« July 2005 | Main | September 2005 »
DUmmies on Katrina: Bush MIHOP; minorities being oppressed; etc.
"cthrumatrix" offers us We need "one dot connected for MIHOP" New Orleans disaster & impeachment."MIHOP" stands for "made it happen on purpose". The case for MIHOP consists of four points:
1. "Bush received a 2001 national disaster update." One of those concerned NOLA.
2. A 2004 report to Bush covered what a major hurricane would do to NOLA.
3. "Bush cut funding to New Orleans and hurrican planning by 80%"
4. CIA weather control using HAARP and "Tesla technology".
Now, the first three probably happened, even if some of the details are a mite off. But, as proof that not all DUmmies are completely insane, most dismiss #4 as tinfoil hat time.
Returning to slightly more sane race-baiting and victimization territory, the DUmmies offer us "Are Minorities getting the short end of the stick in NO" and "white evacuees/black refugees".
Finally, "CrackpotAmerica" spares no rhetorical florish in "Our Nation Is In Great Danger":
In the wake of this disaster, we are all bearing witness to the competence of our nation’s institutional response. I am afraid that this response is less helpful than it is indicative of the gross incompetence and arrogance of our President’s agenda. Further, those private institutions that have received great benefit over the past six years are serving to remove their facade of charity and compassion by their meager offerings to this devastated landscape.In the not too distant past, "liberals" would have concentrated on leading the humanitarian effort. Now, they've simply been reduced to one small step above jabbering street people.
The immense consequence of the President's quest to cut funding to FEMA coupled with his complete disregard for any tangible plan for emergency preparedness will now be experienced by our entire nation. Yet, there is no mention of it thus far in the mainstream.
The President in his great narcissism has not walked a single yard of this broken soil since the storm has passed. As people scrambled upward in their homes to save their very lives, the President opted to enjoy a sliver of sweetly frosted cake on a sunny tarmac and attend a town hall meeting to discuss matters of no relevance to the immediate crisis.
While the Coast Guard worked to chop holes out of roofs to save men and women in their potential last moments, the President opted to commemorate Japan’s surrender, strumming a guitar with a boyish posture.
Posted to Bloggage at 08:15 PM | Comments (1)
Inside the Open Borders mindset
The following comment came in to this thread about Orrin Hatch's anti-American DREAM Act recently. It was posted from a small college in California's Central Valley. It was all uppercase, which I've converted to lowercase:
No one should beg for anything or even beg those racism people like those who make comments in this web site who all they care about is them self and not about others who need some help. after all those immigrants who live in this country, who many american citizens dont want in this counrty are the ones who do all the hard work for those lazy as citizens who arent brave enough to do the hard work in the hot fields. if it wasnt for these immigrants the economy of supposly your country woulduv crashed down ones again. you american citizens should give thank's to all immigrants who do all the field work so you lazy asses can have food on your table. [etc. etc. etc...]
It seems we're having a wee bit of a problem with our assimilation policy.
While there's the possibility that this person is only pretending to be an Open Borders loon, based on the many other similar comments posted there and especially at this earlier thread I tend to doubt it.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 04:02 PM | Comments (4)
Sen. John Cornyn: "rampant lawlessness" because of illegal immigration
According to Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX):
Illegal immigration threatens the United States' reputation as the "nation of laws"... "We have rampant lawlessness within our borders because our immigration system is simply broken... It's harmful to our reputation and harmful to the immigrants operating outside the protection of the law."
He's right about that, but he's definitely wrong on the "fix" that he and Sen. Tom Kyl (R-AZ) are selling: a massive amnesty scheme.
The Cornyn-Kyl amnesty appears to be the "tougher" alternative of the two false choices offered to the American public, the other being the Kennedy-McCain massive amnesty scheme:
At issue is how to create a system that takes a tough stance on national security while simultaneously allowing immigrants to keep working. Currently, some immigrants are applying for work permits and legal citizenship. Others are taking advantage of United States' loose borders.
Huh? No, the idea is to reduce the number of illegal aliens in the U.S., not simply to change what we call them and keep them here. The article (by Nathaniel Jones of the Star-Telegram Dallas Bureau) goes on to stress that the Cornyn-Kyl amnesty is not an amnesty.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 03:20 PM | Comments (0)
Infiltrators at Code Pink Walter Reed Army Medical Center protests?
Code Pink's August 26th release "CODEPINK Statement on Vigil Outside of Walter Reed Hospital" contains this shocking news:...In recent weeks, the vigil has attracted some people who have tried to change the tone and message of the vigil, including yelling and holding up inappropriate signs. The organizers have asked the newcomers to be respectful and wonder if they might indeed be infiltrators whose aim is to disrupt the vigil.One of those "inappropriate signs" says "Maimed for a Lie." In fact, you can see a picture of the person with the sign in front of the hospital here.
The organizers also suspect that the sudden attention to the vigil on the part of the conservative media is part of a well-orchestrated smear campaign against the peace movement...
That last link also points out that the sign's holder is from another leftie group, Veterans for Peace. But, see, that's all part of the smear campaign. The way I sees it, it's like this...
Posted to ThePeaceMovement at 02:36 PM | Comments (0)
Time/Space-shifted Philadelphia Experiment victims call Nebraska from... Norway?
It's rare that this site breaks a story ahead of Steve Quayle or Whitley or even the Northeast Intelligence Network. Usually, as in the case of the massive Texas crack or The Elk I simply follow in their "giant" footsteps.
However, such an occasion is fully upon us.
I am now free to report that the "gibberish" calls that have been plaguing residents of Kearney, NE for the past few months are the result of victims of the Philadelphia Experiment who were time - and location - shifted to the present-day Norwegian Peninsula (site of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and, sources tell me, France).
These Philadelphians have been trying to contact the residents of that small Nebraska town to warn them of an impending singularity which would return the time-shifted battleship to within their vicinity. However, because of the effects of the time travel, and their current location in that Peninsula, they are having trouble making their warnings heard and these messages are coming out as what appears to be gibberish.
Collaborating - once again - with Linda Moulton Howe and TeamSpace, I will soon be venturing forth to personally investigate this matter and finally get the truth on these time and space travelers and their mysterious helper Grays.
Posted to WackyHumor at 01:01 PM | Comments (0)
Florida Times-Union helps Mexico distribute illegal alien ID cards
The Mexican government passes out Matricula Consular ID cards to their citizens who are in the U.S. illegally. The cards allow illegal aliens to open bank accounts and in some states obtain driver's licenses. And, Mexican consuls travel from outpost to outpost in the U.S. distributing them to their citizens.On Saturday one of those events was held involving the Florida Times-Union. If you ever see an article from that paper (jacksonville.com), you now know which side they're on:
...The Mexican consulate in Orlando advertised that its staff would be on hand from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to take applications and issue official Mexican identification cards. But by 5 p.m., there were still at least 100 people waiting in the auditorium at The Florida Times-Union building in Riverside. The Times-Union was a co-sponsor of the event.Previous coverage of these cards starts in "Immigrants" get Matricula Consular cards in Watsonville; some downsides noted. For a backgrounder, see "The 'Matricula Consular' Advances Mexico's Immigration Agenda"
In some cases, those waiting in line were legal immigrants or American citizens, trying to get the cards for themselves, friends or relatives. In other cases, those applying were undocumented aliens, mostly migrant farm workers...
Posted to Immigration_consul at 12:27 PM | Comments (0)
PETA's 25th Anniversary: September 10 at Paramount Studios in Hollywood
Oddly enough, my invite to the C-list-star-studded gala appears to have been lost in the mail. Thankfully, a cavalcade of press releases has alerted me to this impending event.
Those scheduled to appear include such minor, long-forgetten, laughable pseudo-stars as:
Pamela Anderson (co-host)
comedian Fred Willard (co-host)
Lady Heather Mills McCartney
Ravi Shankar
Alec Baldwin
Jamie Lee Curtis
Kelly and Sharon Osbourne
Alyssa Milano
Dennis Rodman
But, don't fear, as there will be palatable vegan food to keep the crowd happy. From this:
PETA scoured the country to assemble a world-class gourmet vegan catering team, and heading the list in the dessert category was San Francisco-based vegan ice cream maker extraordinaire MaggieMudd.
Oddly enough, this says:
PETA scoured the country to assemble a world-class gourmet vegan catering team, and heading the list in the dessert category was Ft. Lauderdale-based vegan dessert maker extraordinaire Sublime.
Wait, yet another press release says this:
PETA scoured the country to assemble a world-class gourmet vegan catering team, and heading the list was Glendale’s Devil Spice.
Even a whole slew of world-class restaurants are listed here, and cookies are offered here.
But, what of the awards, you say?
Runkle is undaunted by threats to his personal safety as he continues to conduct undercover investigations into cruel factory farms and abusive rodeos. He has organized countless vegetarian events and demonstrations, coordinated anti-circus and anti-fur campaigns all over Ohio, produced TV advertisements, and even raised the money to air them. Runkle is also the founder of the animal rights journal Outrage and publisher of his own vegetarian starter kit.
Now, I know it's unseemly for me to make fun of PETA press releases while chickens are having their beaks seared off and cows are forced to stand on their hind legs and beg for mercy. I'm willing to be converted, but only by Lisa Franzetta.
Posted to Miscellania at 11:22 AM | Comments (0)
Katrina: How low will the left go?
From the DUmmies to the dummies at HuffPost and Air America, the left knows that no tragedy is too great not to seek to profit from it.Starting our tour at the fever swamps, "chicagiana" says:
BTW, does anyone else think it's suspicious that the levees didn't break until AFTER the hurricane passed and it was clear the storm surge was not going to swamp the city. It would probably only take a couple of sticks of dynamite to get those things flowing. Seems like someone wanted Bush to have another pile of debris to climb on top of."Nothing Without Hope" responds:
The hurricane had passed and the city was safe from catastrophe. Than overnight the levies broke.
I HAVE been wondering why Bush looks so perky and happy - like he's very PLEASED about the hurricane. It seems like more than his usual sociopathic cluenessness. Is there somethiing about the oil infrastructure, the neighborhoods that were destroyed (surely not strongholds of GOP support), the probable availabllity of cheap land now that so much has been destroyed. Or perhaps just that the cost of oil has soared so high?Cleaning up their comments slightly, RFK Jr. says:
As Hurricane Katrina dismantles Mississippi's Gulf Coast, it's worth recalling the central role that Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour played in derailing the Kyoto Protocol and kiboshing President Bush's iron-clad campaign promise to regulate CO2.Lesser HuffPo contributor "Bob Cesca" offers us "The Hurricane President". Another lesser light, Eric Boehlert, can't wait to start playing "The Blame Game".
...Now we are all learning what it's like to reap the whirlwind of fossil fuel dependence which Barbour and his cronies have encouraged. Our destructive addiction has given us a catastrophic war in the Middle East and--now--Katrina is giving our nation a glimpse of the climate chaos we are bequeathing our children.
In 1998, Republican icon Pat Robertson warned that hurricanes were likely to hit communities that offended God. Perhaps it was Barbour's memo that caused Katrina, at the last moment, to spare New Orleans and save its worst flailings for the Mississippi coast.
And, from Cindy Sheehan:
...Well, George and I are leaving Crawford today. George is finished playing golf and telling his fables in San Diego, so he will be heading to Louisiana to see the devastation that his environmental policies and his killing policies have caused.... And, should I dare say "global warming?" and be branded as a "conspiracy theorist" on top of everything else the reich-wingers say about me.Perhaps "liberalism" should be reclassified as a mental disorder.
Posted to Miscellania at 11:11 AM | Comments (0)
Katrina: Thousands dead in Gulfport, Mississippi?
This report has not been confirmed, but if true this is going to be one of the U.S.'s worst tragedies:I have finally reconnected with my best friend who is a paramedic who was sent from Georgia 2 days ago to Gulf Port, Mississippi before the hurricane hit.UPDATE:
He just reached me within the last 10 mins via emergency cell phone to tell me he was alive.
Thousands of bodies have been discovered throughout Mississippi in Gulf Port, Waveland,Hancock County,Bay of St.Louis.
They are hanging in trees and they are pulling them out 30 at a time. Entire families found drowned in their homes and washing up on shore.
The stories he could tell me were brief. National Guard is on the scene and arresting anyone seen on the streets.
GULFPORT, MISS. - Stunned residents emerged from shelters and homes Tuesday to start assessing the massive damage left by Hurricane Katrina as rescuers pulled bodies from crushed homes and apartments near the coast.
The death toll in this hard-hit county rose to more than 100, but officials believe that number will rise. "There's so much rubble, we won't know for a while. But I fully expect the number to be in the hundreds," said Jason Green, assistant to the Harrison County coroner...
..."We begged, we pleaded, we demanded. We told them they had a good chance of dying if they didn't leave. But there's only so much government can do to protect people," [Gulfport Fire Chief Pat Sullivan] said. "Too many people tried to ride it out. We can't regulate good sense."
Posted to Miscellania at 11:28 PM | Comments (4)
Is Fabian Nunez an American, a Mexican, or a little bit of both?
Fabian Nunez is the Speaker of the California Assembly, and he's returned from a four-day trip to Mexico designed to smooth over our troubled relations with that fine country. Unfortunately, based not just on this trip but on his entire career, I'm a little bit confused over which country he actually represents. Does he represent America, or does he at least partially represent Mexican interests?Needless to say, Nunez is a Democrat. While the GOP has its share of crazies and corrupt politicians, I can't think of any elected Republican who appears to have divided loyalties with another country.
