"THE GREAT REPERATIONS RIP-OFF"

We're comin' afta' you...votes cost money!

Although slavery has been abolished since after the War Between the States in 1865, and there exists a level of freedom today that has been unmatched by any other time and place on the planet, there is a disturbingly shrill voice demanding "reperations" to the descendants of slaves.

Never mind that several generations have come and gone since 1865, and that not even the child of a former slave lives today, a demand for one of the greatest hustles in our history is well underway to becoming a reality.

Although slavery is not acceptable when referring to Biblical authority, it has existed upon the face of the globe since one man learned that he could keep another captive. The problem with the reperations movement is, is that it goes against the Consititution and common sense.

In the 14th Amendment, Section 4, it plainly states that "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" (Caps added ).

Not only is this unconstitutional, how does one "qualify" for this great vote-buying scheme, especially in a nation where blood is mixed? What will qualify as documentary proof? My own grandfather ( a still-living person) was listed as "Mulatto" on the 1920 Census. Do I qualify, and if so, in whole or in part?

What if the claimant in question was the descendant of Black slaveowners? Does this forfeit his elegibility for some sort of payment?

How about the descendants of white slaveowners who FREED their slaves? Will they be exempt from the tax or levy to pay for all of this, or will they be entitled to some measure of the reward? That brings us to the next question...who pays for it?

Of course, the racket from the same corners is that "all White people" are responsible, therefore should pay through taxation of some sort. Again, using the same racial demographics of mixed blood, arrival in the U.S. prior to or after Emancipation, the ancestor's part in the freeing of slaves and such, how would one figure a formula for "monies owed," and in what quantity? Do Americans who happen to be of "mostly" black ancestry have to pay for the crime of having mixed blood?

Again, the U.S. Constitution forbids such payments. The U.S. government, although admittedly eager to "punish" the South after Lincoln's death, did have the good sense to realize that reparing the "financial" loss of a human being would only add to the debt of the war, as well as serve to drive a wedge deeper between the sections of the country to be united. Never mind that this would also lend legitimacy to the practice and idea of slavery as an institution, by the act of reimbursement for loss of property value.

Then again, the whole "Reperations Movement," like so many other movements from the "Hate America Left," has the same disdain for the Constitution, and would sooner repeal all safeguards of our liberties for the sake of their own personal gain. The Constitution, according to former President Clinton himself, is "A hinderance to good government."

I guess it is, when your definition of "good government" means that all people are subject to the will of one man or party, and that God-granted liberties are an archaic, simplistic fantasy.

Before those with an "R" by their names chuckle too loudly, your actions versus your words on "limited government" are telling. There are those who are willing to jump on this bandwagon to garner votes, implying that only those in the southern states will be effected.

If there is some altruistic desire to lash out in abolitionistic fervor, there is plenty of slavery still in the world today to stop. North African and Arabic countries still practice the slave trade, and it is considered "protected" by Islam. Asian countries today freely engage in the trafficing of human beings (mostly women and children) for the sex trade. Children in this very country are kidnapped and smuggled out of the country via Mexico for the same purpose, mostly to wealthy Arabs. Then again, battling this kind of REAL slavery demands a bit of effort, commitment, and intelligence. It also requires being selfless as opposed to selfish. That, I am afraid, would defeat the whole momentum of the reperations movement.

I think I have your attention, now. Rhino 21, out.