Don’t Make Promises You Cannot Keep
If you make a promise, whether in writing or simply via the words that come out of your mouth, you need to be willing to settle in the end.
Back during the Civil War, the city of Tampa issued a promissory note to storekeeper Thomas Pugh Kennedy in exchange for ammunition and other supplies. The city never did make good on the loan, but the descendants of Kennedy held onto the note.
Now Kennedy’s great-granddaughter, Joan Kennedy Biddle, is asking the city to pay the $299.58, plus 8 percent annual interest. That makes the promissory note potentially $22.7-million.
Tampa is fighting the claim. Personally, I think it reflects poorly on the city of Tampa. They swept debt under the proverbial carpet all those years ago, but that does not mean the debt disappeared. I say pay up. If I borrow money to buy a house or a car or even something as non-essential as a set of Cobra golf clubs, you can bet that I will hounded by the bank and credit collectors until I either pay or see my credit ruined. Time will never make my debt just go away. Why should it be any different for a government entity?
Posted on March 17th, 2008 by onecleardot
Filed under: Finance
Mrs. Biddle and her attorney should be fined for filing a nuisance law suit. Every former Confederate state was required to ratify amendments 13, 14, and 15 to the US Constitution as a condition of readmission to the United States. Read Amendment 14, Section 4; it makes all all Confederate debts null and void. The real lesson to learn is don’t expect to get repaid fore debts incurred by the losing side of a war.
Amendment 14
4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.
Because in 1861, the City of Tampa and Thomas Kennedy were engaged in Treason (Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort). A contract to further a criminal enterprise is never enforceable in court.
Ahh…but even your debt has a statute of limitations. Most states say that after 7 years, no one is allowed to pursue you for collection.
Besides that, the government that she’s suing has unincorporated and reincorporated several times which is equivalent to going through bankruptcy - the claim was never made when debts were called forth. It could have and could have been paid off. No one did. And the family has ‘known’ about this promissory note for years - so why didn’t they come forward?
The federal government maybe? At the time that note was issued, the federal government in control was the Confederate government. It doesn’t exist anymore. Like a company that went out of business - can’t sue them for money or Bear Stearns would be in even bigger trouble than it is now…..
So really, the claim isn’t legitimate since the organization that promised payment isn’t in existence any longer. And why’s she owed that money plus interest anyway? What entitles her?
People need to let go of things that happened in the past and have no bearing whatsoever on the life they had today. If she can prove unequivocably that not paying the $299 to that relative 147 years ago harmed her personally TODAY, then maybe - maybe….but really, it’s just someone looking for a handout. Not what’s really owed.