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Slavery Reparations Could Cost Up to $14 Trillion, According to New Calculation
Newsweek ^ | August 19, 2015 | Douglas Main

Posted on 08/20/2015 2:38:36 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

In 1865, toward the end of the Civil War, Union Army General William Tecumseh Sherman promised slaves that they’d receive 40 acres and a mule. Land was even set aside, but the promise was recanted by President Andrew Johnson. Ever since, the issue of reparations has come up many times, often fiercely debated. Although most Americans generally don’t support reparations, according to University of Connecticut researcher Thomas Craemer, it matters greatly how the question is worded, who would get reparations and in what form. For example, the idea of reparations paid in educational benefits are more popular than others, Craemer says.

On the other hand, one of the cases often made against reparations is that it'd be impractically difficult to calculate how to fairly take and give so many years after the fact. But in a new paper, published in the journal Social Science Quarterly, Craemer makes the case that there are other examples of historical reparations paid many decades later after “damages” were incurred. He also has come up with what he says is the most economically sound estimate to date of what reparations could cost: between $5.9 trillion and $14.2 trillion.

Craemer came up with those figures by tabulating how many hours all slaves—men, women and children—worked in the United States from when the country was officially established in 1776 until 1865, when slavery was officially abolished. He multiplied the amount of time they worked by average wage prices at the time, and then a compounding interest rate of 3 percent per year (more than making up for inflation). There is a range because the amount of time worked isn’t a hard figure....

(Excerpt) Read more at newsweek.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: blacks; civilwar; reparations; slavery
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Subtract several trillion in welfare disproportionately paid to blacks.
Subtract the economic benefit of preferential hiring by the government at all levels and with federal contractors, such that entire federal, state and local departments are nearly all black.

The net effect is about even.


81 posted on 08/20/2015 6:31:24 AM PDT by tbw2
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To: EQAndyBuzz

I think not, but do feel free to give money and deport the idiots if they choose to go but no offense not even they want the ghetto trash.


82 posted on 08/20/2015 6:34:16 AM PDT by the_individual2014
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To: driftless2
Why waste the time even discussing this? It will never happen and it SHOULD never happen.

Paying a dead slave might be something I might support, providing they show up in person but, NOTHING goes to their descendants. Its over so put it to bed.

83 posted on 08/20/2015 6:41:20 AM PDT by DaveA37
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To: mikey_hates_everything

A few years ago, there was a protest rally for reparations for slavery.

And one dude sang a song called “The Reparations Rap”.

The refrain lyrics of the song were: “I want my mon-eeee, I want my mon-eeee”.

These people are demented.


84 posted on 08/20/2015 6:41:34 AM PDT by Dilbert San Diego
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Subtract the cost of the Great Society social spending for the last 50 years.

Tell them if they pay off the national debt, we’ll call it even.


85 posted on 08/20/2015 6:43:20 AM PDT by PTBAA
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To: Dilbert San Diego

Print a 20 trillion dollar bill and give it to their “leader”. Make it such that it can’t be deposited anywhere. Good luck getting change for your grape soda or Colt 45. Fools.


86 posted on 08/20/2015 6:44:23 AM PDT by hal ogen (First Amendment or Reeducation Camp?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I would not be against reparations. However, individuals must prove slave history in ancestry and original African country. If they accept reparations, individuals must give up U.S. Citizenship and return to country of origin.


87 posted on 08/20/2015 6:54:13 AM PDT by Lopeover (2016 Election is about allegiance to the United States)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
How much have we been hit for in the past 150 years for welfare, ADC, food stamps, heating assistance, rent assistance, daycare, WIC on and on.

The entire WAR on Poverty/welfare state was nothing but institutionalized reparations.

88 posted on 08/20/2015 7:02:07 AM PDT by skimbell
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Reparations already paid in the lives of 700,000 white boys who slaughtered each other over whether blacks would be free or not.
And the same number gave arms, legs, eyes to the cause.


89 posted on 08/20/2015 7:33:10 AM PDT by Ruy Dias de Bivar (Let Baal plead for Baal because one has destroyed his altar!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

The slavery tab has been paid in full with almost 700,000 dead or wounded. Why are they talking about this?


90 posted on 08/20/2015 7:43:53 AM PDT by GingisK
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To: Lopeover
I would not be against reparations. However, individuals must prove slave history in ancestry and original African country. If they accept reparations, individuals must give up U.S. Citizenship and return to country of origin.

I have also held this position but with additional qualification:

Once a monetary figure is established, the awardee gets a percentage of the total individual award based on the percentage of ancestry that was held in slavery in America, not the Caribbean etc. One ancestor out of 16 - 1/16th share.

91 posted on 08/20/2015 8:00:06 AM PDT by par4
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To: DaveA37
"Why waste the time even discussing this?"

That's the point...it's worthwhile only to make fun of the idea. If some people want a race war, pushing ridiculous ideas like reparations for people who are lucky to be living in the best country in the world is a good way to get one started.

92 posted on 08/20/2015 8:23:58 AM PDT by driftless2
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To: par4

Good idea!


93 posted on 08/20/2015 9:22:45 AM PDT by Lopeover (2016 Election is about allegiance to the United States)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

My question is very simple: Upon what authority did General W. T. Sherman make this promise? I don’t believe that he had the Congressional Power of the Purse authority. Perhaps repatriations should come from his personal estate. However, can we or his decedents be held liable for the promise he made without authority? I think not!!!


94 posted on 08/20/2015 10:24:15 AM PDT by Nuocmam
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Well, how much has already been paid?


95 posted on 08/20/2015 11:21:34 AM PDT by huldah1776
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