The latest report on the California legislator's trip is in "Nunez: Bush 'Turned His Back' on Mexico":
...[He said:] "I don't believe that they've shown this administration (of Fox) the respect it deserves and I don't think that as (Fox's) term draws to a close he's going to be given the respect that he didn't receive earlier..."But, wouldn't that tend to increase Mexican influence in this state? Is that good for California and the U.S.?
Nunez said that he would push for modifications in California law so that Mexican businessmen would find it easier to invest in the state...
He criticized Bush's lack of support for the immigration reform bill sponsored by Republican Sen. John McCain and Democrat Ted Kennedy, which allows family unification, reduces the number of pending immigration cases and sets up an immigration status legalization program - but does not provide amnesty - for those who entered the country illegally...Obviously, by playing the race card he's trying to stifle any form of intelligent and honest debate. And, he's also doing it in Mexico, spreading false information to our "friends" to the south. (This is vaguely reminiscent of a trip by Nancy Pelosi to that country, in which she accused the government for which she works - and to which she presumably has some degree of allegiance - of terrorizing people.)
In his judgment, one of the main problems between the two national governments is on U.S. immigration policy, which "has allowed racial prejudices to enter" into the matter, something that has made an "intelligent, honest" dialogue impossible...
In actual fact, most of the legal and almost all of the illegal immigrants to the U.S. over the past several decades have come from Hispanic countries. If anything, there's a Hispanic bias in our immigration system.
As part of that intelligent and honest debate, perhaps we should take a close look at that bias. If most Mexicans think the U.S. southwest rightfully belongs to Mexico, is it wise to allow them to settle the U.S. southwest? And, do we really want to give the corrupt oligarchies that rule many Central and Southern American countries even more power over our country's policies? Do we really want to allow in people who cheer for the "narcos"?
Given the choice between someone who wants to come here to be a full-fledged American, and someone who is just coming here to make money and doesn't respect our laws or our way of life and who has divided loyalties, which should we choose? To many "liberals", the second would appear to be the choice they prefer. (In the cases where a quest for racial power or for far-left ideology aren't involved, that would seem to be psychological: they appreciate the challenge, plus it makes them feel better.)
Regarding the California governor, Nunez said, "He has said things that have insulted not only the government, but also the people of Mexico," adding that the continual friction has not allowed the development of the bonds that should exist between neighbors, particularly considering the fact that Mexico is California's largest foreign trade partner.At least we're doing one thing right then.
"Instead of militarizing the border, he should seek ways to cooperate with Mexico" and increase collaboration in technology and intelligence, the California lawmaker said.
The problem, he emphasized, is that the United States "has no confidence (in Mexico) and doesn't treat it like a modern democracy."
If the Dems were smart, they'd purge people like Nunez from their ranks, suggesting that they join the Greens or the Peace and Freedom Party instead. Otherwise, people will continue to think of the Dems as just a lunatic, un-American party.
Previously:
Mexican business leaders feeling unwanted, unloved
Should Fabian Nunez stay in Mexico?
Fabian Nunez, California Democrat, kisses up to Vicente Fox
See also this deja vu report of a 1999 trip by Mexico's president to meet with Antonio Villaraigosa and Gray Davis. The latter was, of course, recalled. Perhaps a similar effort should be mounted in the case of Nunez, Gil Cedillo, and other "American" politicians.
Posted to California at 06:16 PM | Comments (2)
Over half of WND readers support Bush's impeachment
WorldNetDaily is running a poll, asking their readers to vote whether they support Pat Buchanan's call to impeach Bush over illegal immigration.
At post time, with over 2000 votes counted, over half support impeaching Bush.
Now, of course, no internet poll is completely accurate, and some are completely inaccurate. However, the WND poll asks for an email address, thereby making it slightly more difficult to rig.
Note the results of a similar poll I conducted (the-lonewacko-blog.redstate.org/story/2005/8/26/15454/9101).
11 said "Yes, impeach". 10 said "No". And, 11 selected "No, it would backfire". The options I offered are not as rich as the ones offered by WND. Note that you need to register at redstate to vote there, making that also slightly more difficult to rig. And, note that, as with all my other diary entries there, that post was not elevated to appearing on their front page, so only those who read the diary section saw it.
Note also that RS is the home of one or more people connected with the GOP...
Posted to Politics at 01:38 PM | Comments (1)
Douglas Mayor Ray Borane sells illegal immigration to L.A. Times
Ray Borane is the mayor of Douglas, AZ, which sits almost right on the border with Mexico. The town has 15,000 residents, 90% of whom are "Latino". From the LAT article "In a State of Emergency, City's Relaxed":But on the front lines in Douglas, senior government leaders, federal agents and many residents are hard-pressed to identify the emergency conditions. Borane said the city of 15,000 was in generally good shape and had learned to live with the annoyances that accompanied the flow over the border...The mayor's contributions have been noted. Borane is the recipient of Mexico's Ohtli Award for:
To be sure, illegal immigrants cause substantial damage in and around Douglas. They have trampled sensitive ecosystems in the nearby mountains, dumped many tons of litter in the countryside, vandalized ranchers' property and caused havoc with local healthcare systems.
But those burdens are part of a much larger relationship with Mexico. On balance, Borane said, immigration has been a benefit.
"The damage these illegals commit is minimal compared to what they contribute," said Borane, who is chairman of a group of U.S. mayors on the Mexican border. "This country can absorb these people. They are producers. Their children can become productive citizens."
"efforts to improve U.S.-Mexican relations, contributing to their communities and promoting their Mexican heritage and culture."Borane also formed the core of Marc Cooper's Minuteman Project hit piece.
There's much more about this fine "American" here.
Further, the LAT buys what the feds are selling:
U.S. Border Patrol agents don't agree with [Napolitano] that they are not increasing enforcement or with the mayor that immigration cannot be controlled.The LAT goes on to report on problems the ranchers and other residents are having, and that most of the residents of Douglas are opposed to illegal immigration.
Border Control Chief David V. Aguilar said his agency had made significant progress in stanching the flow of illegal immigrants in the Tucson sector, which includes Douglas...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:13 AM | Comments (0)
I need $25 for an ad on MotherJones.com
For "just" $25, I can get a text link (javascript, not a direct 'a href', not that a week would do me much good if it were) on MotherJones.com for a week. Considering the CTR, it's not such a bad deal, but even so...I'm seriously considering it in order to educate their readers about the idiocy that that site spews forth.
For instance, clicking around a bit, I came across this roundup after the last presidential elections:
...Illegal immigrants were also big losers last night. Voters in Arizona passed Proposition 200, which would deny services to illegal immigrants and require government employees to report, by law, undocumented workers to authorities. Conservative supporters argued that it saves the state money and send a message that illegal immigrants are not welcome. At the "Yes on Proposition 200 party," J.T. Ready, a campaign volunteer, captured the nativist sentiment of many southwestern conservatives:What planet are MoJo readers from, and when will they return there?"This is going to send a resounding message to the federal government. We citizens are sick of them turning their heads to illegal immigration."[That's "nativist"? -- LW]
The proposition drew widespread criticism, from Democratic Governor Janet Napolitano to Republican Senator John McCain. [That's not a wide spread --LW] But in a campaign that urged voters to "do something about illegal immigration," the politics of fear and ignorance swept more than just the presidential election. [Too bad most Arizonans aren't as highminded as MoJo and don't support massive corruption, an invasion by a third world country, and the Mexican oligarchy. Bad, bad Arizonans! -- LW]
Unfortunately, Arizona was not the only state to enact anti-immigrant legislation. Even in San Francisco plenty of folks voted against according "illegal" immigrant parents voting rights in local school elections. [The quote marks around "illegal" are in the original -- LW] Although the measure failed in a narrow election, it speaks volumes that in a city that supports Kerry, Senator Barbara Boxer, and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi with over 80 percent of the vote, a basic right for these parents is voted down. [Do I really need to say that voting is not a "basic right" for those who are here illegally? To MoJo readers, apparently I do -- LW] It's getting ugly when progressive initiatives are beat up in our own backyard...
Posted to Bloggage at 09:52 AM | Comments (0)
"Study: Terrorists Exploit Immigration Laws"
The CIS has released a new study written by Janice Kephart, former counsel for the 9/11 commission: "Moving Beyond the 9/11 Staff report on Terrorist Travel".From the AP report "Study: Terrorists Exploit Immigration Laws":
Suspected or convicted foreign-born terrorists have routinely exploited federal immigration laws over the last decade to enter or remain in the United States illegally...The AP follows that up with a statement from DHS asserting that they're working on it. And, in other news, shoelace production is up 42% in this quarter. Then:
"The attack of 9/11 was not an isolated instance of al-Qaida infiltration into the United States," the 46-page report found.
"In fact, dozens of operatives both before and after 9/11 - other than the 9/11 hijackers - have managed to enter and embed themselves in the United States, actively carrying out plans to commit terrorist acts against U.S. interests or support designated foreign terrorist organizations," the report concluded. "For each to do so, they needed the guise of legal immigration status to support them."
Overall, 59 of 94 foreign-born nationals who were either convicted or indicted on terror charges broke federal immigration laws to enter or remain in the country between 1993 and 2004, the report found...
The report identified many of the immigrants as affiliated with at least one terror organization, including 40 with al-Qaida, 16 with Hamas, 16 with the Palestinian or Egyptian Islamic Jihad, and six with Hezbollah...
A spokesman for the National Immigration Forum, an immigration advocacy group, did not immediately return telephone calls seeking comment Monday evening...I previously provided excerpts of the 9/11 Commission's Staff Report. I don't know what overlap exists between that and this study.
Posted to Immigration_terror at 08:02 AM | Comments (0)
The 1986 amnesty failed spectaculary, why repeat the mistake?
Georgie Anne Geyer discusses the 1986 amnesty, that was supposed to be the amnesty to end all amnesties. (Also here)....Pete Nunez, the former U.S. attorney for San Diego and a lifelong fighter for immigration control, told me in a recent talk: "Why are those numbers today so high? Because of the amnesty of 1986! Those 2.7 million illegals amnestied were then able, in the decade of the '90s, to sponsor their family members. That decade turned out to have the highest number of legal immigrants practically in our history, because of the amnesty."It is truly scary how the same organizations (such as the National Immigration Forum) and politicians (such as Big Ted) that were involved in the 1986 amnesty are trying to fool the U.S. once again.
Here at the busy port of entry, in my long conversations with officials of the Department of Homeland Security, which encompasses immigration, border patrol and customs, there is unanimous agreement with this interpretation.
"The '86 experience definitely led to family reunification," Lauren Mack, customs and border protection public affairs officer, agreed. "We watched that amnesty -- it only created more fraud and more problems."
...The 1986 amnesty was not to be the first of many amnesties, nor a kind of experimental plug in the flow of human beings from a poor country to a rich one. To the contrary, it was to be the "last amnesty." Pushed by liberals in Congress like Teddy Kennedy, it was supposed to settle and legalize the illegals already in the United States, while controlling future immigration. It was to be the solution.
Instead, those 2.7 million settled in America and, under the dominating "family reunification" policy, were able immediately to sponsor almost any number of relatives, some bringing in 80 or 90 persons. And because the enforcement aspects of the law were never put into practice, the 1986 amnesty left the gate open to still more massive numbers. Meanwhile, the proposed new guest worker programs before Congress almost all provide for some kind of amnesty that will lead only to a repeat of 1986...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 07:53 AM | Comments (17)
Arizona Daily Star drops Ann Coulter; "liberal" bloodlust not sated
Ann Coulter's column has been dropped by the Arizona Daily Star. About the only good thing that can be said about that paper is that they aren't quite as "liberal" as the AZ Republic.
Apparently she was too "shrill" for some of their readers, whose sensibilities were offended. Some of those readers included conservatives. Or, at least, people who said they were conservatives:
Finally, we've decided that syndicated columnist Ann Coulter has worn out her welcome. Many readers find her shrill, bombastic and mean-spirited. And those are the words used by readers who identified themselves as conservatives.
Now, surely, our fine "liberal" friends should be familiar with COINTELPRO, infiltrators, false flag operations, and the like. Hmmm...
Be that as it may, as the graphic illustrates, the Soros-funded Media Matters for America has not had its bloodlust sated by this move, prefering instead to begin the persecution of her replacement on the pages of the Daily Star, Tony Snow.
Posted to Politics at 06:18 AM | Comments (17)
Almost 1500 Chinese illegal crossers detained in FY 2004 in one sector
In fiscal year 2004, 1483 Chinese (as in Red China) nationals were detained by the Border Patrol... just in the Rio Grande Valley sector. The report doesn't mention the numbers for other sectors in Texas, only saying that it's small. And, it doesn't mention the figures for other states. But, only 49 were detained last fiscal year in that same area. And:
Federal figures show that the American government has consistently granted asylum to between 600 and 900 Chinese nationals each year for the past five years.
And, from this:
FAIR Comment: The article notes that the U.S. government has consistently granted asylum to between 600 and 900 Chinese nationals each year for the past five years, but does not report that number will rise dramatically as a result of the ceiling for such claims being removed by Congress earlier this year.
Posted to Immigration_terror at 05:42 AM | Comments (0)
Mexico still jockeying to be our #1 cheap labor supplier
Mexico is considering reinstating visa requirements that might help keep out Brazilians who intend to cross into the U.S., Bloomberg reports. On a cynical note, this is probably not for humanitarian reasons or related to cooperation with the U.S. It is probably at least partly because when illegal Brazilians send their money home it goes to Brazil, not Mexico. Needless to say, Mexico would prefer that that money was sent to their country instead.
