Posted on 05/16/2007 10:25:05 PM PDT by Cacique
Many of you who know me from either my pings or past posts and FReeps may know that I do not post that often since I have been here. But recent events and what appears to be a penchant by the elites to ram changes in law and the constitution down our throats, regardless of the fact that most Americans oppose such changes has prompted me to write this about an issue I think is critical to the both the long term and short term future of this country. I am of course speaking of that farce in the senate under the guise of reform, but which is in reality a mass amnesty for people who are here illegally. Many who arguably mean to do harm to this country.
To begin with, I feel I must tell you a bit about myself and my credentials on this subject so that you understand why I urge you to act now.
I am a legal immigrant to this country who arrived here on my 10th birthday with my parents in April of 1962. I was born in Latin America and I am tri-lingual and fluent in all three languages I speak. Spanish is of course one of them. Things were different way back then, at least as far as immigration laws were concerned. My parents and I had to wait several years to be given permission to emigrate here. At that time I had both an Uncle and an Aunt living in the Unites States, a sister and a brother of my mother's. It was her wish to join them that convinced my father to move here although initially he was against it. Since there was no family reunification at the time he had to get someone else to vouch for him (so he wouldn't become a vagrant dependent on the state) and obtain employment before coming here before he would even be allowed to emigrate. My father should have had an edge due to the fact that he had served with US forces during World War II under the command of US officers in what were then known as "Slavonic" Divisions. None of that mattered, he had to stand in line like everyone else.
This picture was taken sometime in 1944, possibly on leave in London. My father is the guy on the right.
I could bore you with more details but I simply bring these things up as a reference point to what follows.
I am a political scientist by training a PhD Candidate at the CUNY graduate Center, otherwise known as an ABD. I have been involved in numerous political campaigns starting with Giuliani's first run for mayor (a race he lost to Dinkins). I have run assembly campaigns, a US Senate campaign and a US Congressional campaign. I have been active in politics for all of my adult life and have traveled the ideological road from being a committed Marxist and Stalinist in my College years to being a staunch conservative republican today. I think I know a thing or two about politics and what makes both people on the left and the right tick.
I am familiar with Latin culture not only from an academic perspective, but also from an interactive one, as I interact with all my fellow Latinos each and very day. I know what they think and I know what their attitudes are as they will tell me things they will not tell outsiders. a couple of years ago I posted a piece by Sam Huntington that I believe is a must read by all here.
Fast forward to the present and I currently live in a section in Brooklyn, New York that is by all accounts a major focus of illegal immigrants. Mostly from Mexico, Ecuador and San Salvador with a sprinkling of Dominicans and even Chinese illegals.
Very briefly I will tell you that if there is an amnesty in this country America as we know will cease to exist in less than a generation. I am totally dismayed that many countries in the West have opted to commit national suicide and we seem to have decided to join them.
The elites in Washington have decided that their short term interests trump the long term interests of the nation. The issue of immigration is NOT a democratic or republican issue. IT IS a national issue. The supporters of amnesty have narrow interests that are either economic or political short term interests without having given any thought whatsoever. The crowd in Washington goes to the same clubs, eats in the same restaurants, live in gated communities and socialize with other members of the financial and political elites. Any negative impacts on the society at large they tend to be immune from. It is clear there is a faction that is hell bent on depressing wages and attract cheap manual labor in order to compete with third world hellholes. At the same time the catholic church is salivating at the prospect of filling the pews and collection baskets in their churches. The activists in the democratic party are salivating at the prospect of another underclass they can control and exploit. All these forces have coalesced to bring about the present situation. Polls have been consistent in that over 68% of american voters oppose amnesty to illegal immigrants. Over 60% of union households oppose amnesty. Yet the elites are in total disconnect with this because they have decided the public can do nothing to stop them and will likely not do anything to penalize them later. What matters to them is the fact that corporate donors who fund their campaigns have made no bones about the fact that they want an amnesty, or more precisely they demand one.
A few myths
The excuses to support amnesty are many and varied. One is that most of these hispanics are family oriented and will become conservative. The real fact is that most illegals come from the poverty stricken lower classes. Many have relationships and children out of wedlock. The catholicism they practice is much closer to the "liberation theology" variant which is nothing more than Marxism with a God. They bring with them a deep class resentment of not only the wealthy but the middle classes and a racist resentment of whites. Latin American Christianity is also a heavy admixture of traditional pre-colombian gods and elements and would be totally unrecognizable to catholics here. The church pretends all these people are catholics so they can claim their numbers.
