Posted on 06/15/2007 12:40:43 PM PDT by ruination
Go deeper.
That's what I keep thinking as Americans fight the Washington establishment (the Republican Party, the Democratic Party, their big contributors) on immigration. Go deeper. Look at the real emotions driving the struggle as opposed to what politicians and the media claim are "the high emotions surrounding this issue."
You know what I think is the American mood right now on immigration? Anti-immigration and for the immigrant. Against the abstract and for the particular.
We're against gushing borders and illegal immigration, which is at this point even souring the general mood on legal immigration, because we don't trust our bureaucrats to let in the people America needs. We don't trust our bureaucrats and leaders to care a lot about America. (We assume that when senators are together, if someone says, "But what about America?" everyone laughs, and then the top senator says, dryly, "Your concern is duly noted. Next.")
But that's the abstract, "immigration." In the particular--the immigrants we see and work with and know--we're for them.
We're asking for closed borders and pulling for newcomers.
And this isn't ambivalence, and it isn't confusion. It's common sense plus humanity.
The White House is exploiting American alarm at uncontrolled borders to get its way. This of course has added to the sense of national alarm. They believe the alarm works for them: If you don't pass our bill we'll never control your borders--yes, "your"--and you'll suffer! In the general air of agitation, anger festers. People feel powerless. Rage follows, and in this case I believe deep fissures will follow that.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
Well, that’s my take on it (and those of the Immigration Lawyers I work for).
This article kind of starts out good but then pretty much loses itself. Good first half.
(We assume that when senators are together, if someone says, “But what about America?” everyone laughs, and then the top senator says, dryly, “Your concern is duly noted. Next.”)
That’s a big “if,” isn’t it? Few senators are going to say “what about America” these days.
Just close the borders and forget they are illegal doesn’t satisfy the rule of law nor does it address via such rewards to all the legitimate people wanting to come here waiting in line.
“We should close the border, pause, absorb what we have, and set ourselves to “patriating” the newcomers who are here. The young of AmeriCorps might help teach them English. Those reaching retirement age, who happen to be the last people in America who were taught and know American history, could help them learn the story of our country. We could, as a nation, set our minds to this.”
A warm perspective and correctly portends.
Yes, Peggy, that’s right.
We’re Americans and we love immigrants. But we must have control over our borders.
Email key Senate Aides about immigration:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1850941/posts
Did you try it—I can’t make it work? I pasted them all into Bcc and sent the email to myself but the addresses error as unrecognized. I can’t even get it to send. What am I doing wrong? I use Outlook.
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 illegal immigration plank and the ones in marginal districts who could be vulnerable. keep pounding on them. This is a bipartisan issue not a Conservative or Liberal issue BUT AN AMERICAN issue.
If this sentence only had something like "absorb what we want, deport what we do not" in place of the too lackadaisical "absorb what we have", then it would be the best bit of English I've read in years.
I'm not, and never have been, in complete lockstep with Peggy Noonan. Also, I really don't like her on TV too much at all, but the woman can write. And, she can think, and I think this is a pretty good column. A needed column. Some concepts here are nice to have as ammo against dumbass "we don't need no stinking border" scum and "reconquista" militants.
A fine opinion piece, though the notion that is even possible to be “anti-immigration and for the immigrant” is probably incomprehensible to the Republican leadership — and the Democrat leadership, and the MSM, and so on.
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