hobgoblin with pointed ears moving on their own, and heard a voice, seeming to come out of nowhere.  "Feel the Farce, Luke."
   "But I'm not Luke, dammit!"
   "Of course you're not.  Feel it anyway, my young apprentice."
   Blond closed his eyes and shunted his thoughts aside.  "Yes, my master," he whispered.
   He focused on his left arm, willing a cheap plastic panel to slide open.  Out popped a metal cylinder with a button on one side.   He pressed the button, and a beam of coherent light sprung forth.  The restraining band popped open, releasing his arm.  He waived the cylinder like a wand and yelled, "Accio E-M Cannon!"
   A broom came flying toward him, slapping his face.  "Dammit," he yelled, "I'm not Harry either!"
   Finally a blue police call booth appeared out of thin air.  A giant octagonal salt shaker popped out and aimed Blond's E-M cannon at the screen and pulled the trigger, releasing a pulse and then two thin wires that flew through the air.  The screen burst open and there behind it was the half-ruined Doctor Kissincheney, small as a gnome, waving his arms and crying, "I'm melting!  I'm melting!"
   The salt shaker transformed into a beautiful blonde witch and glided onto the broom, taking control of it.  "Well, Rhames, this is another fine mess you've gotten yourself into.  But now it's over, and I have to get back to my family.  Gilligan's asleep finally, and Ward wants to beat the Beaver again.  Ta-ta!" 
   Blond watched as the apparition faded back into the ether.  "Nice to see you again too, Morticia," he said.  "Until next time."
   Her disembodied voice replied, "Oh, there won't be a next time, Rhames.  This isn't a serial on the telly, you know."
  
© March 19, 2019
by Donald Charles Rice Jr.

The Attack on Ilhan Omar and Pelosi’s Unconditional Support for Israel

The Attack on Ilhan Omar and Pelosi’s Unconditional Support for Israel: Nancy Pelosi pledged support for Israel “even if the Capitol crumbles”, as major Democratic Party funder and pro-Israel advocate Hiam Saban looked on - our panel discusses anti-semitism, Israel and the Democratic Party with Jacqueline Luqman, Jeff Cohen and host Paul Jay

2020 Primaries

Centrists have taken to asking progressives if they will support Biden, or Harris, or Booker, or whatever other establishment politician as the Democratic nominee for 2020.  For me, Biden and the rest are too damaged to be acceptable as President, by the fact of their cowtowing to corporate interests over the will and the needs of the people.

Centrists accuse progressives of having “purity” tests. That’s a false narrative if ever there was one, because we fully understand that nobody is pure, not even Sanders.

Then you say we’ve got a litmus test. Now, I can’t speak for all other progressives, but for myself, I say yes, I DO have a litmus test. And here it is:

If a candidate is against Medicare For All, he or she won’t get my vote.

If a candidate is against tuition-free public education, he or she will not get my vote.

If a candidate is against ending regime change wars against countries that do not and cannot threaten us, he or she will not get my vote.

If a candidate is against the Green New Deal, he or she will not get my vote.

Those are my top priorities. But there are other issues. Black Lives Matter, for example. An end to systemic discrimination on any basis. A return to the support of collective bargaining that the Democratic Party establishment has all but abandoned.

I’m sure you get the picture. All the things the Party left behind when it followed the Clintonesque path to corporate whoredom.

Do I insist on ALL of the above? No, of course not. Can’t have everything all at once. But those top four items, they are essential. They are the absolute minimum necessary to get my vote. And that will depend entirely on what each candidate’s actual record shows them to be. Not what they say on the campaign trail or to the cameras.  No more platitudes, no more personality politicking. 

Just the record.

 © March 18, 2019 by Donald Charles Rice Jr.