Democrats have a delusion that they will be able to manipulate them and garner their votes. Activists in their community are very much aware of this. Most latin american marxists are much closer to the stalinist type than the fashionista left in this country who is leftist because it's the fashion of their peers. Latinos who are marxists, are committed doctrinaire marxists much closer to the Cuban or North Korean model. They have little use for rich white kids who want to be weekend revolutionaries. They also understand that they have a greater chance of projecting power and influence if they keep their communities in control and separate. I had expected them to demand schools exclusively in spanish but they were beaten by the muslims by a hair here in brooklyn. The Madrasa in brooklyn may have been delayed but it is only a matter of time before the demands will surface again. Accusations of cultural imperialism and racism will be lodged against those that demand they assimilate. The "community leaders" know full well that any assimilation is a dilution of their power, therefore they will promote the opposite.
Any comparisons between immigrants of today and those of yesteryear are irrelevant. They were different times and the world was quite different. In 1900 an immigrant to America came on a one way trip, he knew he was not going back. Entire villages collected money for the trip to send one of their own. Passage meant at least a year's wages even in steerage. Today's immigrant is a cheap plane ticked and a few hours away from home. He arrives to a country where he can feel at home in an insular community where his language is spoken. There are radio and television stations available in his own language as well as newspapers and magazines. Mass communications means he is just a phone call away from speaking to his friends back home. The economies of scale make all of this possible in today's world. Today's immigrant is helped by modern technology to feel like he is home in any community of his compatriots abroad. And should he feel homesick it takes only a couple of week's wages and a plane ticket to return home for a visit. None of these things were available to the immigrant a century ago. Another difference is that the immigrant of a century ago came mostly from Western countries to another western country the main difference being the food and language from where he came from.
Latin America is nominally Western. The western portion resides in the main cities and among the educated. In most countries with the possible exception of Argentina and Brazil the indigenous cultures that were found by the conquistadores still exist in stark contrast to what one finds in the cities. It is those who are predominantly the "mojados" that one finds in this country, not the country club upper class that Bush hob nobs with.
Two things happened in Spain in 1492. One was the trip by Cristobal Colon. The other was the final conquest of Andalus. The inquisition was organized mainly to reconvert all those souls who were under islam for 700 years. The result is that many of the conquistadores who came here were a generation away from being muslims. They brought with them a world view much closer to islam than the view of a sophisticated catholic from Italy. The concepts of machismo, guerra sin cuarto, Caudillismo etc. are elements from the islamic period that remained a part of spanish culture in Latin America. There are a lot of parallels between Latin American culture in it's conservatism and what one would find in the middle east. This is something that needs to be kept in mind.
Assimilation is not a guaranteed phenomenon. We have currently numerous groups that have as yet not assimilated even though they have been here for over a century. I can think of the Hasidic jews for starters, or the Amish, or perhaps the Hutterites. The only difference is that their theology has nothing in it that compels them to try to conquer our lands and convert us.
Demographics
I don't think I need to write much on the birth rate factor. One can search all over the net to see the statistics. Muslims and illegals are the fastest reproducing segment of the population. As the population shifts and new groups become more numerous the power center will shift. The losers? Indigenous american indians, caucasians and blacks.
There is the lie that there are only 12 million illegals in this country. That number keeps getting thrown around as if is gospel. The fact is that we have no clue how many are here. If one takes the estimate that ten years ago there were 10,000 crossings a day at the border and extrapolates 3.5 million illegals a year then we can rest assured the 12 million figure is totally wrong. It could be as high as 35 million or even as high as 70 million. Do a search on the web and you will see that all the claims could be valid. remember the last amnesty in 1984? I do. We were promised that they would secure the borders, that the amnesty would mean that fewer people would come and that we would enforce immigration laws. Of course it was all naive and a pipe dream. Think this amnesty will stop more people coming? You haven't seen anything yet. Once people all over the world get wind of what a bunch of chumps we are they will come over in droves like we have never seen. You can't feed a crocodile and expect it to be satisfied with a morsel.
