The disunited states

Townhall.com ^ | August 15, 2002 | Cal Thomas

[gubamyster]

August 15, 2002

As more information from the 2000 Census is released, it's increasingly clear that this is not our parents' country. Ethically, it stopped being their country in the 1960s. Ethnically, it now resembles not a united nation, but a United Nations, with divisions along class, racial, religious, language and ideological lines. Our national motto, E pluribus unum ("out of many, one,") no longer applies.

Census figures show that one out of every nine residents is now foreign-born. The response from politicians? Many are signing up for Spanish lessons. They should be telling immigrants to sign up for English lessons.

Yes, we are a nation of immigrants. There is a difference, however, between the way immigrants were treated a century ago during the Great Wave, and how they are treated today.

Then, they were expected to become part of America, which included speaking our language, knowing our history and respecting our traditions. Now, they are allowed -- indeed, encouraged -- to remain who they are and not bother to learn English or care about American history. Then, we sought to make Americans of immigrants. Today, we hyphenate their citizenship and tell them they may continue to bear allegiance to other countries and causes.

Here are only a few examples of how bad the situation has become: The safety video on the Delta Shuttle between Washington and New York is delivered in both Spanish and English; this November, Denver and several other Colorado counties designated as bilingual counties must print election ballots in English and Spanish; the Department of Justice has ordered Harris County, Texas (which encompasses Houston) to start providing ballots and voting materials in Vietnamese.

Part of the reason for this forming of a less perfect union is that we are no longer sure of ourselves. Embarrassed by our success and riches, we think we're doing the world a favor by engaging in self-flagellation, refusing to repeat for the next generation what was handed to us by the previous one.

A Texas schoolteacher wrote to express his frustration:

"We were raised with 'ultimate consequences' which would dictate punishment when there was no discipline ('When your father gets home...,' 'Your mother wouldn't approve of this...')," he noted. "Now, it's a question of how people can beat the law, rather than uphold it." This especially applies to those immigrants who have seen that if they can get to America illegally, their chances are good of winning amnesty and remaining in this country.

King Solomon warned: "Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint" (Proverbs 29:18). The casting off of restraint is what characterizes us now, from corporate boardrooms to private bedrooms. If immigrants know only how to get here and do not learn what made America so attractive to them, they will live by their own standards, just as we who were born here are doing in increasing numbers, further undermining our strength and cohesiveness.

In his 1992 book, "The Tyranny of Change: America in the Progressive Era: 1890-1920," John Whiteclay Chambers wrote of the great immigration wave of a century ago, noting that a majority of arrivals in this country never intended to stay. Many hoped that "after a few years of work, they could save enough money to return home to an improved position for themselves and their families."

"Although the majority of new immigrants permanently settled in America, a significant number left (with a departure rate of 35 percent for Croatians, Poles, Serbs and Slovenes; 40 percent for Greeks; and more than 50 percent for Hungarians, Slovaks and Italians; the rate among Asian immigrants was much higher, more than two-thirds)," Chambers wrote. Today the departure rate is only about 15 percent and anyone who gets here, even illegally, can now expect his or relatives to legally follow.

Many of those who stayed a century ago had poor skills and became part of large ghettos in major urban areas, where poverty continues to drain human and financial resources. The 1990 Census indicated that ethnic enclaves were huge and growing. In the city of Miami today, about half of the population speaks English poorly or not at all, new census figures show, and 74 percent of residents speak a language other than English at home.

A source for additional facts about how we have failed to assimilate immigrants can be found on the Web page of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (www.fairus.org/).

It would help if we would re-discover what once was considered "self-evident" truths about America, disdaining relativity. If we can't do that for those already here, we will be of no use to current and future immigrants and cannot sustain ourselves as the United States.

[discostu]

So the problem is that they all speak Spanish? As someone who's lived the last 25 years in the middle of La Reconquista let me tell you: if La Raza manages to take over our country it's because we're pathetic and didn't deserve to live.

