Off Topic:
Controllers blamed for 2 near-collisions
Air traffic controllers at O'Hare Airport were apparently at fault for two incidents last week in which planes had to abort take-offs to avoid hitting other aircraft, the Federal Aviation Administration said Saturday.
Only about 100 feet separated two planes Tuesday that were instructed to take off at the same time on intersecting runways, FAA spokesman Tony Molinaro said.
Thursday morning, two planes came within 600 feet of each other before the pilots were alerted and one plane stopped its takeoff.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-ohare26.html
Illegals will strain state's economy
I moved here from Southern California myself a year ago due to the illegal immigration problem in California.
Mr. Main is 100 percent correct: We must control or stop altogether the soaring and costly influx of immigrants. Due to the financial burden placed on the California public services such as hospitals, education, law enforcement and the like, California is experiencing huge financial difficulties. The old saying in California is "would the last American to leave please take down the flag."
I've witnessed first hand how immigration strangles our economy, and I won't let it happen to Missouri.
http://www.news-leader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060325/OPINIONS03/603250314/1006
How older citizen might view illegals
Most older Americans talk politics different from their children and grandchildren.
After seven or eight decades on this Earth, they've seen a lot, so their opinions are based on observations more than abstract arguments.
A young man debating immigration will cite demographic facts and economic figures.
"In California, population density is rising each year,'' he might say. "If we liberalize our immigration laws the growth rate will only increase, and crime will increase with it.''
An old man will offer an insight into human nature, or tell a story hoping to convey an underlying truth.
"When I was young we used to hunt rabbits where that new tract is going up,'' he might say. "Now there are so many people crowding together that there's no room for a peaceful life. I've seen a lot of places where people are packed together. Every time they just got more crowded, covered in graffiti and run down.''
Many Americans - older Americans particularly - have cultural concerns about immigration. After a lifetime observing this country, its culture, and its people, they find some changes today deeply troubling. They may join the conversation about how immigrants affect employment figures or how illegal immigration has taxed the Department of Homeland Security.
Yet they've formed their opinions based on something more complex and intuitive. They take a lifetime of experiences, insights and observations. These coalesce into a worldview. That worldview affects their opinions on immigration; immigration affects their worldview, too.
"All my life I worked hard for my family so that they'd have better than I did. My wife and I skipped vacations and drove used cars to start a college fund for our sons. We cleaned our own house and cut our own grass. We could've cut corners, cheated here and there on our taxes, but we played by the rules instead. We cut coupons. If an unexpected cost came up we went without something else. We did things by the book even when it didn't seem fair.
"We would've liked three kids, but we settled for two. It took a while to save enough to have our first child. As the second one got to school age he needed surgery that our insurance only covered half of, so we took out a loan and never did feel like we could afford a third child."
"Now I've got grandkids I'd like to help send to college. It costs more every year. Already I've had to put some of
that money toward an emergency room visit for my wife. It didn't used to cost so much, but they say the illegals don't have medical insurance, so it drives up the cost for the rest of us.
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http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_3637547