The article also describes the Brasilian telenovela "America" about illegal aliens, and how "half of Brazil's 180 million people live in poverty, earning less than $2 a day". Unless we intend to open our bleeding hearts to 90 million people, we'd be advised to strongly encourage them to stay home and build up their country rather than coming here.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 03:55 AM | Comments (0)
The Dallas Morning News' "best thinking" isn't good enough
The DMN joins the long line of papers and pundits who've taken the opportunity lately to push for immigration "reform". As I pointed out here, all of these editorials seem to follow the same pattern and offer the same advice. The DMN is no different in "Feeling the Heat: Citizens are pushing the immigration fight":
...When Congress reconvenes after Labor Day, it will have some very good ideas in front of it for how to fix this mess. Our best thinking is to start with Arizona Sen. John McCain's guest worker program, which would allow foreign workers to apply for two three-year visas, and combine it with some of Texas Sen. John Cornyn's border security ideas, such as investing in more cameras...
Sounds comfy! A little of one amnesty, a little of another. But, whatever you do, don't even consider the revolutionary idea of simply enforcing our current laws.
Obviously, the Dallas Morning News' "best thinking" just isn't good enough.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:29 AM | Comments (0)
Would you give Al Sharpton a lift to the airport?
Oddly enough, the news that Al Sharpton's driver was arrested for speeding when trying to transport The Right Reverend to DFW after his photo op with Cindy Sheehan wasn't much of a surprise. Sure, I was slightly surprised that he was able to allegedly hit 110 MPH.
But, I wasn't surprised that the Rev professed their innocence:
"That nine-mile chase is news to me... All I know is that the police pulled us over because they wanted to talk to the driver about speeding."
However, this part is what leaves me scratching my noggin:
Sharpton caught a lift from a passing driver and made his scheduled flight to New York.
If you saw the Rev thumbing a ride on the side of the road, would you stop to pick him up?
Posted to WackyHumor at 04:44 PM | Comments (0)
"Day Laborers, Cities Seek a Way That Will Work"
The L.A. Times reports in "Day Laborers, Cities Seek a Way That Will Work":...Cities throughout California and around the nation are struggling to cope with the sheer numbers of day laborers, or jornaleros. Critics say the sites not only encourage people to come to the U.S. illegally, but also create traffic jams and are eyesores. Supporters say the workers are simply trying to make an honest living and are crucial to local economies...One solution is to make it unprofitable to hire day laborers. With their drive to organize they might do it themselves by pricing themselves out of the market.
...Cities have made bold moves, then sometimes suspended or reversed them. Redondo Beach barred day laborers from seeking work on its streets; a judge then blocked the move. Costa Mesa opened a center to match workers with employers, then decided to close it. Burbank required Home Depot to build its own hiring hall, then put the opening on hold...
"Local government doesn't exist to drive that kind of policy," said Glendale Police Capt. Mark Distaso. "This is something that needs to be dealt with on a federal level."
...Day laborers began gathering in California in the 1960s after the end of the bracero guest-worker program, said UCLA professor Abel Valenzuela, who has conducted numerous studies on workers. Their numbers have multiplied in recent years, with the expansion of part-time work and the influx of immigrants. He estimated that there are as many as 35,000 people seeking work at hundreds of sites in California.
The majority of day laborers are undocumented immigrants from Mexico or Central America...
..."We are not the solution, nor are we the problem," said [Home Depot] real estate director Jeff Nichols.
The company has posted signs to discourage workers at some stores — and provided supplies to help cities build hiring halls near others...
...The laborers, meanwhile, are fighting back — holding rallies, marches and national organizing conferences to push for centers and against restrictive ordinances. They also are seeking to improve working conditions, advocating for higher wages and filing claims against employers who don't pay...
Another way would be to conduct stings against contractors. For the reasons given below, that's probably not going to happen.
The DHS could also conduct raids at day laborer hiring halls. Since UCLA says that most are illegal aliens, that should be all they need. Of course, given what happened in Temecula and Bush's general plan to say he supports border enforcement but do nothing about interior enforcement, it stands little chance of happening.
Posted to Los_Angeles at 02:22 PM | Comments (2)
Bush pledges border enforcement in El Mirage
I'm sure there are plenty of retirement communities in Arizona, yet, for some reason, Bush chose the one in "El Mirage" to talk about Medicare, gas prices, and Katrina among other matters. Speaking of mirages, he also mentioned immigration matters in his remarks:I also want to talk about immigration here in this state. I understand the issue well. I was the governor of a border state; I was the governor of the state of Texas. I know what it means to have a long border with Mexico. And I understand the solemn obligation of the state government and the federal government to enforce our border. I did so when I was governor, and I'll work with your governor and governors along the border to do so as the President of the United States. We have an obligation to enforce the borders. (Applause.)Here's where it gets even more comic. Feel free to act this out at home.
I understand it's putting a strain on your resources. We know that. I don't know if you know this or not, but hundreds of thousands of people have been detained, trying to illegally cross into Arizona. In other words, what I'm telling you is, there's a lot of people working hard to get the job done, but there is more we can do.
I spoke to Mike Chertoff today -- he's the head of the Department of Homeland Security. I knew people would want me to discuss this issue, so we got us an airplane on -- a telephone on Air Force One, so I called him. I said, are you working with the governor? He said, you bet we are. That's the most effective way to do things, is to work with the state and local authorities. There are more resources that will be available, we'll have more folks on the border; there will be more detention space to make sure that those who are stopped trying to illegally enter our country are able to be detained.A report on this is here, but the above is from the official transcript.
It's important for the people of this state to understand your voices are being here in Washington. D.C. And this Senator [Kyl] and this Congressman [Trent Franks] are working closely with the administration to make sure we got the resources necessary to do our responsibility, which is enforce this border. And we'll do so. And we'll do so. (Applause.)
Posted to at 01:58 PM | Comments (2)
Blacks lose jobs to immigrants; do "liberals" care?
The Boston Globe's labor reporter offers "Job hurdles grow larger for black men":...In 2004, fewer than 39 percent of black men between the ages of 16 and 24 had a job. The comparable national numbers for Hispanics and whites were 60 percent and 59 percent. All three groups lost ground between 2000 and 2004. Blacks started from a lower point and fell further...[The article discusses the findings of the paper "What Explains the Continuing Decline in Labor Force Activity Among Young Black Men?" from Georgetown University public policy professor Harry Holzer, which says that prison and child support play a role. The article doesn't mention it, but the paper - for some wacky reason - doesn't appear to cover another major issue. The article, however, does mention that issue:]
...intensified competition in the labor market. In a series of reports they have written, Northeastern University economists Andrew Sum and Paul Harrington have documented the success new immigrants have had in landing jobs. Since 2000, 3.7 million new immigrants -- those who arrived in the past five years -- have found employment. In low-wage jobs, immigrants have displaced young people of all races.Obviously, the correct public policy is to reduce the amount of foreign competition for American jobs and inculcate a "work ethic" among the 61% of 16-24 black men who are unemployed. The absolutely incorrect public policy is for the president of the U.S. to promulgate propaganda in support of cheap foreign labor.
But young black men have been hit hardest, Sum said, because they compete most directly with immigrants for jobs at stores and fast-food restaurants, especially in urban areas.
Harrington saw that rivalry up close on a recent visit to Philadelphia where he conducted a focus group with employers. Philadelphia is a city with a large black population and a growing number of immigrants. The employers at the meeting didn't say anything disparaging about black workers. In fact, some of the employers themselves were black. But to a person they were effusive in their praise for immigrants.
"All they could talk about was the work ethic of their foreign-born employees," Harrington said. Work ethic seems to be a term that covers a lot of ground -- everything from showing up on time, to treating customers well, to willingness to learn new skills.
Racism may be a factor, but probably not a big one. Harrington and Sum's research shows that black male immigrants without a high school diploma are twice as likely to hold a job than their native-born counterparts...
How do "liberals" respond to this issue? While no "liberal" site appears to have commented on this specific article, let's turn to this January 7, 2004 thread from Daily "screw 'em" Kos about Bush's guest worker amnesty scheme:
"Catsy" says: The downside: pardon me for being shrill, as this affects me directly as one of the nation's unemployed, but what the great bouncing cherry-flavored gummi christs are we doing taking steps to legitimize illegal workers and provide job placement for potential immigrants when there are so many American citizens who can't find work?
"manyoso", who I believe to be raza, replies: This is one of the things I hate about Republicans... and you are echoing them. This is the classic Republican argument against immigrants. It is also one of the primary arguments in every racist bigot's arsenal. I am disgusted to see this coming from a progressive site. Fear of brown people coming in to take all of our jobs is anathema to the progressive, inclusive view. Let's not turn into Republicans by turning on one of our primary constituencies.
Then, the Great Kos himself chimes in: Immigrants do the shit work that Americans think they are too good to do. Landscaping. Slaughterhouses. Agricultural drudge work. Housekeepers... Don't shit on immigrants... And considering that I am an immigrant, I wonder whose job I "stole"?
Obviously, they live in a magic place where illegal aliens always did those jobs and furthermore where the market doesn't apply. While some of the "liberals" on that thread make some slight sense, they usually spoil it by supporting a massive amnesty or by being restrained by political correctness. That said, it seems like there is the possibility of some of the great thinkers on that thread of having their minds changed if presented with more information.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:11 PM | Comments (2)
Big Business Balks at Bush Propaganda Plan
President Bush has created the Orwellian-named "Americans for Border and Economic Security" to push for his massive guest worker amnesty scheme. Now, Bloomberg reports, Big Business is balking at the plan:..."There is a reluctance to sign up for something that might turn out not to be the type of immigration reform bill we want to see," said John Gay [1], who runs a coalition in support of guest-worker programs that includes the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, First Data Corp. and Marriott International Inc.In other words, will it be almost completely against the wishes of the vast majority of Americans, or will it be completely against the wishes of the vast majority of Americans? That is, to them, the question.
Republican lobbyists including Ed Gillespie, the party's former national chairman, and former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, are seeking to raise money for a public relations- campaign of as much as $3 million to support Bush's plan. The lobbyists are asking companies such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Microsoft Corp. to contribute between $50,000 and $250,000 to pay for the effort.
Bush's plan aims to allow employers to hire immigrant "guest workers," which companies want. Supporters say their concern is that Republican lawmakers pushing for tighter borders on national-security grounds will pressure Bush eventually to accept a measure making it harder rather than easier to hire workers from overseas.
"We are still uncertain what the policy is that the group will advocate for," Lee Culpepper [2], a lobbyist for Bentonville, Arkansas-based Wal-Mart, said of the Gillespie-Armey effort. "Will it be only whatever the White House wants, or will it be independent policy goals formed by the members of the group?"
What will Bush's propaganda consist of?
The campaign being planned by Gillespie and Armey is aimed at emphasizing the economic benefits of immigrant workers, said Terry Holt, a former Bush campaign spokesman who is working with them on the effort.Translation: "Aww... Why do you hate-filled people hate our cheap laborers? They're wonderful people, despite what you evil xenophobes say about them!"
..."We want to communicate the great message of what immigration means to the American economy," Holt said. "In this political climate, it's also necessary to talk about how our borders must be secured."
..."Immigrants aren't being talked about in a very endearing way [by " Talk-show hosts and newspaper columnists"]," Armey said. "But we're talking about real good people who are doing what we all are trying to do, which is feed our babies."
Gillespie's group, which also includes former Democratic Representative Cal Dooley of California, is courting companies such as Greenwood Village, Colorado-based First Data and Springdale, Arkansas-based Tyson Food Inc. as well as groups representing landscaping businesses, restaurants, hotels, nurses and hospitals.Obviously, the great majority of Americans are opposed to these various plans. It's also extremely dangerous for our country when corporations are listened to and the people are not: "Would a Bill of Impeachment Wake-Up President Bush?"
[1] In 2003 John Gay was identified as "Vice President, Governmental Affairs, of the American Hotel & Lodging Association". In 2004, he was identified as "vice president at the International Franchise Association". In both cases he was also identified as "co-chair of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition". The latter group is at ewic.org. Their membership consists of a large number of big business advocacy organizations, together with... the American Immigration Lawyers Association. In the "small world, eh" dep't, there's also a link between the AILA and Rep. Chris Cannon.
[2] Lee Culpepper is also Chairman of the National Immigration Forum and works for the National Restaurant Association. Last mentioned here.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:43 AM | Comments (2)
Arkansas Republican governor Mike Huckabee and the "underground economy"
Arkansas' "compassionate conservative" governor, Republican Mike Huckabee, paid a visit to New Hampshire over the weekend. The details are in "Arkansas governor talks politics, immigrants at GOP gathering". In the original version, the following two paragraphs have several paragraphs between them. But, when excerpted they are quite striking:"Politics does not matter to a single mother working two jobs and needing medical care for her child or to someone wanting a pothole patched, he said... Politics, [Gov. Mike Huckabee] said, is of little consequence to someone who does not have a job...Obviously, his "compassion" seems to have interfered with his ability to form commonsense, American, public policy.
He said people complain illegal immigrants are taking their jobs. But, he said, when he asks individuals to give him names and addresses of people who want to work in a poultry-processing plant deboning chickens, no one does...
Huckabee wants to bring in a foreign serf class to do the jobs Americans won't do. But, his "compassionate" side feels the pain of Americans who are out of work.
I'm sure those who don't let "compassion" stand in their way of doing the right thing could think up a better way than importing helots.
Here's a suggestion: reduce the number of foreign serf workers. That would raise the wages for poultry workers. And, that would provide an alternative for those out of work Americans he feels such compassion for. And, as it happens, those are the same people who presumably voted for this loser and whose welfare he should put before other concerns.
