Legjoints
@legjoints.bsky.social
The House did pass a resolution in 2008 in which it “apologizes to African Americans on behalf of the people of the United States, for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow”
www.congress.gov/bill/110th-c...
www.congress.gov/bill/110th-c...
www.congress.gov
April 2, 2025 at 7:22 PM
The House did pass a resolution in 2008 in which it “apologizes to African Americans on behalf of the people of the United States, for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow”
www.congress.gov/bill/110th-c...
www.congress.gov/bill/110th-c...
I was only there a few months and working remotely so wasn’t paying income tax to Lithuania. Some people I knew were living off rent or business incomes in their home countries so I think also weren’t paying tax to Lithuania, though perhaps should have been if it was their country of residence.
April 2, 2025 at 5:43 PM
I was only there a few months and working remotely so wasn’t paying income tax to Lithuania. Some people I knew were living off rent or business incomes in their home countries so I think also weren’t paying tax to Lithuania, though perhaps should have been if it was their country of residence.
It’s something to bear in mind, particularly when the country has a selective immigration system. Research is mixed as to whether it harms or benefits the country of origin.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_c...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_c...
Human capital flight - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
April 2, 2025 at 5:35 PM
It’s something to bear in mind, particularly when the country has a selective immigration system. Research is mixed as to whether it harms or benefits the country of origin.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_c...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_c...
Cutting taxes for those on a low income is easy to do, and would disproportionately benefit black people. Increasing funding to schools, improving public housing and Medicaid etc.. You don’t get the symbolism of reparations, but you do more to help those black people who most need it.
April 2, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Cutting taxes for those on a low income is easy to do, and would disproportionately benefit black people. Increasing funding to schools, improving public housing and Medicaid etc.. You don’t get the symbolism of reparations, but you do more to help those black people who most need it.
That could get quite costly. You would get dubious and outright bogus claims that would need to be checked out, and perhaps an appeals process. How high would the administrative costs have to get before you say maybe there’s a better way we can spend this money to help black people?
April 2, 2025 at 4:52 PM
That could get quite costly. You would get dubious and outright bogus claims that would need to be checked out, and perhaps an appeals process. How high would the administrative costs have to get before you say maybe there’s a better way we can spend this money to help black people?
Thanks. They propose that eligibility would be based on someone being able to demonstrate they’re descended from slaves, so Barrack Obama wouldn’t qualify but his daughters would based on Michelle’s heritage. They suggest using census records and DNA testing to determine qualification.
April 2, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Thanks. They propose that eligibility would be based on someone being able to demonstrate they’re descended from slaves, so Barrack Obama wouldn’t qualify but his daughters would based on Michelle’s heritage. They suggest using census records and DNA testing to determine qualification.
Could you link to where those questions have been answered please, or answer them here if you prefer. I’d really like to see a practical policy proposal, like a piece of draft legislation, that sets out how this would be administered and what the expected effects would be.
April 1, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Could you link to where those questions have been answered please, or answer them here if you prefer. I’d really like to see a practical policy proposal, like a piece of draft legislation, that sets out how this would be administered and what the expected effects would be.
So you could certainly argue that the US carries responsibility for its past actions, and past inactions. However, it now has a responsibility to get the policy right. A well meaning but poorly thought through policy is not going to help and could just make things worse.
April 1, 2025 at 3:24 PM
So you could certainly argue that the US carries responsibility for its past actions, and past inactions. However, it now has a responsibility to get the policy right. A well meaning but poorly thought through policy is not going to help and could just make things worse.
What our country does or what our country did? In a democracy we carry some responsibility for what our country’s government does. The country as a whole has a responsibility over what it did in the past, like if it took out a loan. Britain only finished paying off its WW2 loan to the US in 2006.
April 1, 2025 at 3:24 PM
What our country does or what our country did? In a democracy we carry some responsibility for what our country’s government does. The country as a whole has a responsibility over what it did in the past, like if it took out a loan. Britain only finished paying off its WW2 loan to the US in 2006.
On immigration from poor countries to rich countries, we need to consider the impact on the countries people are emigrating from, countries which may have paid to educate them but now they’re using their education being doctors or engineers in rich countries.
April 1, 2025 at 3:10 PM
On immigration from poor countries to rich countries, we need to consider the impact on the countries people are emigrating from, countries which may have paid to educate them but now they’re using their education being doctors or engineers in rich countries.
However, I spoke to a Lithuanian who couldn’t afford to live in the centre of the city any more. The immigrants had pushed the prices up. Similarly with restaurants and bars catering to the rich immigrants, too expensive for the locals. Whilst some were profiting, many had become a servant class.
April 1, 2025 at 3:10 PM
However, I spoke to a Lithuanian who couldn’t afford to live in the centre of the city any more. The immigrants had pushed the prices up. Similarly with restaurants and bars catering to the rich immigrants, too expensive for the locals. Whilst some were profiting, many had become a servant class.
