response 159 of 232:

Jan 26 07:24 UTC 2003

re #158:

> Irish, Italians, Chinese, Japanese, etc, have been discriminated at various
> times in our history.  HOWEVER, _none_ of them have been enslaved more
> recently than the late 1700s. ...  Without slavery, the dynamic was different
> for those groups.  Eventually, others supplanted them at the bottom.

  The overwhelming majority of Irish, Italian, Chinese, and Japanese
  immigration to this country occurred *after* the Civil War.  Even were
  that not the case, based on what you have written above I don't see how
  your point concerning slavery amounts to much more than a logical
  non sequitur.  The statement is true but has no demonstrated relevance
  to your argument.