Huckabee agreed a "hot" issue today is illegal immigrants. He said the country’s borders need to be protected, not so much from those trying to get into this country to earn a living, but to keep out the person trying to sneak in a dirty bomb.Obviously, we don't want terrorists coming over. But, that doesn't mean we can't prevent illegal low-wage workers from coming over at the same time. Apparently Huckabee isn't concerned about the latter.
He said the country's 11 million illegal immigrants and the companies that employ them have created an underground economy. Without them, he said, our economy would collapse.I'd dearly love to call him a supporter of that "underground economy," but just because he appears unwilling to fight against corruption and other anti-American activity doesn't necessarily mean that he's involved in it. But, clearly, it doesn't appear to be much of a concern of his. He is obviously unfit not just for president, but for any elected office.
If the Dems were smart, they'd start trying to tie the word "Republican" to the word "corruption." The problem, as usual, is that the Dems aren't smart enough to see opportunity, even when handed to them on a silver platter.
Previously: "Arkansas' Huckabee, Tyson Foods, LULAC all aligned", "New Americans welcomed to Iowa, Arkansas", "Arkansas: discounted college for illegal aliens blocked", and "AR Gov. Mike Huckabee goes on the attack".
Posted to Immigration2005b at 07:35 AM | Comments (1)
"Immigrants" get Matricula Consular cards in Watsonville; some downsides noted
The Santa Cruz Sentinel article "ID card gives immigrants more opportunity" describes a visit of the Mexican consul to Watsonville, CA to pass out Matricula Consular cards, aka "IDs for illegals." Those ID cards are only of use to illegal aliens, and the Mexican government travels between their outposts in our country passing them out to its citizens who are here illegally. The Bush administration supports the use of the cards.The article starts out in the "standard" way, but then includes some downsides of the cards:
To the Mexican immigrant, especially the one who is in the United States illegally, the card is the key to opening bank accounts, obtaining credit with credit card companies, even paying income taxes to the U.S. government.As pointed out at the second link above, the Bush administration fought to allow banks to accept these cards. The only official criticism has come from the FBI, the GAO, and some pro-America congressmen and other elected officials. If this article's reporter has evidence of the DHS leadership opposing the card, I'd like to see it.
Yet to the state of California and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, issuing such a card is of big concern.
Not only has the card been criticized for lending legitimacy to illegal immigration in California, it has come under fire for being the end-round for terrorists in a post-9/11 era...
"Obviously, Mexico isn't our number one concern, but open borders are always a problem, and we're not entirely convinced that the background process to determine identity and criminal background (for acquiring the national cards) are being done satisfactorily," said Gary Winuck, chief deputy director for California's Office of Homeland Security in Sacramento.Perhaps the report is confused that agency with the federal DHS.
The fact of the matter, he said, is that the United States has no jurisdiction over the matter.Strictly speaking, that's wrong. If a country's consulate really does something wrong, we can always ask them to leave. Of course, that's a very rare occurence. But, there's always the possibility of a formal complaint from the State Dep't to their opposite numbers. That needn't be a rare occurence, but for some reason or other the Bush administration refuses to do anything about Mexico repeatedly stepping over the line. And, a consulate passing out the cards wouldn't do it any good if they were considered to be the Mickey Mouse IDs that they are. Unfortunately, that's not the case: the Bush administration fought to allow banks to accept the cards, and the Mexican government has gone to cities throughout the land and convinced gullible, racist, corrupt, or just "liberal" local officials to accept the cards (an example from Napa).
"Whether they’re here illegally or legally, it is not our job to determine," [Jose Loreto, San Diego's deputy general consul] said.
Loreto said 70 percent of the people who apply for the card... are here illegally...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 04:12 AM | Comments (1)
Article promoting anti-American DREAM Act covers some downsides
The article "Tests illegals can't pass" is yet another article promoting Orrin Hatch's anti-American DREAM Act. That Act would give discounted college educations to illegal aliens. Out-of-state U.S. citizens would continued being forced to pay the full price. Of course, under no circumstances should a citizen of another country be given a better deal than a U.S. citizen, but some people - far-lefties as well as corrupt politicians - remain unclear on that commonsense concept. The current article is a bit different from others that promotes that Act, as it includes a few of the downsides and it's not as weepy as the others:The 1996 Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act forbade states from granting in-state tuition to illegal immigrants based on residency because those students would be paying less than out-of-state U.S. citizens...Quick! No one tell them they're violating federal law.
...some [NJ] colleges are allowing undocumented students to pay the lower in-state tuition, apparently violating federal law...
...[out of several others, the reporters found two pro-American colleges:] William Paterson University and the County College of Morris reject all applications from undocumented students...
...Partha Banerjee, executive director of the New Jersey Immigration Policy Network, says the few four-year colleges that grant in-state tuition to illegal students - three of 10 - probably "just don't know or they are just not following" the federal rules. He says he's concerned that "once they find out this is something they cannot do, then perhaps they will stop doing it," and that would further harm the immigrant students...
..."People who are here illegally should not benefit on the backs of taxpayers," says Assemblyman Michael Carroll, R-Morristown. "Far from being welcomed with a discount, [they] should be evicted immediately."...Obviously, there's only a limited number of available slots, and none of those should go to anyone who's here illegally. Obviously, there are some who don't see it that way. They would be willing to allow a citizen of another country to take the spot of a U.S. citizen. Of course, a small number of those people aren't necessarily un-American: they just haven't thought about this enough.
...State officials worry that an influx of students suddenly able to afford college might strain a system already filled to capacity. For the class entering last fall, the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education says, its four-year public schools received 88,467 applications but enrolled only 15,912 freshmen...
"We have huge capacity needs; we are short of space," says Jean Oswald, the commission's executive director. "If thousands more of these undocumented students are able to go to college because they can afford it, it absolutely will knock more of the legal people out..."
Immigration advocates [sic; make that "illegal immigration advocates"] insist that opportunities for achieving students, legal and illegal alike, should be based on merit.Now, come the scare tactics:
But others argue it is wrong to secure a college slot for an illegal immigrant, particularly at the expense of a legal resident.
"A college might admit the undocumented student on merit," Oswald says, "but the bottom line is that some residents will say, 'Why should my daughter compete for a college spot against someone who is illegal?' "
"Those who create obstacles for immigrant students will find that in the end they will have a bigger problem," says Rafael Fraguela, the principal at The Learning Center in Passaic and a former vice principal of Passaic High. "Instead of spending more money on education, they will have to spend more money on prisons and on fighting gang violence.Well, the cure for that is to prevent illegal immigrants from coming here in the first place. That way everyone discussed above wouldn't be an issue.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:47 PM | Comments (6)
The AP on the "divided GOP" and their "immigration debate"
The AP offers a helpful "summary box" of the "debate" so far. It consists of just three short bullet points:
MAKING A MOVE: President Bush is considering allowing illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. before February 2004 to qualify for guest-worker visas. Those who arrived later would be deported.
Of course, almost 2/3 of Americans - from across the spectrum - oppose those visas, but what matters their opinion?
And, the idea that Bush would have the will to deport anyone who arrived here since 2/04 is ludicrous at best. If he had that will, why don't we set the cutoff date a year or five years earlier? What will actually happen is those who came here after that date will just become part of the first wave of the new group of illegal aliens who'll come here because of his amnesty.
WARRING FACTIONS: In crafting a proposal, Bush is caught between conservatives who want to stem the tide of illegal immigrants and supporters in the business sector who think the economy needs the workers.
Obviously, the AP needs to start reading some of these polls. It's not just conservatives who are opposed to Bush's plan. Those who support his or the similar plans are actually a small but powerful minority consisting of not just businesses but the racial lobby, the media, and the far left.
CRISIS POINT: Arizona and New Mexico have declared immigration emergencies, and the Senate is set to consider competing plans — one would allow workers to stay in the U.S. while applying for visas, and the other would not.
Once again, the AP seems unable to present a choice that would actually work: enforcing the laws we currently have. This appears to be a stock tactic employed by the cheap labor lobby: just ignore that workable idea and concentrate instead on offering a false choice.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 04:24 PM | Comments (3)
"Compassionate conservatism" to be plaguing U.S. for decades to come
According to this, George W. Bush has already made plans for his library, and it's not going to be good for the U.S.
..."The Hoover Institution," reveals Bush's chief library scout and former Commerce Secretary Don Evans, "is the model. That's what will differentiate our library." ...Evans tells us that the "Bush Institute" won't just take up the president's agenda of advancing compassionate conservatism, fighting terrorism, and expanding democracy: Women's issues, a passion of the first lady, will also get a starring role. "This will be a very active institution," he predicts. And that's not all. In a letter to seven colleges and the city of Arlington, all vying to build the George W. Bush Presidential Library, Evans and Bush brother Marvin say the prez also wants a high-tech library and museum, including an IMAX theater, gift shop, and apartment. It'll be expensive, and the winner will have to raise gobs of cash. But, assures the duo, "the president has many donors, supporters, and friends around the world."
As previously discussed, the Saudis were major contributors to the Clinton library. Expect them - as well as domestic favorites like corporations profiting from Bush's policies - to be major contributors to this effort as well. It will probably go the other way as well: those in the media and elsewhere who've supported Bush's policies may be offered sinecures from the new institution.
And, of course, the institution will help future Bushes in their various runs for office...
Posted to Politics at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)
Wacky stunt to highlight dangerously insecure border
The headline tells you most all you need to know, but there are a few ironic twists. "Human cannonball to be fired across U.S.-Mexico border" informs us that David Smith Sr. is going to perform the stunt from Tijuana over to Border Field State Park in San Diego. This might be next Saturday, or it might have already occurred. In any case, since no one really cares:The feat is the brainchild of Venezuelan artist Javier Tellez and is part of a series of public art projects in the two border cities...Isn't that cute? Of course, all he needed to do was become a citizen of Mexico, Brazil, or Yemen and he wouldn't have needed permission, just a corrupt employer and corrupt politicians to support him.
Tellez organized the cannonball launch with psychiatric patients at the Baja California Mental Health Center in Mexicali, Mexico as a therapeutic project...
Although it is against the law for anyone, including U.S. citizens, to enter the country outside an official port of entry, Smith Sr. won't be crossing illegally. U.S. Border Patrol Chief David Aguilar made an exception for him...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:51 AM | Comments (1)
Vsya Vlast' Nerdam: Linux big hit in tiny socialist state
Apparently the key to widespread adoption of Linux has been discovered: spread world socialism, and the penguin will follow.From "Linux thrives in left-leaning Kerala":
Kerala, a tiny coastal state in south India, is a site of significant popularity of free software and GNU/Linux. What lessons can Kerala teach other areas about using free and open source software?As can be expected, what's needed is a vanguard of right-minded revolutionaries. Only with their help can the peasants be educated and the countryside electrified:
Kerala, as a state, is strongly grounded in principles of socialism. Most of the educated middle class is leftist, at least in principle. The state is credited with a near 100% literacy rate and better social statistics than most of the rest of the country. And all this is reflected in a spirit among the people to question any decision imposed on them. They resent lack of choices, and by extension, oppose monopolies. What better fuel for an open source/free software movement to thrive on than a society like this?
...One lesson that is obvious from most of the above is that the key to promoting the adoption of Linux is to take it to the masses in a manner they understand. Present it to them, highlighting tangible benefits. Make it easy for them to move. Prepare migration paths mentored by professionals. Train them at nominal costs. And always strive to create not users, but 'missionaries.' Today, a state, tomorrow, a country, next year, the world!
Posted to Miscellania at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
Mexican business leaders feeling unwanted, unloved
From "Mexican execs tell Nunez they feel rejected by state":Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez said Mexican business executives told him yesterday they feel "totally rejected" by California political leaders, a contrast to their warm relations with Texas officials.All together: Awwwwwwww.
After a private meeting with a dozen business leaders here, the Los Angeles Democrat said executives regard the current wave of "anti-immigrant hysteria" in California as an affront to them...
And, from "Nunez Trip Hits Heavy Resistance":
...[Mexican-"American" politican Fabian Nunez] worked with a local public relations man to spread his message to as many people as possible: that immigrants were a precious California resource and that the two nations must work together to protect their future...Wouldn't it be nice not to have to deal with this issue? Under any of the immigration "reform" programs, isn't it just going to get worse? Aren't our "amigos" to the south just going to make more and more demands?
Even worse, Mexicans here say, was the speaker's insistence that Schwarzenegger — who this spring praised the "Minuteman" campaign along the U.S.-Mexico border — was a caring person.
"Where does this guy stand?" asked Ulises Canchola Gutierrez, a foreign ministry official. "He supports a state of emergency. He says Arnold is not so bad. I'm confused."
...His call last week for Schwarzenegger to declare a state of emergency was seen in California as putting pressure on the Bush administration to acknowledge the steep costs shouldered by border states. Similar declarations this month by New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano made headlines and freed up about $2 million.
Here, it was interpreted as another slap in the face...
"I don't believe he is anti-Mexican, or anti-immigrant," said Nunez, leaving many scratching their heads. Schwarzenegger is seen as favoring a sealed border, a position that is widely interpreted here as anti-Mexican...
"It is important that we need to protect the border," he said. "Not militarize it, protect it."
It was the sort of tempered liberalism that would normally draw applause from Latino audiences in California...
For the sake of this country, we need to just back away slowly from this whole mess. We can't afford to get even more entangled with a country that obviously has no respect for our laws. If Mexico's leaders won't reform themselves, then we need to just build a wall.
Posted to California at 07:22 AM | Comments (1)
Carlsbad Heckler's Veto, Part 2
As previously discussed, Carlsbad CA wants to charge state Sen. Bill Morrow for the costs that city incurred providing security at the illegal immigration forum held there earlier this month.