The losers
So who will lose if there's amnesty? Oddly enough most of the big losers are part of the grand democratic coalition. Union workers, their leaders only see more members, the rank and file will fall to depressed wages and downward pressures in their standard of living. Blacks will lose influence as a group and will be played off against the emerging mexican hispanic power block. Their population which reached a peak of 14% of the population is in decline and will continue to decline as illegals have more children. Women will find that the male dominated culture of machismo and the misogynist muslim outlook will make for interesting times in the future. Gays will find much less tolerance among Latinos and Muslims for their lifestyle, even from the left. They ought to get an idea at how gays are treated in Cuba to get a hint. The middle class as always will face increasing taxation to pay for all the programs and services that will be demanded by the new majorities. The elderly will find that most of the new workers brought in to prop up the welfare state will have little tolerance to pay for those on the retirement dole. That will have implications in the near future. Other hispanics, in particular Puerto Ricans and Dominicans who will find themselves elbowed out by the Mexicans. This phenomenon is already happening in the hispanic caucus and other national hispanic organizations where the divisions among hispanics are coming into the open. For many hispanics who are second and third generation americans the honeymoon is begriming to come to an end. Jews will find perhaps a rise in anti semitism. Latin America is home to a particularly virulent form that rears it's ugly head quite often. Ingrained in Spanish catholicism and fed by marxist solidarity for arabs it will always be there under the surface. Republicans and Conservatives we will be the biggest losers in this game. Most of the activists among the Mecha and Aztlan types are already forging alliances with radicals in the muslim community. We may get a few new republicans from these new immigrants, but the reality is that the class and race hatred that many of them bring with them will likely be passed on to new generations as they are in most groups.
The next stage
I could go on and write a dissertation on the subject, but that is not my purpose nor is there time for that. One side argues that we can;'t get rid of all illegals in this country. I believe they are wrong. They don't want to get rid of the illegals here. There was a time not long ago, about 15 years ago that New York was home to one of the largest communities of illegal Irish immigrants. It was estimated at the time there were upwards of half a million illegal irish immigrants in New York. An interesting thing happened though. It was the Irish miracle, the economy took a turn North and opportunities were everywhere. The result is that almost all of those half million illegals returned home. It was a matter of incentive. If you make it difficult for illegals to work in this country and punish those who hire them I guarantee you will see the phenomenon repeated again.
What is to be done?
In 1902 V.I. Lenin published a pamphlet entitled "What is To Be Done?" it was a blueprint for his political ideas on taking power. In a way, we need our own approach to this problem. The issue of immigration is an issue that affects all of us in a very likely negative way far beyond our political ideologies if we are Americans. We need to reach out and awaken all those groups that do not currently see the urgency but who will be adversely affected by the coming changes. We need a coalition of the unlikely.
We need to reach out to rank and file workers, both union and outside. This has to be a grassroots mobilization made up of individuals rather than a national organization. American Hispanics born here must understand that they are about to be elbowed out and will lose bug time. Gays must understand that if they think Jerry Falwell was bad for them, they haven't seen intolerance yet. Women must understand that any gains they may have had with regards to the workplace and society can be swept away just as easily as they have been put in place. Jews must understand that the rising anti semitism will get worse, not better.
A postage stamp an envelope and e-mail
In politics as in economics, perception is reality. The level of commitment by an opponent is gauged by his determination and how much he is willing to invest in opposing something. The anti-amnesty crowd has not been very successful because they have been disorganized and have been painted as racists and bigots as the Minutemen have. You cannot give them a target to latch onto. Responding to such attacks gives only credence to the attacker. This has to be totally a citizen to citizen uprising. If you know other Hispanics who oppose amnesty contact the. Have Black friends? Explain to them how they stand to lose out (they know already) start networking. Call all your acquaintances and friends and send them e-mails. Fear is a great motivator, it is the one thing that moves people to action and motivates them to show up at the polls.
DO NOT JUST SEND EMAILS TO YOUR CONGRESSMAN OR SENATOR. For the most part they get deleted as spam and don't have much impact. It also shows a lack of commitment and that you are lazy. INSTEAD INVEST IN POSTAGE STAMPS. There is nothing more impressive than postal service trucks showing up at congress with bags full of envelopes with paper mail.
