Whose Fault is it Really?

By Rich Kozlovich

On December 22, 2017 Antonio R. Chaves posted this article, The Davis-Bacon Act of 1931 and the Breakdown of the Black Family saying:

Conservatives tend to regard the growing trend of single-parent families as an issue of personal responsibility, but what if the liberals who blame society are partly right? What if they can point their finger to a bill sponsored by two Republicans and signed into law by a Republican president?

His argument is - the problem started with passage of the Davis-Bacon Act of 1931, which was a minimum wage law designed to protect white workers from those who worked for lower wages, i.e. blacks.

First of all, it’s appalling the government ever got involved in telling anyone how much they have to pay their employees. Where in the Constitution does it give Congress that right? The Commerce Clause? That may be their justification, but that was only because they’ve stretched that clause of the Constitution so out of shape the Congress can do just about anything it likes – such as Obamacare – and claim it’s justified as a Commerce Clause issue. Another good reason to repeal the 17th Amendment.

Secondly, it’s despicable the federal government should get involved in protectionism of one group over another regarding wages, right to work, or the right to compete.

He has an impressive argument as he goes on to explain, with charts and labor statistics, how the problems in black America, is really the fault of the government. Progressive government in particular, and to some extent he’s right. But is his argument convincing because it represents a complete picture of reality, or is his argument a logical fallacy?    

Now I truly believe the welfare state has been stunningly destructive to black America, but I keep coming back to the main issue – why didn’t all of this destroy the Jews, Italians, Chinese and other Asians in America? All very successful ethnic groups that were discriminated against as badly as blacks, and in the case of Jews, they’ve been discriminated against to a degree no other ethnic group in the world has ever been discriminated against throughout history, and yet has arguably been the most successful ethnic group in the world economically and socially. And did you know of the Italian lynchings? 

There was a time a Jew or an Italian couldn’t get a job in a factory in Cleveland. There was a time a Jew couldn’t be hired as an engineer in Cleveland. I’ve few personal experiences regarding Asians in this matter, but based on the direction they went, their experience was most likely much the same - but as far as I can tell, none of those groups are on his charts. Why? After all – if labor statistics don’t lie, why aren’t they listed on the charts to show how the Davis-Bacon Act and all the progressive welfare programs impacted them? Wouldn’t that seem important in order to get a clear and accurate overall picture of government interference in the social structure of America?

Although his article is slanted to show why America should support Trump, it’s still misleading because it’s like so many articles dealing with the condition of black America he pushes the theme – nothing destroying black America is the fault of black America.

He shows how black illegitimacy has increased in America since 1940 to the presently outrageous 70%. He blames government, which is a way to blame whites, or most importantly to absolve blacks.  It's true the federal govenment has played a major hand in this, but did that happen to Jews, Italians or Asians in America?

He asks: “Could it be the drug trafficking, or might this be a just symptom of the chronic unemployment in these communities?” The answer is - of course it could. But we still come back to the basic question: Why are they so unemployable? But, did that happen to Jews, Italians or Asians in America?

America has spent billions upon billions of dollars on the black community in education, training, special hands up programs and even special set asides for black owned companies, and yet the problems not only weren't fixed – they’ve worsened. Why? Is that true of Jews, Italians and Asians?

As far as I told, they usually don't qualify as minorities and aren't eligible for such treatment, therefore the government decides who is a minority and who's not irrespective of actual numbers, which means this isn't about minority groups, it's about privileged groups. 

So, what we have here is a reverse of Davis-Bacon in that blacks are being favored over whites and other ethnic groups. All of which is just as despicable now as it was when Davis-Bacon favored whites over blacks.

It’s clear every ethnic group has a problem with drugs, violence, illegitimacy and crime. But no other social group, community or ethnic group in the rest of the country has these problems at anywhere near the level of black America.

The educational system in American is destroying America, including white America, and the lack of achievement among white kids is an obvious indictment of the education cabal.  But in black America it's disgraceful.  Walter Williams in his article, Black Self-Sabotage notes:

In 2016, in 13 of Baltimore's 39 high schools, not a single student scored proficient on the state's mathematics exam. In six other high schools, only one percent tested proficient in math. In raw numbers, 3,804 Baltimore students took the state's math test, and 14 tested proficient.  Citywide, only 15 percent of Baltimore students passed the state's English test. 

Last spring, graduation exercises were held at one Baltimore high school, 90 percent of whose students received the lowest possible math score. Just one student came even close to being proficient. Parents and family members applauded the conferring of diplomas. Some of the students won achievement awards and college scholarships.  

