[smt88]

My parents immigrated to the US in the 80s. They didn't steal anyone's land. Can I complain about rich people wasting fuel, polluting the air, and creating peace-shattering sounds?

And about the stolen land, what should we do about it? Never complain about anything? Have no laws?

Give all of your stolen land back, make all the reparations you owe people, and then go back to lecturing people online.

[jaymmartin]

By immigrating, your parents(and you) took on the shared responsibility for the countries wrongdoings and great deeds.

When people talk about this stuff, it isn't about apportioning blame.

I'm not big on the stolen land thing because it's turtles all the way down, but this idea of divvying up blame makes no sense. We are all citizens.

[smt88]

I had no agency in being born and raised here. Are you saying that by staying in this country, I’m now responsible for stealing land 200 years ago? And my responsibility for stealing this land means I can’t be upset about supersonic jets?

[em-bee]

we are as a whole responsible for making the world a better place. everyone with their capacity and their ability to do something. now, i am not trying to judge what you are doing, nor am i suggesting you are not doing enough already. that's not the point. by living in the US you are however in a better position to work on this particular cause than i am living elsewhere. not because you are responsible in the sense of being guilty, but you, and everyone else in the US, is responsible in the sense of there being a wrong that needs to be righted.

otherwise we could just say nobody is responsible because it was all someone else. but if that someone else is not alive anymore then it is up to the current society to step up and fill in. guilt is not required. would you help orphan children whose parents died in an accident even if you were not involved? then why not help these people who have been deprived of their land and are now without the ability to govern themselves? the people of israel got their ancient homeland back after 2 millennia and were allowed to form a sovereign nation long after anyone could reasonably be called responsible for taking their land away. so why not do the same of the native american nations too?

the question is not: are you responsible? but: is there a wrong that needs to be fixed, and are you in a position to contribute to fixing it?

but to your last point: this has nothing to do with being upset about supersonic jets. actually i believe as far as it is reasonable native americans would be upset about noise pollution too, so you would probably be arguing their side here anyways.

[boelboel]

If anything the parents have more responsibility by making a conscious choice vs simply being born in the US.

I don't agree with this point of view either.