USE THE PHONES, CALL AND CLOG THEIR LINES. ONA CELLPHONE A CALL TO WASHINGTON IS A LOCAL CALL. Faxes are a waste of time. There is a physical limit to how many faxes a fax machine can receive.
FReerepublic is the right place to start this. But we must reach out from beyond our narrow confines. Beyond conservatives, beyond republicans, beyond democrats.
Do this as if your future depends on it, because it does.
Do this as if your children's future depends on it, because it does.
Do this as if the nation's future depends on it, because it does.
SEND AN ENVELOPE WITH A PERSONAL LETTER TO YOUR CONGRESSMAN, YOUR SENATOR. CALL THE LOCAL COUNTY LEADERS. DON'T LIMIT IT TO WASHINGTON, CALL THE LOCAL POLITICIANS AS WELL. THE GOVERNOR OF YOUR STATE ETC.
YOU MUST RAISE HELL!! THE ONLY WAY TO BE HEARD IS TO YELL.
Why not ? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Do you really want to read a story all over the wires about a Freeper who starts his own armed resistance against the POTUS ? There are left wing nuts and there are right wing nuts. Some people just go nuts over one issue or another. We have to protect FR from that kind of publicity. Some people just lose themselves and you are better to separate them from the herd.
CALL! CALL! CALL! CALL! AND KEEP CALLING TILL THE LINES FRY!
WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! TILL YOU RUN OUT OF INK IN YOUR PEN!
Bombard the Democrats as well, especially the ones that ran on an anti immigration plank and the ones in marginal districts who could be vulnerable. keep pounding on them.
A lot of things that are done in this country anymore are traitorous. While its mostly the Democrats doing this, Republicans aren’t exempt from doing the exact same thing. Neither party is perfect.
And for the record, I am not calling Bush a traitor. I’m saying what he is doing with this bill is traitorous. There’s a difference.
Money talks. I just got a request for money from the RNC yesterday. I sent the envelope back with no check and a strongly worded note about how I will not support the party so long as it continues to sell out our security and conservative principles.
Contact the RNC and express your outrage:
Office of the Chairman
Mike Duncan, RNC Chairman
Phone: 202-863-8700
Fax: 202-863-8820
Email: Chairman@gop.com
Office of the Co-Chairman
Jo Ann Davidson, Co-Chairman
Phone: 202-863-8545
Fax: 202-863-8631
Email: Info@gop.com
Finance
Marketing
Donor Programs
Phone: 202-863-8720
Fax: 202-863-8690
Email: Finance@gop.com
Political
Campaign Operations
Voter Programs
Phone: 202-863-8600
Fax: 202-863-8808
Email: Political@gop.com
Contact the NRSC to express your outrage:
National Republican Senatorial Committee
Ronald Reagan Republican Center
425 2nd Street NE
Washington, DC 20002
Telephone: (202) 675-6000
Contact the NRCC to express your outrage:
National Republican Congressional Committee
320 First Street, S.E
Washington, D.C. 20003
NRCC Main Number - (202) 479-7000
Information on Contributing - (202) 479-7000
Executive - (202)479-7000
Administration - (202)479-7000
Finance - (202)479-7000
Communications - (202)479-7000
I forgot to say BRAVO! Great article, and I like the photo of your dad.
Also of note, if you have time, I'd suggest reading post #37 on this same thread. Link to #37
Pass it along!
I have a vague feeling that this is correct. The problem is, whom to address and whom to ignore in addressing the mail?
I would not waste my time writing to genuine nutjobs like that stoned driver Migden, Boxer, or insane Pelosi.
How effective is it to write to my own senators and representatives?
Does it make more sense to write to committees and their chairmen?
The process is stacked against the citizen who wants to be engaged.
Checked out the rules and regulations just to do mass mailing to your neighbors? Non-profit status? It boggles the mind, and ensures only "approved players" get to play. As individuals, we're essentially political capons...
That is a totally useless and baseless opinion.
How have you managed to troll since 2002?
Attacking legal immigration is the dumbest thing I have seen in years, and does not even remotely represent the overwhelming number of Freepers.
Good luck!
Rewarding Illegal Aliens: Senate Bill Undermines The Rule of Law
Quick outline of the content:
...The following are ten of the worst provisions—by no means an exhaustive list—of Title VI of the bill...
