I think what we did to Japanese Americans during WWII was one of the darkest, most embarrassing things the American government has ever done, and we all should be ashamed of what happened, and make sure nothing like this ever happens again.
As for the payout, I would wholeheratedly agree with what was done if it occurred in 1945-46 instead of 1988. The government in place that committed the atrocity should have accepted the responsibility, not the generation afterward. I think the gesture was much too late, as many taxpayers footed the bill who had nothing to do with it.
Maybe I’m being too simplistic and naive, but I feel we advance ourselves by looking forward and not repeating the mistakes of the past, rather than trying to atone for all of them.
