Althouse On Williamson On Reparations

I used to agonize over reparations, sometimes on this very blog. Then about ten years ago I just faced what I take to be the facts: it's never going to happen...and if it did, it's likely to make racial tensions worse. OTOH, we've tried--and we're still trying--to do something roughly equivalent, i.e. implement programs like affirmative action that basically aim to do the same thing. That's probably the best we can actually do.
   Althouse is right that Williamson--for all her flakiness--did state the case well, given time constraints...and without mention of "dark psychic forces," too.
   Unfortunately, this is just about the worst context in which to push for reparations. When taken by itself, purely on the merits, I think there's a substantial case to be made for them (it?), and the idea should be taken seriously. Against the backdrop of contemporary progressive/Democratic kookiness and craziness, reparations can just look like another daft bit of race hysteria. Again, there are a lot of Democratic ideas that I think should be considered--but not leapt into. And certainly not all at the same time.