I encourage everyone to read this article. The devil is truly in the details. I was nauseous after reading it.
Legal immigration policies are a bigger problem than illegal immigration and much more difficult to solve. I don't care what represents the majority of Freepers or not, but I do know the issue far better than you do.
We do need to change the existing immigration laws that are not serving us well as a nation. We are taking in more legal immigrants than ever before, just not the ones we need to provide us with the skills and talents required to keep us competitive in the global economy.
What is going on today is unprecedented in our nation's history. Here are some facts gleaned from Bureau of the Census data that provide an indication of what is really happening:
---The 35.2 million immigrants (legal and illegal) living in the country in March 2005 is the highest number ever recorded -- two and a half times the 13.5 million during the peak of the last great immigration wave in 1910.
---Between January 2000 and March 2005, 7.9 million new immigrants (legal and illegal) settled in the country, making it the highest five-year period of immigration in American history.
---Immigrants account for 12.1 percent of the total population, the highest percentage in eight decades. If current trends continue, within a decade it will surpass the high of 14.7 percent reached in 1910.
---Of adult immigrants, 31 percent have not completed high school, three-and-a-half times the rate for natives. Since 1990, immigration has increased the number of such workers by 25 percent, while increasing the supply of all other workers by 6 percent.
---The proportion of immigrant-headed households using at least one major welfare program is 29 percent, compared to 18 percent for native households.
---The poverty rate for immigrants and their U.S.-born children (under 18) is 18.4 percent, 57 percent higher than the 11.7 percent for natives and their children. Immigrants and their minor children account for almost one in four persons living in poverty.
---One-third of immigrants lack health insurance -- two-and-one‑half times the rate for natives. Immigrants and their U.S.‑born children account for almost three-fourths (nine million) of the increase in the uninsured population since 1989.
A central question for immigration policy is: Should we allow in so many people with little education, which increases job competition for the poorest American workers and the size of the population needing government assistance? How did we get into this predicament in the first place?
Prior to 1965, the US was taking around 178,000 legal immigrants annually. In 1965, Congress replaced the national origins system with a preference system designed to unite immigrant families and attract skilled immigrants to the United States. With these changes and some subsequent ones, the result was that most of our legal immigrants now come from Asia and Latin America, and not Europe. Chain migration designed to unite families has also brought in aged parents, children, uncles, etc., many of whom are not contributing to our society and in fact, require more social services. Even with quotas in certain immigration categories, we are now legalizing the status of over one million people annually and millions more are waiting in lines overseas for their turn to come in. Chain migration has also changed the "mix" of immigrants, making it less diverse.
Mexico accounts for 31 percent of all immigrants, with 10.8 million immigrants living in United States, more than the number of immigrants from any other region of the world. Immigrants from Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean account for the majority of immigrants, with 54 percent of the foreign‑born coming from these areas. Of those who arrived 2000 to 2005, 58 percent are from Latin America. This lack of diversity has hindered assimilation and could well result in the Balkanization of the country by language and culture.
We need a rational, sensible immigration policy for many reasons, some of them economic and some of them cultural, i.e., the ability to assimilate these massive numbers into our society . Since 1970, the population of the US has increased by 100 million; since 1990; by 53 million; and since 2000 by 20 million or the equivalent of our six largest cities. The Bureau of the Census projects that we will have 364 million by 2030 and over 400 million by 2050 with one-quarter of the population being Hispanic. The annual arrival of 1.5 million legal and illegal immigrants, coupled with 750,000 annual births to immigrant women, is the determinate factor or three-fourths of all U.S. population growth. If this current Senate bill passes, our LEGAL immigration rate will increase threefold to 3 million a year, which will inflate the numbers above. Chain migration has an exponential effect. We could well have a population of over 500 million by 2050.
These additional people will require infrastructure [roads, water, electricity, gasoline, etc.], and impact our schools, hospitals, social welfare systems, penal system, etc. Couple these increases with an aging US population faced with entitlement programs about to go belly-up in 10 years and you have some serious public policy issues that could threaten the future of this country.