You forgot about the Italian and Sicilian immigration during the same period, that's important, without that mass immigration we lose an entire genre (considered to be a true American genre) of movie. That's an important influx to me because my grandmother (3rd generation American of German extraction) met Al Capone (2nd generation American of Italian extraction).

Communism got introduced in that period because, at the time, Marx was right. The worker was treated like crap and paid next to nothing. Work place death from physical abuse and unsafe conditions was common place. Luckily capitalism showed why it's the best, we adapted. The companies (largely spearheaded by Ford) learned you could actually turn a profit and treat your workers well at the same time (as Ford learned, well paid workers and employee discounts creates a customer base, which gets your product seen and provides free advertising). The only reason the immigrant population was involved in the communist movement was because they were the primary source of cheap (ie abused, at that time) labor. Once they started getting treated like humanbeing communism experienced it's first big fizzle.

The north east became a bastion of the left because of the colleges. Communism has always been popular with the over educated faux elite. Where all all the ivy league colleges? This actually happened before the big immigration boom, the over educated fell in love with Marx immediately. Really even before Marx the colleges of the east had serious tendencies towards what we now call liberalism, it just didn't have a name until Marx showed up. Blaming the immigrants for this is stupid.

Again if our culture can't handle it we're too stupid to live. Better find smarter numbers. What's 34 million immigrants? It's 1.8 of the population. According to some a million people a year move to LA (nobody says how many flee, what a crappy city). If they can handle it we can handle it. most of the Mexican immigrants don't believe their entitles to anything. La Raza is mostly stupid college kids, always has been. Again you're confusing over educated morons (mostly Americans) with immigrants. I used to work for a 1st generation Mexican-American, I asked him about La Raza, he laughed and said it was a great way to get laid.

Why should we keep a political culture like our founding fathers? It's a different world. They built our Constitution with the ability to be ammended (or even scrapped and rewritten from scratch) for a reason. They new the world would change and the nation would have to change with it. We proved a hundred years ago with the first influx of immigrants that our strength was our adaptability. The tree that cannot bend in the wind will break. Putting unreasonable demands on a new immigrant population that they behave differently from all other immigrant populations is pointless. Might as well demand day not be bright and hot. Let things run their natural course. That's what's going to happen anyway, the only question is how much you embarass yourself saying the sky is falling when it's not.

[discostu]

I've lived in Tucson since 1975. Things are the same. There's no more brown people here than when I started, there's no more Mexicans in local offices than when I started. it's much-ado about nothing. Maybe CA is going to the dogs, but given the governors the place has had since Reagan that should come as no surprise and has little if anything to do with the immigrant population.

[discostu]

Riiiiight. That's why so many of them start businesses. We all know that entrepenuership has it's roots in socialism. Try again pal. Maybe you should go meet some immigrants before you tell us all about them.

[FreedomFriend]

That's funny, because throughout my travels of the southwest, I always found Arizona to be the least invaded. California, New Mexico and Texas are by far seeing more of the effects than Arizona. However, even the Phoenix area is seeing a lot of the negative effects.

I live in the Atlanta area, and I can tell you that there are roughly 200,000 more Mexicans here than there were ten years ago. In 1990, the Mexican population was less than one percent. Today, it is roughly seven to eight percent of the metro. Most of these invaders have arrives since 1995, thus the issue is even more relevant to today.

[FreedomFriend]

So many of them start businesses because they are able to get loans easy from the federal government. An individual that I know explained to me that he was turned down for a small business loan because he was not a minority, a woman, and not a foreigner. Yes, he's a native-born White American male.

Plus, many of the immigrants work in family businesses, of which ten to fifteen crowd into one house until one business is successful that will allow for further expansion.

[discostu]

Actually they tend to start small businesses with zero loans. Family owned restaurants are the favorite (as they have been for generations of immigrants for every country). Most of the immigrants I've encountered, (being a big fan of ethnic food I run into a lot) from Mexico and elsewhere, are very eager to contribute to their new country, they're better Americans than most of the natives I know. You want to be embarassed for your country, try explaining to an immigrant (who was probably at the polls half an hour before they opened they're so eagerto participate) on election Tuesday why we consider 30% voter turn out to be good.