A couple of decades ago I spent some time in Lithuania, a relatively poor country by European standards, but with open borders to other EU nationals. There were many foreigners living in the capital, people from richer countries. Property was very cheap by our standards.
April 1, 2025 at 3:10 PM
A couple of decades ago I spent some time in Lithuania, a relatively poor country by European standards, but with open borders to other EU nationals. There were many foreigners living in the capital, people from richer countries. Property was very cheap by our standards.
Agreed, but I thought this piece by Peter Kellner was interesting, comparing it to Tony Benn’s situation in 1960.
open.substack.com/pub/kellnerp...
open.substack.com/pub/kellnerp...
Tony Benn's lesson for Donald Trump
The President can't run for a third term. Or can he?
open.substack.com
April 1, 2025 at 10:09 AM
Agreed, but I thought this piece by Peter Kellner was interesting, comparing it to Tony Benn’s situation in 1960.
open.substack.com/pub/kellnerp...
open.substack.com/pub/kellnerp...
Come on, Italy. Keep up!
April 1, 2025 at 9:56 AM
Come on, Italy. Keep up!
Those are both true statements though, aren’t they? It did happen a long time ago and those alive today weren’t responsible.
April 1, 2025 at 8:09 AM
Those are both true statements though, aren’t they? It did happen a long time ago and those alive today weren’t responsible.
I think you need to work on your reading skills.
March 31, 2025 at 10:10 PM
I think you need to work on your reading skills.
I think you’re wrong on the first of those. Most people are aware of the harms done. The debate is over what, if anything, can be done now.
March 31, 2025 at 10:07 PM
I think you’re wrong on the first of those. Most people are aware of the harms done. The debate is over what, if anything, can be done now.
Not sure what you mean, but one of the things with EU free movement was that the people coming to Britain were from other European countries, places like Poland, the vast majority of them white. Some Brexiteers argued that giving preference to European immigrants was racist.
March 31, 2025 at 9:59 PM
Not sure what you mean, but one of the things with EU free movement was that the people coming to Britain were from other European countries, places like Poland, the vast majority of them white. Some Brexiteers argued that giving preference to European immigrants was racist.
Those were at best partial democracies. Slaves didn’t have political rights.
March 31, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Those were at best partial democracies. Slaves didn’t have political rights.
I don’t think that’s the case for most people. Those who were enslaved are no longer around so can’t be compensated. You’re proposing to compensate their descendants, and that compensation would have to be paid by people who have never owned slaves and don’t therefore consider themselves guilty.
March 31, 2025 at 9:46 PM
I don’t think that’s the case for most people. Those who were enslaved are no longer around so can’t be compensated. You’re proposing to compensate their descendants, and that compensation would have to be paid by people who have never owned slaves and don’t therefore consider themselves guilty.
No, I’m using those as examples. Immigration was a big part of the Brexit debate and most businesses opposed Brexit because ending the free movement of labour risked labour shortages, higher costs and a greater administrative burden. And that’s exactly what’s happened.
March 31, 2025 at 9:33 PM
No, I’m using those as examples. Immigration was a big part of the Brexit debate and most businesses opposed Brexit because ending the free movement of labour risked labour shortages, higher costs and a greater administrative burden. And that’s exactly what’s happened.
No. When there was slavery there wasn’t democracy. The franchise didn’t extend to all. In democracies our laws are made by our elected representatives. That severely weakens any moral case for breaking the law.
March 31, 2025 at 9:22 PM
No. When there was slavery there wasn’t democracy. The franchise didn’t extend to all. In democracies our laws are made by our elected representatives. That severely weakens any moral case for breaking the law.
Generally I would go along with that principle, but a more efficient and more practical way to get money to black and native people who need it is to target poverty rather than ethnicity. That would also be far less divisive and therefore less likely to provoke a backlash.
March 31, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Generally I would go along with that principle, but a more efficient and more practical way to get money to black and native people who need it is to target poverty rather than ethnicity. That would also be far less divisive and therefore less likely to provoke a backlash.
Would you favour open borders with no restrictions at all on who can enter the country?
March 31, 2025 at 9:10 PM
Would you favour open borders with no restrictions at all on who can enter the country?
There are also different degrees of illegal immigration in the UK. Overstaying a visa is a civil offence whereas entering the country illegally is a criminal offence that can get you up to four years in prison and facilitating illegal immigration (people trafficking) can get you a life sentence.
March 31, 2025 at 9:07 PM
There are also different degrees of illegal immigration in the UK. Overstaying a visa is a civil offence whereas entering the country illegally is a criminal offence that can get you up to four years in prison and facilitating illegal immigration (people trafficking) can get you a life sentence.