Just as Social Security is the third rail of American politics, so is real immigration reform. No one really talks about decreasing the numbers of legal immigrants or changing the laws to give us a system that acts to benefit this country in terms of supplying us with people who will contribute economically to our national well-being. We are after all a "nation of immigrants" and our politicians and others speak as though we have gone through all of this before. No one is against legal immigration, and some even want to increase the numbers. The real fact is that we are taking in unprecedented numbers of legal immigrants and when you add an additional 500,000 to one million illegal aliens annually, you have a recipe for disaster.
I compare what is happening in terms of immigration to the oft-repeated example of boiling a frog who is put in a pot of cold water with the heat slowing being increased until the frog realizes too late that it is being boiled alive. Eventually, the American people will realize what is happening. It will come down to whom do you believe, the political elites' spin or "your own lyin' eyes."
The illegal immigration problem is easier to correct than the issues surrounding legal immigration. To me, the greater problem is legal immigration and our existing laws that contain the seeds of our own destruction. America is the world's lifeboat, the best hope of Man, but there are limits to the numbers we can bring onboard without swamping us. We already take in more legal immigrants than probably the rest of the world combined. We need, as a country, a public policy debate on this issue--a debate not marked by demagoguery and name calling.
I'm sure you do; I won't discuss megalomania with you.
Here's the problem. Many if not most of the issues you have with legal immigration are actually "illegal immigrant" issues. Confounding the principal current main issue is simply a time-proven means of failure.
It's like you arguing and insisting that we must address the termite problem when my house is on fire. I have a certain level of tolerance for obsessive personalities, but not in this case.
There is an immediate and serious problem. It needs addressing. If your reach exceeds your grasp, enjoy it. I am focusing on the real world, the realm of the possible and not pipe dreams.
Insist on all and fail, or focus on one victory at a time, and perhaps have some hope of change.
You’re right.
Our Nation is being radically transformed by a process that is mostly legal.
The Mosques springing up like mushrooms in our homeland cater mostly to LEGAL immigrants.
LOL. That remark doesn't even make sense in the context of this discussion.
Here's the problem. Many if not most of the issues you have with legal immigration are actually "illegal immigrant" issues. Confounding the principal current main issue is simply a time-proven means of failure.
For instance? There are two sets of issues, one having to do with people who come here legally and those that don't. Where they become related is when we give the illegals amnesty and imbue them with a legalized status that allows them through chain migration, to bring in more of their relatives. A large majority of our adult LEGAL immigrants don't have even a high school education. Does it make sense to bring in high school dropouts while we tell our kids to stay in school recognizing that education determines how well you do in this society? The proportion of immigrant-headed households using at least one major welfare program is 29 percent, compared to 18 percent for native households
It's like you arguing and insisting that we must address the termite problem when my house is on fire. I have a certain level of tolerance for obsessive personalities, but not in this case.
The fire is easier to put out than solving the termite problem, as strained as that analogy is. The current senate bill touches on items like chain migration and the "rights" of the illegals. Once we give the 12 to 20 million illegals legal status, then they are entitled to many of the benefits enjoyed by other legal residents of this country, including chain migration. The 12 to 20 million quickly becomes many more people who will also become legal residents of this country. You can build all the fences you want, but once these 12 to 20 million are legalized, the game is over. That is what people like Rector and Samuelson are talking about.
The real problem is immigration, legal and illegal. Twice as many people come here legally every year than illegally. We also have several million more coming here on "temporary" visas.
If you are really serious about the subject, something I have had firsthand experience with, professionally and personally, I suggest you read the following:"
The Hispanic Challenge By Samuel P. Huntington
Two Sides of the Same Coin: The Connection Between Legal and Illegal Immigration
DEMOGRAPHY IS DESTINY.
truth!!!!
White guilt seems to be the single force driving liberals. It’s completely irrational, and as we’ve seen, dangerous.
Well, there are reasons to attack the legal immigration program that we have.
First, it makes it very difficult for skilled individuals to come to this country. I’ve had friends from Romania and France that tried to come here for years. One French girl just gave up and went to Canada. She speaks fluent English, has a degree in engineering, and would have been a fabulous asset to our country.
Our immigration system, like Romney suggests, is upside down. The unskilled labororer who doesn’t speak English is on the fasttrack here. The skilled, educated, and fluent English speaker, especially from Europe, is stonewalled by beaurocracy.
We need to work at bringing skilled people here who come from a comparable background. Less of the Arabic baggage, too. More from Asia and Eastern Europe.
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