Now, the SDUT weighs in with "The price of speech", saying that the cities affected should pay for it:
...So, is it fair for the taxpayers of Carlsbad – and Oceanside, San Diego, La Mesa, El Cajon and National City, whose police went to Carlsbad's mutual aid – to bear the expense? Yes, because protecting free speech from a "heckler's veto" can carry a high dollar price, and it's the duty of government, local and otherwise, to pay it.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 04:17 AM | Comments (0)
Illegal aliens stay in the U.S.; Mexican, American response compared
Because of increased border protection in some areas, the prices to be smuggled into the U.S. have risen and muy malo groups have gotten involved rather than the previous "mom and pop" groups. This has caused some illegal aliens who had previously returned home occasionally to not only stay in the U.S., but to send for their families.This is discussed in "Officials: Strengthening border has domino effect", and two alternative ways of dealing with this issue are presented.
From the Mexican side of things comes their general consul in San Diego, Luis Cabrera:
"It's a labor market and it obeys the laws of supply and demand... You can't control such a thing as migration into a developed country only by law enforcement. With all due respect, it's very clear that we have to deal with immigration in all its aspects and adjust the legal framework to reality."Is it any surprise that Bush, Cornyn, Kyl, McCain, Kennedy, and all the other amnesty proponents including those in the media all want to "adjust" the "framework" to fit their "reality", just like the Mexicans want to do?
Meanwhile, from the American side of things, comes Andy Ramirez of the Friends of the Border Patrol:
...the problem is not that border enforcement has increased, he said. The problem is that it hasn't increased enough.
"It's been strengthened in Tucson (Ariz.), but not elsewhere," he said. "They must strengthen the borders with manpower and technology."
In addition, Ramirez said, the government needs to start doing immigration sweeps in cities throughout the Southwest, increase workplace enforcement and stop allowing banks to accept illegal immigrants' Mexican identification card, or matricula consular, for bank business.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:35 PM | Comments (0)
When do-gooder do more harm than good
While there have been cases where "liberals" have actually done more good than harm, in many cases it's the opposite. A case in point is those groups that provide water stations in the desert for "migrants". From "Arizona residents grow weary of dealing with illegal immigration":...children's book author Byrd Baylor, 81, believes it's her duty to help. She owns the 35 acres of land where No More Deaths, a coalition of volunteers that offers humanitarian aid to illegal immigrants, has its summer camp. Originally from San Antonio and a member of the Baylor mining family, she said it's obvious that the border policy has to change.Her policy should be to prevent illegal immigration in the first place. That would be much more effective than in effect helping that to occur.
"My policy right now is just to keep people from dying who don't have a reason to die – just because they're crossing the border," Ms. Baylor said.
Before printing her "liberal" remarks, that article has the thoughts of other area residents who are tired of the trash and the large groups of "migrants" asking for stuff.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 09:28 PM | Comments (2)
Debbie Schlussel meets the SPLC
The Southern Poverty Law Center has responded to a post from her about the Ranch Rescue controversy. You really need to read their reply to believe it. Her post and their email are in Gaza in Arizona: How "Civil Rights" Lawyer Morris Dees Seized American Land For Illegal Aliens.
(I went to her site yesterday because for some reason I got a ton of hits to my collection of Debbie Schlussel pictures. I was unable to figure out why that happened; perhaps she was on TV or something. Her site is now blog-like, including comments. They, however, use the idiotic nofollow tag.)
Posted to Bloggage at 05:10 PM | Comments (0)
Pro-American church leaders needed
The following religious leaders will be in Nogales on Monday, August 29 to push for immigration "reform":
- Dr. David Elcott, U.S. Director of Interreligious Affairs of the American Jewish Committee;
- Dr. Bob Edgar, General Secretary of the National Council of Churches;
- Elder Rick Ufford-Chase, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, USA;
- Gideon Aronoff, Vice President of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society;
- Rev. Lori Sauder, Executive Council, United Church of Christ;
- Ethan Felson, Asst. Director, Jewish Council of Public Affairs;
- Rev. Jan Flaaten, Exec. Dir of the Arizona Ecumenical Council;
- Father Raul Travizo, Vicar for Hispanic Ministries
According to Elcott: "Criminal immigrant smuggling gangs, vigilante violence and the exploitation of undocumented migrants have made our borders dangerously unsafe... This country’s historic role as a safe haven for those coming to its shores is being seriously compromised."
I'm not aware of anything in our history like what's currently going on. I'm pretty sure that Ellis Island is quite a bit different from millions of people sneaking over our border. I'm also unaware of any biblical directive requiring one country to serve as a safety valve for the corrupt oligarchy of another country. Perhaps these "leaders" are just a bit confused.
The AJC strongly supports the need for bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform, alternative approaches to which are now pending in Congress. "Appropriately drafted legislation would improve national security through enhanced border security and effective enforcement, while protecting those most vulnerable in our society through earned legalization and increased worker protections," Elcott said.
Gosh, any chance that could be a reference to the McCain-Kennedy massive amnesty scheme?
It would be nice if someone would ask these loonies some of the questions in "How many open borders loons can dance on the head of a pin?" I don't think their stance would stand up to much scrutiny, but, as always, the main problem is finding someone who has the access and the courage to ask some tough questions.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 03:21 PM | Comments (0)
Responding to Dallas giving in to racial power
From a U.S. English press release:Late Thursday night, a 5-4 vote of the Dallas school board made this Texas county the first in the nation to require administrators to learn Spanish or lose their jobs...As previously discussed, most of the DUmmies couldn't understand the problem. Of course, neither can most of our elected dummies.
"The Dallas school board's extreme approach sends the unmistakable message that English is optional in the area," explained Mauro E. Mujica, Chairman of the Board of U.S. English, Inc. "This is part of a frightening trend where English-speaking Americans are being asked to learn a foreign language, while nothing is expected out of non-English speaking immigrants to America. Instead of forcing their administrators to learn the language of immigrants, the district should open its facilities to programs that teach immigrant parents English."
...While Dallas County ranks 138th in the nation in the percentage of residents who speak Spanish at home, it is ninth in the concentration of Vietnamese speakers, eighth in the concentration of Urdu speakers, and 14th in the concentration of Korean speakers. In all, 123,000, or six percent of Dallas County residents, speak a language other than English or Spanish at home. The "outreach" program makes no attempt to reach other immigrant families...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:27 PM | Comments (1)
Lesson: Don't hire "immigrant" janitors
Cleaning and Maintenance Management Magazine - which I consult on a daily basis to learn what's going on in that high-tech field - has an article entitled "Immigrant janitors file suit". (At post time, the ad to the left is promoting "Minuteman" products, which is apparently unrelated to the Project of the same name.)The CMM post directs us to the news account "CEO denies direct connection to workers":
The suit claims 44 Eastern European and Mongolian immigrants regularly worked at three Fairfield Resorts Inc. time shares up to 85 hours per week as housekeepers and landscapers beginning in August 2002 and were never paid overtime.What do you want to bet that those "immigrants" are in fact illegal aliens? While there's the possibility that they were legal workers, the fact that their employer - whoever it may turn out ultimately to be - felt safe in allegedly abusing them would seem to indicate that they were here in somewhat shady circumstances.
The workers had to pay a deposit to start their jobs, weren't paid for three weeks of work in the spring of 2005, and have been harassed and threatened since they sought legal help, according to the lawsuit. Fairfield is named in the lawsuit as well as five companies and two men.
But Gary Clifton, CEO of Ambassador Solutions Inc. and Proline Management Corporation - Missouri contracting companies named in the lawsuit - said Friday he never directly employed the Williamsburg-area workers...
Here's hoping this suit succeeds and those "immigrants" collect a large judgment. Then, let's hope that that result is printed in CMM Magazine, and it serves as a lesson to other janitorial companies.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:24 PM | Comments (0)
Rumor: Border Patrol honcho fired
The following is a completely uncorroborated rumor:
August 27, 2005 - 12:05 pm PDT -- According to knowledgeable sources, following an internal investigation, Lee Morgan, the Border Patrol's head guy for policing corruption at the Douglas, Arizona, Border Patrol station, has been relieved of duty, and his badge, gun and vehicle taken from him. His replacement is Kevin Keeters. The BP is trying to keep a lid on this and don't want the media involved.
Now, see More straw, Tamar? A Jacoby column featured this quote from Morgan:
[BP Agent Lee Morgan] criticizes the apprehensions as a waste of time and resources. "They're just poor people trying to feed their families," he shrugs... "What if the bastards come across here in Arizona and I don't catch them because I'm so busy chasing a busboy or a gardener that I don't have time to do my job--my real job--catching terrorists?..."
As I pointed out in that post, he seemed to be the go-to-guy for pro-Bush Border Patrol quotes...
Of course, this rumor may turn out to be completely or partially false and I'll provide an update when more information is available.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:21 PM | Comments (0)
Bush's new immigration scheme due late Sept., early Oct.
This biased AP report deserves a fisking, but for now let's just concentrate on this bit of news:Struggling to pacify his party's warring wings, President Bush is moving toward allowing illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. before February 2004 to qualify for guest-worker visas. People smuggled in after then would be deported...Parts of this article were also featured in "More McCain immigration quotes".
Bush and his advisers [sic] are caught between their supporters in the business sector, who believe the economy needs those workers, and conservatives whose priority is to clamp down on illegal immigration. The White House hopes to have a detailed proposal to Congress in late September or early October...
According to administration and congressional officials who took part in a series of White House meetings this summer, Bush does not favor requiring illegal immigrants to be sent home to apply for the visas.
In a nod to his conservative base, however, the president has rejected a part of the McCain-Kennedy bill that the White House believes would put illegal immigrants on an automatic track to citizenship, the officials said.
The officials said it was unclear how many illegal immigrants came after February 2004 or how many later had children in the U.S., conferring U.S. citizenship on those babies. The White House wants to avoid a surge of illegal immigrants who would try to beat a prospective deadline, they said...
From construction companies in Arizona to farmers in the Midwest and California, many industries need those cheap and available workers...
Depending on how Hispanics react, this fall's immigration debate could help determine whether Democrats or Republicans dominate the fastest-growing voting bloc in years to come.
The issue threatens to divide Democrats. Affluent, well-educated liberals are embracing immigration as part of cultural diversity. But poor Democrats, including blacks, are wary of Hispanics' growing economic and political clout...
The White House may take the unusual step of writing the legislation or submitting specific language to Congress.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 12:14 PM | Comments (0)
More McCain immigration quotes
From this:Conservative House Republicans tend to favor [the "tougher" Cornyn-Kyl mass amnesty.] McCain mocks it.Previously: "John McCain's illegal alien amnesty scheme gets cold shoulder from his constituents".
"Turn yourself in so we can send you back to Mexico," said McCain, throwing his head back in laughter during an interview at his Arizona office last week. "It's not going to happen."
..."Just stop at one of these construction sites and look and see who those workers are. They're all Hispanic," McCain said. "And I bet you they're illegal."
Posted to Immigration2005b at 12:07 PM | Comments (1)
John McCain's illegal alien amnesty scheme gets cold shoulder from his constituents
Here are two articles on a two-hour public event at which AZ Sen. John McCain took questions from his constituents: "McCain hears critics of immigration bill" and "McCain calms GOP critics at MCC".
While both report that many there were critical of McCain himself as well as his amnesty schemes, the reporters - oddly enough! - fail to provide examples of the questions he was asked and his answers, preferring instead to prattle on about insignificant matters. As seen recently (McCain: why immigration "reform" is horrible for Mexico's people), the easiest way to discredit both McCain and his plan is just to let him speak. Perhaps we'll get some quotes from other sources.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 08:44 AM | Comments (0)
"Wisconsin Program Helps Illegal Aliens Get Mortgages"
Fox News reports on Antonio Riley of the WHEDA ("Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority") and his scheme to give home loans to illegal aliens:...[Republican state Sen. Glenn Grothman] said he wants essentially to eliminate the I-TIN mortgages and has proposed that Social Security numbers be required for state loans.
He said that even though he believes the vast majority of Wisconsin is with him on this, he's not sure his own party is.
"If my legislation doesn't pass, it shows a high degree of cowardice on the part of the Republican leadership of the state of Wisconsin," Grothman said.
Wisconsin GOP leaders say they do not fear Hispanic voter backlash getting in the way of Grothman's legislation, but that the party has other priorities, like election law reform, that needs to be completed first.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:40 AM | Comments (0)
DUmmies: Chavez for Prez, simple "liberal" minds on multiculturalism, and George Galloway
Today in DUmmy News:
The poll question "Is Hugo Chavez is the greatest world leader so far in the 21st century?" [sic] has the following results: Yes, 32 votes. No, 24 votes.
And, they respond to the news that the Dallas school board has voted to require bilingual principals in some schools: "Bilingual-principal plan approved". To you this is an obvious ethnic power grab: just having a passing knowledge of Spanish probably isn't going to be good enough. A, shall we say, native fluency will be required. As will - of course! - an in-depth knowledge of "Hispanic" culture. Of course that will require that someone be "Raza"; otherwise the students won't have the proper, racially-sensitive learning experience. Needless to say, the DUmmies - except for one brave poster - are unable to grasp these elementary concepts.
And, lastly: "George Galloway US Tour! September 13-24". He'll be at the Immanuel Presbyterian Church at 3300 Wilshire on September 22, and I might be there. More tour dates here.
UPDATE: Chavez is pulling ahead! It's now Yes, 57 votes. No, 43 votes.
