Posted on 10/19/2003 1:48:02 PM PDT by quidnunc
At the time of the first Mexican-American War, there were strains in Mexican as well as American society that parallel the strains in both societies today. Most importantly, the Mexican government at that time was split between the Federalists and the Centralists. The Centralists favored an autocratic government and wanted to regain the lost territory of Texas, whereas the Federalists we more in favor of democratic reforms.
In the United States, the major strain was between the liberal Abolitionists who feared that Texas would become a slave holding state, and the Nationalists who envisioned America stretching ''from sea to shining sea.'' It may be helpful to look again at some of this history to see if we can understand what the future may hold for these two countries.
People on both sides of the Mexican/U. S. border have to be reminded that Mexico has a different history from the United States. The indigenous Aztecs practiced such cannibalism and human sacrifice that it shocked even the brutal Spanish conquistadors. Mexico has yet to repudiate its Aztec past the way the Germans repudiated their Nazi past.
The 1910 revolution in Mexico was no stroll down the Paseo de la Reforma, either. One just has to read Martin Luis Guzman's book The Eagle and the Serpent, to realize how bloody that revolution was. Although military casualties were high on both sides of the American War Between the States, civilian casualties were much higher during the Mexican Revolution.
Mexican culture is also different from American culture. An example of one important cultural difference between Mexico and the U. S. is religion. Mexico has Roman Catholic traditions, while the U. S. mainly has Protestant traditions. There were cultural reasons why Texas did not want to remain part of Mexico and first seceded and then became part of the United States. Many of those reasons are still valid today, in spite of NAFTA and Mexico's immigration and nationalization policies. Many Mexican immigrants to the U. S. have no desire to assimilate, to speak English, nor to become Americans. They are aggressively seeking to replace our culture with theirs.
When we celebrate Columbus Day in the U. S., and the Mexicans celebrate ''El Día de la Raza,'' a statement is being made about how two cultures view their place in the world. El Día de la Raza can be translated as ''The Day of the Race,'' an expression that has definite racist overtones. Columbus Day may carry overtones of conquest, but it links our culture with Europe. The Day of the Race links Mexican culture with a brutal and indigenous people, the Aztecs, and carries shades of revenge and empire. The day of the Race is Mexico's answer to our ''manifest destiny.''
During the ''conquista,'' Spain tried to impose on Mexico a common western language, religion, and culture, and to the degree it was successful. It was also anti-American. We should remember that the Spaniards were building the great cathedral at the Zocolo in Mexico City a hundred years before George Washington took control of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts. Here are two different world views, sharing the same continent.
In his article, Clash of Civilizations?, Samuel P. Huntington reminds us that cultural differences may cause future wars, and that these wars will be along cultural ''fault lines.'' The U. S. — Mexican border is one of those fault lines. Huntington writes, ''Civilization identity will be increasingly important in the future, and the world will be shaped in large measure by the interactions among seven or eight major civilizations. ...The most important conflicts of the future will occur along the cultural fault lines separating these civilizations from one another.''
In regard to Mexico, Huntington writes, ''During the past decade, Mexico has assumed a position somewhat similar to that of Turkey. Just as Turkey abandoned its historic opposition to Europe and attempted to join Europe, Mexico has stopped defining itself by its opposition to the United States and is instead attempting to imitate the United States.'' However, unlike Canada, Mexico has a large, nonwestern, indigenous population that has not yet been integrated into modernity. This native population also carries an unconscious weight of resentment towards the Spanish conquest, which it now mistakenly displaces onto the U. S.
-snip-
(Excerpt) Read more at chronwatch.com ...