Baltimore is by no means unique. It's a small part of the ongoing education disaster for black students across the nation. Baltimore schools are not underfunded. Of the nation's 100 largest school systems, Baltimore schools rank third in spending per pupil.

All of this, and yet the black leadership still fights against vouchers, or anything that takes anything away from the nation's failed public education system because "it's in the interest of the education establishment -- and its handmaidens at the NAACP -- to keep black youngsters in failing public schools".

These aren't students with learning disabilites.  These are students who choose to fail to learn the fundamentals necessary to have a successful life.  These are students who "suffer" from "laziness, poor attendance, tardiness, an entitlement mentality, and bad attitudes", and that's a problem created at home.  Homes with a 70% illegitimacy rate. 

Let's stop constantly laying the blame for black America's problems on sources and forces outside of the black community.  It's not white America that's telling black students doing well in school is "acting white", its black students doing that.  It's not whites selling drugs to black children in the ghetto, its blacks selling drugs to black Americans.  And when it comes to murder and rape in the black community, it almost exclusively black murdering blacks, raping their women, burning down their neighborhoods and robbing their neighbors.  The statistics show this is being done by their black "brothers and sisters", and somehow in black America's mind it's the fault of the police and white America.

During the Ferguson riots one man threw a Molotov cocktail into what he thought was a local store in an attempt to burn it down.  Much to his dismay he discovered - it was his own house he was burning down. 

He called the fire department demanding they come immediately.  Remember, he and his fellow rioters were burning down buildings all over the city, so guess what?  He was told because of all the fires there was no one available and (presumably with fires he was helping to set) he would have to wait.  His house burnt down and guess who was at fault?  The fire department!  Because according to him their failure to drop everything they were doing and come stop his house from burning down was a perfect example of racism in America.  

Is that view out of harmony with the thinking of most blacks in America? No, it isn't!

We need to remember the Ferguson riots were over the shooting and killing of a criminal thug by a cop.  Instead of applauding the cop for his restraint - he didn't shoot this thug until his life was jeopardized - they burnt down their city as a protest.  Making icons of criminals and thugs like Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin by black America is a major symptom of the depths of the problem with black thinking and values in America, but that's their fault, and they own it.

Here are the keys to a successful life?  Get a job, go to work every day, don't come in late and leave early, do your job without giving the boss five hundred pounds of attitude, don't steal from your boss, marry the women you've impregnated, or marry the man who impregnated you, pay your bills, don't do drugs and stop being criminals.  And please keep this in the forefront of our minds.  Rarely does anyone get shot by a cop who isn't committing a crime.  It's really that simple.

Larry Elder a brilliant black conservative writer in June of this year published this article, Urban America's Underclass: More Money Won't Solve the Problems, saying:

PBS NewsHour aired a story last year about Milwaukee, saying many residents call the city "the worst place to be a black man in America." It talked about last year's riots in the city after a cop shot a black man. One black Milwaukee resident explained that this is "what happens when you inflict poverty" on poor black residents.

 "Inflict poverty"?

In the 50 years following President Lyndon Johnson's launch of the "war on poverty" in 1964, government spent over $22 trillion on welfare and various anti-poverty programs. The problem in our nation's inner cities is not a lack of money -- it is a moral and spiritual problem largely created by our welfare state. The welfare system encourages women to marry the government and allows men to abandon their financial and moral responsibilities.

The problem is fatherlessness...... As long as blacks feel and act oppressed, as if they are under siege and behind enemy lines, little will change. The formula is simple, but it requires effort: hard work wins; you get out of life what you put into it; you cannot control the outcome, but you are 100 percent in control of the effort. Go to school, study, work hard, arrive early, stay late, pay attention to detail and be honest. That is the best "anti-poverty program" ever conceived.

Those are foundational to a successful life in America.  And nobody owes! Blaming others for not sharing the wealth they've created isn't the answer - that's socialism - and history has shown that's the doom of every successful society.

But that's not what the left wants.  Statistics show married women vote Republican versus unmarried women who vote Democrat.  Guess who creates programs to keep these women poor and unmarried?  Who constantly toots the horn blacks need to be angry at America, especially at white America?  The left, representing by Democrats "has become a wholly destructive force in this country. Even though you may not intend to, if you vote for any Democrat, you contribute to that damage", with the goal of "keeping Americans divided, dependent, and angry".

So, if black America is the mess black leadership, the media and politicians claim it to be - we have to take a good hard look as ask: whose fault is it really?