Posted to Bloggage at 04:15 AM | Comments (0)
Gov. Rick Perry's vision of the Trans-Texas Corridor
Texas' Republican Gov. Rick Perry wants to build a massive scar across that state called the "Trans-Texas Corridor". It would consist of roads, railway lines, and energy transport pipelines and, in some places, it would be one-quarter of a mile wide.
Now, Raytheon has been selected to provide the booth-less toll part of the massive project. Don't have a toll pass? You'll get a bill in the mail after your license plate has been scanned. BTW: "FM" means "farm road". Just for your future reference should you find yourself in the area.
Previously: "Dueling over a scar". Some call the TTC a "NAFTA Road".
Posted to Miscellania at 08:56 PM | Comments (1)
Should Fabian Nunez stay in Mexico?
Honestly: wouldn't it be best for both countries if California Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez would just stay in Mexico? He seems to be having so much fun on his vacation it's a shame it has to end. John Rice of the AP reports:Fabian Nunez could hardly stop grinning. The speaker of the California Assembly sat shoulder to shoulder with some of Mexico's political elite on Friday before an exuberantly friendly audience of thousands...It sounds like they could really use someone with Nunez' energy and political skills there. And, since we don't need people here who have divided loyalties, it would be a win-win.
Nunez, who spent most of the first seven years of his life in Tijuana, joined those around him in crossing his hand across his chest in salute as the Mexican flag arrived with a children's honor guard...
Nunez said migrants had helped make California one of the world's great economic powers, "yet the gap between the poor and the rich grows greater and greater, the racism against immigrant workers continues."
He also denounced civilian immigrant hunter groups such as the Minutemen, saying they "try to deny our humanity and our dignity."
Nunez avoided reference to Mexican political issues, but praised the leadership of the union's chief, Heladio Ramirez, who is a key figure in the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, that ran Mexico for 71 years before losing to opposition candidate Vicente Fox in 2000.
The farm union itself has been a key part of the PRI for decades.
Ramirez, meanwhile, decried poverty in the countryside that he said was driving Mexicans across the border.
"That, comrades, is a national disgrace," Ramirez said. "It's humiliating that we are exporting poor Mexicans in the worst conditions so that they can achieve elsewhere what we deny them here."
Previously: "Fabian Nunez, California Democrat, kisses up to Vicente Fox".
Regarding the part in red above, please send your thoughts to: readers.rep@uniontrib.com and feedback@ap.org.
UPDATE: From the mind-bendingly titled "In Mexico, Nunez is forced to explain border comments" come these mind-bending quotes:
"It seems as though there is a sense that people want to close the border," Nunez said Fox told him. "I assured him that that wasn't the case, and I think he accepted my response to that."The fact that he's "succeeded" shows that there are a lot of reality-denying cowards in the media, but we already knew that.
...[Nunez said:] "Many of these Democratic leaders traditionally are aligned with the Mexican people and have been very supportive of the contributions of undocumented immigrants in particular..."
"I always thought that the biggest criticism I would get is 'Here is this Mexican-American leader of California going to Mexico. Where's his allegiance – to Mexico or the U.S.?' " Núñez said.
"I think I have succeeded," he said. "The fact that that criticism hasn't been made shows that we have made a lot of progress."
Posted to California at 08:45 PM | Comments (1)
"Would a Bill of Impeachment Wake-Up President Bush?"
The person asking that question is... "Pitchfork" Pat Buchanan, and the question is printed in Human Events:...A president like Teddy Roosevelt would have led the Army to the border years ago. And if Fox did not cooperate, T.R. would have gone on to Mexico City. Nor would Ike, who deported all illegal aliens in 1953, have stood still for this being done to the country he had defended in war.
What are these Bush Republicans afraid of? Dirty looks from the help at the country club?
The question of whether America is going to remain one nation, or whether our Southwest will wind up as a giant Kosovo -- separated by language and loyalty from the rest of America -- is on the table...
...George Bush is chief executive of the United States. It is his duty to enforce the laws. Can anyone fairly say he is enforcing the immigration laws? Those laws are clear. People who break in are to be sent back. Yet, more than 10 million have broken in with impunity. Another million attempt to break in every year. Half a million succeed. Border security is homeland security. How, then, can the Department of Homeland Security say America is secure?
Who can guarantee that, of the untold millions of illegals here, and the scores of thousands ordered deported for crimes who have disappeared into our midst, none is a terrorist waiting for orders to blow up a subway or mall and massacre American citizens?
...Twice, George Bush has taken an oath to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." Article IV, Section 4 of that Constitution reads, "The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against invasion."
Well, we are being invaded, and the president of the United States is not doing his duty to protect the states against that invasion. Some courageous Republican, to get the attention of this White House, should drop into the hopper a bill of impeachment, charging George W. Bush with a conscious refusal to uphold his oath and defend the states of the Union against "invasion."
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:12 PM | Comments (0)
Is corruption a Republican value?
In a perfect world the Democrats would have a brain and would oppose illegal immigration. While it seems highly unlikely, if they do decide to join the American side of things, let me suggest a very potent talking point: the GOP is corrupt.Examples of that corruption can be seen throughout the article "Count Them In" about illegal aliens and banking:
..."Clearly Hispanic buying power, which is estimated at $600 billion, has captured the attention of business, and many are responding to the Latino market," Beatriz Ibarra, an assets policy analyst for the National Council of La Raza, which worked with Wells Fargo on the matricula program, says... [I didn't know about that connection before --LW]
...Still, there are those who say the matricula card compromises immigration enforcement just when the country needs it most. A Google search on matricula cards reveals a smattering of furious Web sites like www.americanpatrol.com, whose "Mexican Sham ID Card" section decries the increasing acceptance of the matricula and asks readers if they remember 9.11... [Finally, a reporter who knows how to search! Too bad he didn't incorporate some of the results into his report however. --LW]
The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) maintains that by accepting the card banks are, in effect, laundering money for people not in this country legally.
"While the Department of Homeland Security and the Border Patrol are spending so much time and money on strategies to reduce illegal immigration, far too little attention is being paid to the practices of the American business community," CIS Spokesman John Keeley says. "The distinction between legal and illegal immigration has been blurred, and it's undermining governmental will to enforce the law."
..."We expect this trend to continue," James Ballentine, director of grassroots and community service for the [American Bankers Association], says. "The fact of the matter is that this population isn't going anywhere, and they shouldn't have to hide their money under the mattress any longer."
..."The ITIN policy aids and abets the employment of illegal aliens. It allows them to remain underground. This is coming from a federal entity and it's undermining the enforcement of federal law," CIS’s Keeley says...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:02 AM | Comments (0)
Fabian Nunez, California Democrat, kisses up to Vicente Fox
Fabian Nunez, Democrat and Speaker of the California Assembly visited Mexico yesterday to speak to...the speaker said the emergency decree was a matter "between the states and the Bush administration" meant to seek resources to solve border region problems.Because, as we know, Mexico plays no role in our problems with massive illegal immigration. Despite his obsequiousness, Nunez was partially in the doghouse: the meeting wasn't on Fox's official schedule. Whether he kissed Fox's ring is not disclosed.
"In no way does it seek to attack or place blame on the back of Mexico," said Nunez, a Los Angeles Democrat...
State Republican officials said Nunez's trip was orchestrated to woo Hispanic voters ahead of the Nov. 8 election...Wait... I though Nunez at least pretends to be an American? Why should a visit to a foreign country do an American politician any good?
On arrival at Mexico City airport, Nunez, who lived in Mexico until age 7, said enforcement of immigration law "has to be done with respect and dignity." He said "California depends on Mexican labor" and endorsed the idea of legalizing many of those now working illegally...On that note, see "Senators Hollingsworth and Morrow and Assemblymen Haynes and Wyland Unveil Illegal Immigration Proposal":
...Schwarzenegger said there was no need for [a border emergency] declaration. He also said state law allows him to declare emergencies only in case of war, natural disasters or epidemics.
In a letter he sent to Nunez on Wednesday, Schwarzenegger said the law was intended to protect health, safety, life and property in extreme circumstances...
The proposed legislation addresses these concerns by giving the Governor the explicit authority to call a state of emergency in regards to illegal immigration. Should the Governor declare a state of emergency, it allows for greater coordination and for the use of personnel and resources to address the problem.
Posted to California at 08:50 AM | Comments (1)
Portland: All corruption and "liberalism" is local
Multnomah County in Oregon - home to Portland - funded a "needs and assets assessment of the Hispanic community of Multnomah County". Click the link to read a fisk of the document, such as of this putrid slice:
Solidarity is what has enabled Latinos to make remarkable political gains as a group, in spite of their internal diversity. Solidarity is the basis of the concept of La Raza (your own people). Loyalty to the group starts by recognizing paisanos (those from your country) wherever one goes.
Racial solidarity is great! (Of course, it's only acceptable when performed by Oppressed Persons of Color. Otherwise, it's hatred, racism, xenophobia, and anti-human behavior.)
Posted to Immigration2005b at 07:24 AM | Comments (3)
McCain: why immigration "reform" is horrible for Mexico's people
As we know, Arizona's John McCain co-sponsors an amnesty scheme with Teddy Kennedy. This plan will encourage millions of Mexican illegal aliens to stay in the U.S. And, it will encourage millions more to come in expectation of being a part of their amnesty (or a future "final amnesty.")
What impact has our lax immigration enforcement had on Mexico itself, and what impact would any of these amnesty plans have in the future?
Let's turn to McCain himself for that answer:
"We have a national interest in improving the Mexican economy... We now have towns in Mexico that are devoid of young men because they've all come to the United States because they can't find work there."
Isn't that a bad thing? Shouldn't we try to encourage them to go home and build up their own country? Aren't we taking people from Mexico who could help reform that country?
Why would John McCain sponsor an amnesty that would just make that situation worse? Why do "liberals" support massive immigration rather than supporting governmental reform in Mexico? Why does John McCain do that? What would a real statesman do?
Posted to Immigration2005b at 06:35 AM | Comments (5)
House Speaker Dennis Hastert promises immigration "reform"
Keep an eye constantly peeled for offers of immigration "reform" from our leaders. The latest is House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, who visited Tucson to support open borders proponent Jim Kolbe:"We're going to address immigration... The biggest problem is having a comprehensive bill. We have to have a lot of different points of view come together and some resolution and some agreement on those."The way to deal with the latter, according to Hastert, is to invite more to come. We'll deal with them later.
Those gaps that need bridging on border reform go beyond partisanship and even internal differences within the majority Republican party, Hastert said.
"There's wide differences in the Arizona delegation on how to deal with this thing," he said, referring to a bill backed by Kolbe and Sen. John McCain and another co-sponsored by Sen. Jon Kyl.
Whatever legislation surfaces from the process must address border security, a workable guest-worker program and how to deal with the millions of illegal immigrants living and raising families in the U.S., Hastert said...
UPDATE: This article has a very revealing quote from Hastert:
"You need to have that guest-worker program so people can legitimately come across the border, work and if they wish go home."I guess he's admitting they aren't really "guest" workers at all.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:11 AM | Comments (2)
CBS Poll: 63% oppose "work permits" for "illegal immigrants"
From "Poll: Most Want Immigration Curbed":...Sixty-three percent say immigrants who are in the country illegally should not be able to apply for a permit that allows them to stay and work.
ALLOW ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO APPLY FOR U.S. WORK PERMITS?
Yes
32%
No
63%
Opposition to work permits crosses party and ideological boundaries: most Democrats, Republicans and Independents are opposed, as are most liberals, conservatives and moderates...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:25 PM | Comments (6)
Pro-illegal immigration propaganda from CBS News?
Let's take a look at the report "Arizona Border Dispute" from Bryan Sanders of the "CBS News Political Unit." At first glance it might look like just a standard rundown of the two main massive amnesty schemes: Kennedy/McCain and Cornyn/Kyl.
But, there at the start of the fourth paragraph, sticking out like a big ol' propagandistic thumb, comes this:
There is emerging consensus at the state and national level that the U.S. immigration system is broken and needs to be fixed.
Here's an Orlando Sentinel editorial from a few days ago: Clearly, it is past time for Congress to fix this country's broken immigration system.
And, here's a David Brooks editorial: The system is out of control.
Another instance here, and more in "America's immigration system is broken, and needs to be fixed".
There is the distinct possibility that they are indeed all reading from the same script.
Returning to the CBS News report, we come to this bit:
A Pew Hispanic Center poll released last week shows 84 percent of Americans favor a plan allowing illegal immigrants to stay and work in the United States with an opportunity to become citizens later. The same poll shows Americans, to a slightly lesser degree, are also sympathetic to the Kyl-Cornyn approach.
See if you can spot the mistake the reporter made in this blurb about the study in question:
Although an overwhelming majority of Hispanics expresses positive attitudes toward immigrants, relatively few Hispanics favor increasing the flow of legal immigration from Latin America and a significant minority, concentrated among native-born Latinos, is concerned that unauthorized migrants are hurting the economy. One hotly-debated means to discourage unauthorized migration--laws that deny drivers licenses to people who are in the country illegally--draws support from a majority of the native born, according to a survey of the Latino population in the United States conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center...
I have trouble believing it could escape anyone's notice that this survey was just of "Latinos" and not of Americans as a whole, but let's just assume that's an honest mistake.
Back to CBS:
For Republicans considering a run to succeed Mr. Bush as the party's nominee for the White House in 2008, immigration is a thorny issue. They are under pressure to strike a balance between the concerns of conservative primary voters favoring a hard-line approach, and those of Hispanics, who are largely sympathetic to the plight of migrant workers, and represent a pivotal voting bloc in the general election...