[FreedomFriend]

What are you talking about? "Hispanic" voter turnout is among the lowest of the low, and the ones who do vote do so for the socialists.

As for family owned businesses, yes many are restaurants. However, many do receive loans. That does not mean that all do. Furthermore, many of these extended families do live together in one house until they have saved enough money to open up another restaurant. I will not deny that most restaurant owners seem to assimilate better than the ones you see in construction, heavy labor, in restaurant kitchens, etc.

[discostu]

Well Atlanta's had a huge population boom since the Olympics, white and otherwise, that was a big showcase event they used to sell Atlanta as NY in the South. And it worked. The fact that you call them "invaders" is really all we need know. They're just people trying to get out of a crappy country and earn a living, not unlike our immigrant forebears. We really learn a lot more about the people afraid of immigration on these threads than we learn about immigration itself.

[discostu]

You've gotta compare first generation with the others. People fresh off the boat (or whatever the inappropriate metaphor is) vote religiously. Something about being born here screws people up and makes them take voting for granted. 90% of black voters in this country voted for Al Gore and you're worried about the Mexicans turning us socialist. Priorities.

I think the restaraunt owners assimilate faster because they have to speak English to do business. If you're in construction or other heavy labor in any city with a fair sized Mexican population all your co-workers are mexican, no reason to speak English. It's kind of a self fulfilling prophecy, if you're trying to find work in America and you don't speak English you're stuck in heavy labor with a bunch of other people that don't speak English so you don't get a chance to learn the language. If you already speak English you work in areas where you get to learn the language. That's why the second generation is usually the assimilation generation, they get exposed to English in school and on TV in those important language years (2 through 7) and learn it.

[ecomcon]

To begin, your response to me was inane and pointless. I live in San Diego County, California in a rural area where there are citrus and avocado growers. I live with, work with and speak to illegal and legal immigrants every day. So don't try that on me. You really think Mexican immigrants just immediately up and open a restaurant? In California? If you believe that, further discussion is pointless.

This is why you are wrong and miss the differences between immigration waves of the past and the present:

That's why the second generation is usually the assimilation generation, they get exposed to English in school and on TV in those important language years (2 through 7) and learn it.

The above statement is false. Multi-language TV and radio programming, bi-lingual education in the school systems all conspire to insulate the immigrant from having to assimilate in any manner.

[FreedomFriend]

You are totally clueless about Atlanta, and though other immigrants are moving here, the overwhelming majority are Mexican illegals. Hence, they really aren't immigrants.

Yes, I do think that the Olympics have played a role, in that they shined the spotlight on us for us to receive a larger share of the invaders. However, that's what they are. In Smyrna, there are sections with shopping centers completely in Spanish, Bus Stops in Spanish, billboards in Spanish. In Marietta, the illegals pile up on the sides of roads, creating a traffic hazzard. In Chamblee, these "immigrants" even have road signs in their language, as well as having the majority of signs in their language. Most, if you try to talk with them, can't understand a word you're saying. They're too busy plastering the Spanish language everywhere they go, as well as painting their shops red, white, and green.

Furthermore, as for Atlanta being the NY of the South, I find that to be an insult, as much of NY is a dump. However, if you're referring to our large skyline and large business contingent, then you are correct. All this talk of "NEW SOUTH" is a bunch of nonsense. What is considered the "NEW SOUTH". Welcoming illegal aliens with open arms?

[Melas]

More likely we'll wind up with a sort of 'pidgin'; a combination of words from English, Spanish, Vietnamese (Now that's irony for you) and Korean that is all of these and none of them at the same time. A lot like the street language spoken in some less visited parts of Hawaii (The Hawaiin version of pidgin is a combination of English, Hawaiian, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese and maybe a little Korean). It will happen gradually. No one will even notice.

You mean like how Latin, Greek, Gaelic, Norman French and the Germanic languages got mixed up to become English? Nothing new here. It's the natural evolution of language.