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/10/17/42232.shtml
George Putnam It is this reporter's opinion that the president took a hands-off approach to California's recall until we arrived at a decision and the choice of Arnold Schwarzenegger as the governor-elect. Now Bush and Schwarzenegger are embracing, both sending out mixed signals on immigration. Perhaps both should revisit Article 4, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution, which states: "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion. ..." There's that word again: INVASION. There are approximately 20 million Mexican immigrants living in the U.S. It is estimated that between 3 million and 5 million are illegals. The impact on California is that nearly one quarter of our current $38-40 billion deficit stems directly from immigration. And yet with our state government's $6.4 billion debt growing, the administration continues to tolerate porous borders and an influx of impoverished, undereducated, unskilled labor pouring across our borders. We're providing a welfare state for Mexico! The costs of immigration are simply overwhelming. Americans pay nearly $8 billion annually for educating the children of illegal aliens. Even as states struggle with billions in debt, our federal government continues to advocate massive immigration of 1.5 million annually. And nothing is being done to stop 800,000 illegals pouring across our borders each year. The Center for Immigration Studies in Washington estimates that illegal aliens have cost U.S. workers $133 billion in job losses. Plain figures are frightening. Hispanic babies born in California – automatic citizens – defy the figures. At UCLA Medical Center, a 35-year-old lady we'll call "Maria" was recovering after giving birth to her sixth child, says she can't wait to have another. Her grandmother had 25 children. Her mother gave birth to 18. Maria had her first child at 14. The father says, "There's a lot of joy in each of them, but we don't have enough money." U.S.-born children of Latino immigrants will emerge as the largest component of the Hispanic population over the next 20 years. California has the largest number of Hispanics with 12 million, about one-third of its total population, followed by Texas, New York, Florida and Illinois. Los Angeles County has the largest population of Hispanics among all counties – approximately 5 million. The costs to Americans of caring for all these people are prohibitive: Food stamps and medical benefits cost $65 billion annually.
Friday, Oct. 17, 2003
All this ... and yet our leaders keep sending mixed signals concerning the illegal alien invasion. The governor-elect of California hints that he might support an amnesty program for illegals in California. In late August, Schwarzenegger said illegal aliens already in the country should be permitted to stay. More recently, he said he supported a bill sponsored by Sen. John McCain that would grand temporary working permits to allow illegal immigrants to travel to and from the U.S. and loosen the requirements to apply for visas. And Schwarzenegger added, "I want to make all undocumented immigrants DOCUMENTED AND LEGAL in this country." These are the people we elect to public office – people who have sworn to uphold the Constitution, protect U.S. citizens and guarantee our security and sovereignty. If this state of affairs continues, our beloved nation will become another Third World catastrophe. America will be divided – the wealthy at the top; the impoverished, undereducated, unskilled at the bottom; and a diminishing middle class trying to carry the load. The governor-elect and president have a lot to talk about.
Then what? Annex Mexico?
That's good and positive.....it sure beats just whining about it.
That is why I always figured that the War Against Mexico starts by War against Washington DC. Bush is no different than the 'Mexican elites' in that he plots with them to destroy the border states. Being that the Demoncat candidates all are on the side of sedition and surrender to the kletocracy of Mexico, what have we left to do but to start the purge with our own so-called leaders?
I pity our children and the miserable lives they will inherit.
You're being a nativist. Hispanics inside the U.S. simply mean to live fruitful lives like they wish Mexico was. Mexico does not speak english and does not have the same culture as us.
Oh so?
I have a Mexican family living in back of me.
This family has a bunch of grade-school-age kids who are never allowed to leave their yard.
And they're never allowed to leave their yard because the parents don't want them to be exposed to American kids, who the parents think will corrupt their children.
So they play by themselves in their back yard all day and throw stuff over the fence into my yard.
Yup. Pretty much just what you said.
Annex them, or they will "annex" _us_, by demographics.
Take your pick.
Cheers!
- John
I DO think that going to war against Mexico in order to "protect" our Anglo-European culture from the "threat" on the Latino influence is just absurd. . . . destructive . . . dangerous . . . self-fulfilling.
Yeah, I heard that last week...I am surprised they haven't locked him out. His days are numbered.
Times are a changin....
To bad our leaders no longer care......
To bad it's the truth..As America begs for relief from this never ending flood of illegals into our country........
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.