Apparently the great majority of Americans - those who think the immigration laws should be enforced - are hard-liners. And, apparently we should allow one racial group to dictate our immigration policies. But, what do most Americans really think? To help us find out, let's turn to CBS Poll: 63% oppose "work permits" for "illegal immigrants".
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:05 PM | Comments (2)
Mary Sanchez or Tokyo Rose?
Mary Sanchez of Knight-Ridder offers us "The cost of mass deportation". As in "David Brooks or Tokyo Rose?" I invite you to read her editorial with the proper inflection.
Sanchez informs us that more than 10 million people have illegally settled in our country and we have no chance of deporting all of them. We have no choice but to give in and deal with it:
The fact that mass deportation continues to ring feasible to so many people is astounding. Do people really think that enough immigration agents exist to go door to door throughout America ferreting out the 10 million-plus illegal population?
According to Sanchez, we have no choice but to surrender:
The fact that leadership within the Department of Homeland Security insists mass deportation is impossible never seems to dissuade people.
I know, isn't that something? In fact, when Asa Hutchinson sat down for his famous interview described in "Rounding up all illegals 'not realistic'" many people said that he was simply admitting that he wasn't doing his job. And, some people even called the Bush administration corrupt and said they were deliberately allowing massive illegal immigration in order to provide cheap labor to GOP contributors. Why, oh why won't the American public simply believe what the DHS tells them?
Then, she discusses the Center for American Progress' immigration study, which predicted it would cost well over $200 billion to deport all the illegal aliens in the U.S. Of course, as described at the link, their study has been completely discredited because of the laughable methodology they used, but let's ignore that for the moment.
Once again, she informs we Americans that we have no choice but to surrender:
Arguments could be made that yes, the American government could drop all efforts to say build highways, finish the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, educate children in public schools - and divert these funds to this new endeavor.
Just give in, you Americans.
On a related note, Mary Sanchez was last seen trying to portray radical reconquista Armando Navarro as a moderate here.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:10 AM | Comments (5)
Nature-loving Indian tribe plans glass-bottomed walkway over Grand Canyon
I'm sure many of you have woken up of a morning and said, "What the Grand Canyon needs is more tourists. There should be more parking lots, more infrastructure, a resort, and a golf course. But, even better, what about a glass-bottomed walkway jutting 70 feet out into the Canyon so tourons can look down at the bottom 4000' below? Wouldn't that be nice?"Well, the nature-loving Hualapai Tribe is planning to make that dream a reality:
The horseshoe-shaped skywalk, scheduled to open in January, is part of the Hualapai Tribe's $40 million efforts to turn 1,000 acres of reservation land into tourist operations that someday could include a high-end resort, golf course and campgrounds.
The destination, known as Grand Canyon West, also will feature an Indian village and Western-themed town, which are scheduled to open Sept. 1.
Visitors to the skywalk will pay $25 for a bird's-eye view of the canyon below.
The skywalk could help double the number of visitors to Grand Canyon West to 500,000 a year, said Sheri Yellowhawk, chief executive officer of the Grand Canyon Resort Corp., a tribal-owned company that oversees the project...
Posted to OutdoorSports at 08:55 AM | Comments (2)
Chavez for US President!
A trip to wacky DUmmyland is always a treat, and the thread "Chavez Dismisses Robertson Death Wish, Offers 'Medical Aid' to U.S. Poor!" is an extra special treat. Our friend in Venezuela has made a most generous offer:...Chavez said what did concern him was the level of poverty of certain people in the United States, and he offered aid from his government to help with the well-being and health of the American people.One poster suggest that Chavez runs for U.S. president. Others congratulate him for pointing out U.S. poverty and offer to help. But, oddly enough!, there are few negative comments. In fact, after more than fifty comments, I only found one that was negative, and, after several deleted replies, that poster offered an explanation:
Chavez said that some citizens of that country could be enrolled in the VISTA medical program of Cuba, and he even spoke of offering a special program of direct gasoline assistance to poor communities.
"The level of poverty in the United States also worries us. We offer not only to cover 6 million people with Vista over the next ten years, but to train over 200,000 doctors over the 10 years. We will put them back into Vista," he said... (original source)
All I basically said in my first post was, Ill believe it when I see it.
Posted to Bloggage at 06:44 AM | Comments (1)
Michael Moore attends $3800/week Pritikin fat farm
"Re-education" is offered at the Pritikin Longevity Center and Spa in Aventura, Fla where the blimp-like director has lodged himself, NewsMax reports. More here; what purport to be letters from Mikey here.
Posted to Celebrities at 10:51 AM | Comments (1)
Hey, illegal aliens! Head to Douglas Duncan's Montgomery County!
Tom Knott has a plan to deal with Montgomery County MD's Executive, Douglas Duncan. After a four-day (taxpayer sponsored) trip to El Salvador, Duncan came back convinced that that county needs to be an "open and welcoming community", including of illegal aliens.Knott suggests that all illegal aliens - from all countries - should head for that county to make Duncan's wish come true.
From "Taxpayers also will feel Duncan's compassion":
...Mr. Duncan thinks we must express compassion to those who enter our country illegally. He thinks we must be tolerant and enlightened, warm and hospitable. He sees the issue of illegal immigration as being incredibly complex and multilayered, and anyone who expects government officials to enforce the laws of our land is a small-minded Neanderthal incapable of grasping the nuances of it all.
Mr. Duncan says we cannot send the illegal aliens back to El Salvador, because there are no jobs there. We just can't break up families that way. That is just not nice. That is just not the American way. And all these illegal aliens want to do is work, except for the gang members who want to stick graffiti on walls and deal in mayhem and make babies in order to secure your tax dollars.
Conveniently enough, Mr. Duncan does not object to spending your tax dollars. Why, he feels obligated to spend more tax dollars in an attempt to provide the citizenry, legal or otherwise, with all the necessary public services...
If only to be consistent in his thinking, Mr. Duncan's open-door policy with illegal aliens probably is all-inclusive, whether you have entered this country illegally from the Americas, Asia, Europe or Africa. Mr. Duncan feels your pain...
The world should take this as good news. Come to Mr. Duncan's Montgomery County. Mr. Duncan promises a warm meal, shelter and a job. And he promises to be understanding after spending four days in El Salvador...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 09:54 AM | Comments (4)
Oops! Planned community gets tangible illegal immigration lesson
From "Trash woes piling up":Splayed in the desert just south of I-10 along Rita Road is an unruly collection of backpacks, flannel shirts, coats, water bottles, soft-drink cans, pill packages, toothbrushes and toilet paper rolls.Gosh, wasn't it nice when it was, you know, someone else's problem? Now even those in planned master communities aren't safe from the effects of "liberalism" and political corruption.
Shredded black plastic trash bags are stripped across ocotillo and creosote bushes...
"Look how close we are to town," said K.C. Custer, a county environmental investigator, as he walked across the dump site lying across the interstate not far from the large Rita Ranch development. "That's what amazed me about this. It's getting worse. We used to find them only in remote areas."
Pima County's solution? Spend money on new equipment and personnel to clean it up. Here's a better solution: start by replacing Superintendent Linda Arzoumanian and Ajo Unified School District Superintendent Robert Dooley with those who will take local action to discourage illegal immigration rather than encouraging it.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 09:37 AM | Comments (0)
Texas' borderland sheriffs: Washington ignores illegal immigration crisis
From "Texas sheriffs seek aid fighting illegals":County governments in Texas, overwhelmed by a flood of illegal aliens and rapidly increasing border violence, want the federal government to come up with $10 million to help them pay for manpower increases, rising fuel bills and much-needed vehicles and equipment.
Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez, a member of the Texas Border Sheriffs' Coalition, said the federal government's failure to control illegal immigration and to curtail the growing violence along the 1,200-mile Texas-Mexico border had forced county law-enforcement authorities into a "financial nightmare."
"We have tried everything we know to make the federal government aware of the problems at the border and how they have [affected] us," Sheriff Gonzalez told The Washington Times. "And while they say they are aware of the problems, they just leave it alone."
...Sheriff Gonzalez said he did not know what response to expect for the funding request. He noted that in July, when it invited President Bush, a former Texas governor, the state's two U.S. senators, six members of Congress who represent Texas' border areas, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico and other elected officials to a coalition meeting, only Rep. Henry Cuellar, Texas Democrat, attended.
A major concern to the coalition, Sheriff Gonzalez said, is the possibility that terrorists could be paying Mexican drug and immigrant smugglers for help in crossing the border. In the meantime, Sheriff Gonzalez said Texas border residents are terrorized by rising violence...
Posted to Immigration_terror at 07:34 PM | Comments (2)
Dems crazy enough to downplay danger of violent Central American gang
From "Kilgore sticking to gang concern":Virginia gubernatorial candidate Jerry W. Kilgore yesterday said law-enforcement officers would be foolish to assume that there is no link between the al Qaeda terrorist network and the Salvadoran gang Mara Salvatrucha.Immediately after that comes the extremely un-funny punchline:
"MS-13 is the most violent street gang around, and Homeland Security has said it makes sense to see these gangs as being targeted by al Qaeda," Mr. Kilgore, a former state attorney general, told The Washington Times. "We'd be crazy to put our heads in the sand and just say there could never be a link."
Two Northern Virginia prosecutors yesterday criticized the Republican candidate for similar statements he made last week. The prosecutors dismissed Mr. Kilgore's comments as "pandering" and an attempt to score political points.Ka-ching. The Democratic Party is quickly devolving into the "Crazy Dare Party", as in: "I dare you to defend an ultra-violent paramilitary machete-wielding Central American street gang." The WashTimes follows that with a discussion of their previous coverage of a possible link between the two organizations (no, not the Dems and the gang, between AQ and the gang), including comments from former Homeland Security Deputy Secretary James Loy.
"We certainly have not seen any evidence that there is any connection between any gang and al Qaeda," said Alexandria Commonwealth's Attorney Randy Sengel. "It just makes the problem worse for those of us who are trying to deal with it on the front lines."
Mr. Sengel and Arlington Commonwealth's Attorney Richard Trodden made their comments during a press conference call set up by a campaign arm of the Democratic Party of Virginia...
The post "Herndon VA approves illegal alien hiring hall" also mentioned Kilgore.
Posted to Immigration_terror at 06:56 PM | Comments (1)
"Poisonous election" indeed: more smears of the Minuteman Project
Someone named "Humberto Caspa" predicts a "poisonous election" in Orange County CA's 48th District Congressional election in 2006. And, for an unknown reason, a little-known newspaper called the Daily Pilot has printed his ramblings.In that district the head of the Minuteman Project, Jim Gilchrist, will be squaring off against Republican state Sen. John Campbell. And, Caspa predicts that Gilchrist will make it a dirty campaign:
...soon Orange County will turn into an open forum for anti-immigration rhetoric and Latino bashing...Obviously, Caspa is trying for a self-fulfilling prophecy. He's also apparently a professor of political economics at the State University of California San Marcos, although he isn't identified as such in the article.
[The MMP is] a tiny minority in our political system, though they carry loudspeakers that magnify their anti-immigrant rhetoric whenever they move around.
These people aren't known for their peaceful demeanor. They like to show off their guns, a few of them own mean dogs and almost all have great distaste for anybody crossing the U.S.-Mexican border. Whether immigrants come by legal or illegal means matters little to them -- anyone with a Latino background is unwelcome.
...Then their vigilante approach moved to the California border, where they found a stiff challenge from well-organized groups in the Mexican-American community and from human rights activists...
If Caspa's editorial isn't self-fisking and self-discrediting enough, let's look at the last paragraph. Here's a transcript of a CNN report on those "human rights activists":
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Outnumbering the minutemen, a group of aggressive protesters who tried to drive the civilian volunteers away. They included anarchists, communists and advocates of returning the southwest to Mexico... This local rancher had to be rescued by sheriff's deputies after protesters surrounded his motorcycle. One minuteman did leave his post, but most others stood their ground. This state senator was also harassed by the mob while touring the minuteman outposts... Well, it's amazing. There were a wide range of groups. Most of them advocating just completely disassembling the borders, doing away with the borders... I mean, we talk about the open borders crowd on this program. This really was the open borders crowd. They're talking about there should be no border here.It bears repeating that America has many enemies, and not all of them live in other countries.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 03:40 PM | Comments (2)
Rich Lowry, illegal immigration, and president Bush
Lowry discusses the (faux) conversions to border hawks by New Mexico's Bill Richarson and Arizona's Janet Napolitano in "Border Politics: Dems on immigration".He gets this bit right:
...Richardson defends New Mexico's extended hand to illegals on grounds that the state is "immigrant friendly" and has to be "practical." What's impractical is the idea that immigration enforcement can be a matter of simply better policing along the 2,000-mile border with Mexico. Interior enforcement has to be part of the solution, including a crackdown on employers who hire illegals and steps to signal to illegals that they aren't welcome here. It is nonsensical to say, as Richardson and Napolitano are in effect saying, "Gee, the border is too porous, but we're going to give illegals the same privileges as citizens when they get here."But, then he falls flat with this bit about Our Leader:
By rights, Democrats should be the most anti-illegal-immigration of the two parties. The benefits of illegal immigration go disproportionately to employers and people rich enough to hire nannies, pool cleaners, etc. They get to hire low-paid workers with very few rights. The costs fall on minorities and low-skill workers, whose wages are undercut...