[FreedomFriend]

Okay, so you've admitted:

Generation 1: No assimilation, but respect for America.
Generation 2: Assimilation, to an extent, but no respect for America.

Is that a win-win combination or what?

As for black voters, they're American citizens, and hence we can't do anything about lawful citizens. They have a right to their opinions, for they are Americans. The problem with blacks voting for the Democrats is the result of social politics, much like I've stated before. Do you think that LaRaza won't, and aren't doing the same thing? Thus, why would you support bringing in a larger group of potential socialist voters. You know as well as I that the Democrats will always outpander the Republicans in moving to the Left. It's a no-win situation. If the Republicans are to have any success, they have to be firmly guided in conservative principles, ideas, and policies.

[crystalk]

So tell us: Who are the government's concentration camps for? Who is going to be incarcerated?

Anglos? Christians? Muslims? Hispanics? Asians? Just everybody with an IQ over 90? Blacks? Whites?

[discostu]

Well generation 2 and above, which includes US, as the assimilation goes up so does the lack of respect for America. IMHO that's probably the biggest problem with this country, taking it for granted is the norm.

Forget LaRaza. LaRaza is a group of airheaded large breasted women and the sleazy men trying to get in their micro-shorts. LaRaza has been around 30+ years and done nothing. Might as well fear the flat earthers, they're about the same level of useless.

What I "support" is a lack of paranoia. I wouldn't mind limiting the flow of immigrants, but not because I fear they're taking over the country because they're not. I don't really have a horse in this race, wanna close the borders for a while give it a shot (won't work but it'll be fun to watch). Wanna open wide, whatever. Just don't run around saying the brown people are destroying the country because that's utter 100% pure unadulterated form concentrate horse hockey.

[pittsburgh gop guy]

"You disrespect the illegals because in your system, immigrants are automatically bottom rung strawberry pickers."

Huh? What about all of those Indians (dot - not feather- to use WFB's words) that I know that have come to our country, got educated and work in the computer field? Including a couple that have started their own (still) successful companies? I respect the inherent worth of everyone, until you prove yourself worthless. And I can pretty much guarantee that I have more experience working with tech workers from other countries than you do, H1b and otherwise, and they all want to stay in America.

I say: If a legal immigrant wants to come to this country and write computer code or pick strawberries, that's ok with me.
You say: Build a wall and let no one in - we gots too many of them already!

Come on out with you - the reason you are anti-immigrant is you don't like "their kind". Just admit it, there is no harm. I admit I love immigrants! They come to this country because they recognize our cultural/moral/financial superiority over their native land. You should quit being afraid.

[discostu]

Did I say anything about bi-lingaul education? No I did not. I don't support bi-lingual education. The schools are for teaching kids the things they need to know to be Americans, that includes English. And the EASL programs have all proven to be terrible failures and the biggest opponents to it (at least around here) are the Mexican immigrants. They want their kids to be taught English the same way as American kids.


My response was on the money. Some of the staunchest conservatives I ever met were Mexican immigrants and if you called them a socialist to their face you'd find out just how much they cherish the second ammendment. Maybe it's the difference between people that immigrate into the socialist enclave of California and the largely conservative state of AZ. Either way you shouldn't be making blanket political declarations about a population you clearly know nothing about.

[rdb3]

I didn't decide: my mother is from Germany and married my American father who was over there in the Air Force. They moved back to the States and had a few kids, me included. My father's side has been here since before the Civil War.

Then you're not a first-generation American! Either way, it's cool. You're in the States now, right?

[rdb3]

Not every single immigrant is coming here looking for a handout. Please watch the broad brush.

[TomSmedley]

Al traveled across America photographing routes and buildings revealing that the number 666 is alive today. The Beast's empire has already been prepared. The good Lord and the great imitator have hidden their most critical information-BETWEEN THE LINES!

I am a Christian man of destiny who ardently resents this brand of fear-mongering. It sounds too much like the "majority report" of the 10 spies. If your God is still alive, should we not seek Him for power to evangelize the mission field coming to our doorstep?