The leader of the pro-enforcement forces should be President Bush. After a brutal year defending an unpopular war and a less popular Social Security initiative, favoring something the public wants — an immigration crackdown — might be what he needs. Of course, that would require Bush, who has been pushing for a quasi-amnesty and a temporary-worker program, to change his tune. But if Richardson and Napolitano can, why can't he?Uh, because he and the GOP leadership are completely corrupt? That's certainly something Lowry should consider.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:54 PM | Comments (1)
Sadler Elementary School and Reeducation Camp
Jan P. Hall was, until last week, a fifth-grade teacher at Sadler Elementary in Orange County, Florida. She was suspended for allegedly writing a "racist" letter to an unknown congressman. She hasn't admitted writing the letter, no copy of the original letter has been printed, and it's also questionable whether the content of the letter itself is "racist" or whether it's just politically incorrect but largely fact-based. There are also questions of the First Amendment here, but don't expect the ACLU to get involved. How did the letter become public knowledge? Is she allowed to send a letter to her congressman without worrying about political repercussions? Can the school district take action against her for her political speech? How far will the teacher's union go to defend her and protect her right to speak?Several links about this are here. Jan Hall wrote the letter in English, but so far the only copy made available is one that was printed in El Nuevo Dia; it was translated into Spanish before being printed there. An automatic translation into English is here. Without seeing the original version, it's difficult to go through it point-by-point and find out what's "racist" and what's uncomfortable fact.
"Teacher faces hearing on letter" has more on this modern-day witch hunt:
The letter, supposedly written to a congressman, complained that Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, Haitians, Middle Easterners and others should not be allowed to stay in the country. The letter denigrated the education of Puerto Rican teachers and stated that "Puerto Rican children are holding back American children academically."Is there evidence to support that assertion or not? Don't expect the school district to seek the truth, that would be "insensitive." What about the training of Puerto Rican teachers, as mentioned in "Teacher's suspension roils district"? Are they indeed weak in math? Is there evidence for or against that?
...[A parent] said she took offense when Hall suggested her daughter be evaluated for a learning disability. A final blow was that Hall directed her daughter to special-education classes and then to repeat the fifth grade...Perhaps that student should be reevaluated then. If it turns out that Hall was incorrect, then there's a problem. If not, will she get her job back?
...However, another parent of a Sadler student said she had no complaints about the woman who taught her 11-year-old granddaughter...And, from this:
The woman she met in the classroom did not seem like the one being portrayed as a racist on the six o'clock news, Brown said. The letter was published Wednesday in the Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Día.
"It's like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," Brown said. "I had met her. She wasn't arrogant or nothing. All the teachers were nice in that school. I have no complaints."
...Sadler Principal Anne Lynaugh seemed ambivalent Friday as she spoke about the case that disrupted her school's operations.
Lynaugh reported Hall to the school district for investigation and was the administrator to whom Hall confirmed that she had written such a letter. Although Lynaugh has condemned the contents of the letter, she described Hall as an "excellent teacher."
The principal said she had received no complaints about Hall, and that she was "a caring professional" committed to children...
Manuel Rodríguez, who identified himself as one of Hall's students, told El Nuevo Dia that during a social studies class last week, the teacher said that "Colombians bring drugs (to the country)." "I was very offended by what she said, because I am Colombian. That is not true about the people of my country," said the ten-year-old boy.At Sadler Elementary School, apparently we're to forget that Columbia is indeed one of the major drug-supplying countries. Just forget about that. It's not true. Look, a witch!
He added that he felt sad to some extent, because "she was a good teacher and she gave me an "A" in everything.” But on the other hand, he was glad she was sanctioned, "because I didn't like her talking like that about Colombians."
Posted to MultiCultiCult at 12:30 PM | Comments (7)
Jupiter Florida's seamy, corrupt, "liberal" underbelly
FAIR is considering suing the city of Jupiter, FL over their plans to build an illegal alien hiring hall.In "Jupiter ready to fight FAIR lawsuit over labor center", their Town Manager Andy Lukasik says to bring it: "If they want to test it at the court level, so be it... It will set the stage of how a municipality will respond to this dynamic. We are trying to address an issue that is derived from a fragmented national policy and address it in the most complete fashion rather than driving it somewhere else."
According to FAIR attorney Michael Hethmon: "We are not trying to put members of the town council in jail... but we are trying to stop the process. One of the avenues is anti-racketeering laws that were originally used against gangsters, but are now used against entities that violate Federal immigration laws... A labor center creates the impression that there is a 'free zone' where certain laws won't be enforced. If these people weren't prepared to work through the system to get into the country, then they won't pay attention to the laws and rules of a center."
Apparently a budget meeting will be held on Sep. 6, and the American side might be able to block it at that time.
On the other side of the issue is a group calling itself "Friends of the Jupiter Neighborhood Resource Center", which:
a non-profit support organization focusing on fund-raising and providing volunteers to help staff the Resource Center. The organization is comprised of community volunteers, church members and business and professional persons. For more information on Friends, contact Mike Richmond...Richmond is a Lion, but, more importantly, he's also - surprise! - a member of the Jupiter Democratic Club.
Also on the other side is Councilor Jim Kuretski. Can you spot the many errors in his thought processes?
"I think this potential lawsuit is unfortunate because I consider this organization as a hate group that misinforms the public... This is a national issue. FAIR doesn't care what happens in Jupiter. They don't want to see success anywhere in the country; they want immigrants sent back home."And, no surprises here:
John Levin, division director for the Palm Beach Diocese's Catholic Charities, said that a Martin County bank will provide financial services and Catholic Charities will be offering the services of their two attorneys and four paralegals, either at a reduced rate or pro bono, to help the day laborer with their immigration paperwork.And, there's also a non-profit called "Corn Maya", headed by Tim Steigenga, a professor at Florida Atlantic University:
Steigenga is a champion of the Guatemalan immigrants in Jupiter. After researching their needs, he applied for and received a $23,000 grant to open the nonprofit migrant advocacy group Corn-Maya Inc... And it hasn't been easy. As Steigenga becomes more active in fighting for the immigrants, he's noticed he gets a few dirty looks at the grocery store...Note the Bush quote at CM's home page:
"People are coming to put food on the table. They're doing jobs Americans will not do. And to me, it makes sense for us to recognize that reality"As for those dirty looks Steigenga gets, here's testimony from one of the other residents, perhaps giving a clue why:
"We chose to live in a multi-cultural neighborhood, but now, the single family homes are barracks homes, housing large groups of men... The house next door to us has 15 men living in about 1,000-square feet with one bathroom, so the men come outside and urinate... A house near to me has drug deals going on and when I called the police, those involved threatened me and my family... We need to have better code enforcement and better police response — it takes 20 minutes for the police to arrive when we call, and by then the people involved are gone... I don't see how a labor center could help with overcrowding, code enforcement, trash all over the yards and illegally parked commercial vehicles in the street."In April, Corn Maya hosted a visit from Guatemala's VP Eduardo Stein:
Mayor Karen Golanka presented Dr. Stein with the keys to the city and read a proclamation welcoming him and affirming the town's support for its immigrant community... Later, the Vice President spoke to an audience of more than 300 Guatemalan immigrants, stressing the challenges faced by his new government and the critical role that Guatemala's immigrants play in supporting their families and the Guatemalan economy...I have little doubt that Guatemala will do its utmost to enable as much remittance money as possible to be sent home.
["Community leaders" made requests, including:]
-- Support for Governor Bush's proposal to give drivers licenses to immigrants.
-- Banking reforms to make it less costly for immigrants to send home their remittances (as it is now, they pay to cash checks, pay to wire the money home, and their families must pay to pick it up at the other end.)
As for what to do about Jupiter, I believe there are four possibilities:
1. The feds could step in and conduct an investigation looking for possible corruption and the like.
2. The residents could vote out those who support illegal activity.
3. The residents could make it very clear that the city should immediately stop any plans for this center.
4. The residents could sue the city - and the employers - and make supporting illegal activity unprofitable.
The first is never going to happen; the elders of Jupiter would need to be on the other side of this issue for anything approaching that to occur. The second might happen, or the other side might be in safe districts or have feckless opponents. Leaving the other two. Hopefully the third will happen, but if not let's hope for the fourth.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:58 AM | Comments (0)
Sister Furong? Phuwoar! Jiejie!
Has Sister Furong been banned from the web in China? Furong - of course! - is the reactionary model who continues to attempt to draw attention to herself by posting pictures of herself draped around objects and posting them to Chinese university websites talking of her beauty!
Let's go to the tape, linking to this, which despite being in a questionable neighborhood has a good rundown of the controversy and a couple pics. You think I would not do her? You kid: FRJJ Fan Club. Non-fan club. To the revolution! "China tries to wipe Internet icon from Web" what do they think? Drudge know nothing.
Posted to WackyHumor at 11:36 AM | Comments (0)
Arkansas' Bob Caudle doesn't pull any punches
The editorial Immigrants' "Trauma" Doesn't Change The Law from Bob Caudle says what needs to be said. The only surprise is that it's coming from inside what might be the most corrupt state in the union rather than from someone in another state:...This stuff about amnesty from President Bush and Gov. Huckabee condemning INS raids is ... well ... almost un-American.
Apparently those two missed some classes during Republican 101.
According to The Associated Press, Hispanic leaders say some people in Arkadelphia community were "traumatized" by the deportation last month of poultry plant workers who had to leave young children behind.
But they were not traumatized enough to stop some of the immigrants from returning...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 07:29 AM | Comments (4)
Irony on the Border, Part 6: (Legal?) immigrants go to Mexico for health care
The L.A. Times reports in "Healthcare Is Migrating South of the Border" on native-born "Latinos" and (legal?) immigrants who go to Mexico for medical needs.About 160,000 California workers — farm laborers as well as working-class Latinos employed at hotels, casinos, restaurants and local governments in San Diego and Imperial counties — are getting their annual checkups and having surgeries through health networks south of the border, insurers say..."Now let me get this straight. You liberals want universal healthcare. But, at the same time, you want to flood the U.S. with millions of people from another country who'll lower wages for legal workers down to that $5-$7 an hour? Are you people nuts, or just 'liberals?'"
[An employer] said he can sign up several employees, each at about $100 monthly, for about the same price as one employee in a U.S. plan...
They represent a "positive turn of events for cross-border health coverage... but are another reminder about how sick our health system is in the U.S.," said Dr. Robert K. Ross, president of the California Endowment, a healthcare philanthropy...
Enrollees are typically Mexican citizens legally employed at U.S. companies, either living in Mexico or in the U.S. Many earn only $5 to $7 an hour and could not afford U.S.-based plans. But others are Mexican Americans, some of them in executive-level positions...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 06:51 AM | Comments (0)
"Haitian Police Distribute Machetes in Bel Air"
Worry not, super-rich Angelenos! The headline of this story does not refer to that exclusive L.A. community, but to the Bel Air in Haiti.While I'm skeptical of anything printed in the Village Voice, it does include this interesting-if-only-slightly-true bit:
...MINUSTAH, the U.N. mission in Haiti, may bear a certain level of responsibility for the actions of the police. Installed three months after Aristide's controversial ousting, their mandate is, in part, to "restructure and reform the Haitian National Police, consistent with democratic policing standards."
MINUSTAH spokesperson Damian Onses Cardona told the Voice that MINUSTAH was not made aware of the deadly incursion until the next day, when the story hit the media. When asked how this could be possible, given the fact that MINUSTAH has two large bunkers full of peacekeepers in Bel Air, staffed 24 hours a day, Cardona said that "gunfire is not that unusual in Bel Air." He added that a hotline has been set up so that people can phone to anonymously report violence—police and otherwise. "We are going to investigate this," he said.
In March 2005 Harvard University released a highly critical 50-page report on MINUSTAH entitled "Keeping the Peace in Haiti?"
The study contends that "MINUSTAH has effectively provided cover for the police to wage a campaign of terror in Port-au-Prince's slums." And that "even more distressing than MINUSTAH's complicity in HNP abuses are credible allegations of human rights abuses perpetuated by MINUSTAH itself."
Posted to Miscellania at 05:43 AM | Comments (0)
AVWatch: Villaraigosa's most worthwhile cause yet
Sure, being a leader with a racial separatist group was bad, and those Chicano Power handclaps in the California legislature were bad too, but Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has finally found something that's slightly not bad and that's worthy of his talents:The mayor of Los Angeles wants an independent review of the elephant quarters at the Los Angeles Zoo, to help determine the future of the animals...For those in the species, everything. For those outside the species, nothing.
I have been reviewing the elephants' situation at the Los Angeles Zoo and have concerns that warrant an independent review and analysis, Villaraigosa wrote in an Aug. 12 letter to Chief Administrative Officer Bill Fujioka. I want an insightful study on the whole issue so we can do what is best for the zoo and, especially, for the elephants...
Previously on the topic of elephants at the L.A. Zoo: I'll take "Are you an enviro-whacko?" for $2000, Alex.
Posted to Los_Angeles at 09:28 PM | Comments (1)
Mark Skeen: fighting fire with backing out of interview
Mark Skeen is the executive vice president of the San Jose Fire Fighters Union. He also appears in an anti-Arnold Schwarzenegger ad, but he's only identified (AFAIK) as a firefighter, and not as a union executive.
The TV commercial is one of the sleazy ads that discusses a remark from an Arnold ad:
In the latest such call, a few days ago, Schwarzenegger's media expert, Don Sipple, outlined a strategy "based on a lot of polling" to create a "phenomenon of anger" among voters toward public employee unions. Firefighters, police officers, teachers and other state-paid workers have become the governor's harshest critics this year.
The ad makes it sound like Sipple wanted to target individual union members, not the unions themselves and their leadership. Now, John Ziegler of KFI reports that Skeen had agreed to appear on his show and then backed out...
Posted to California at 04:47 PM | Comments (0)
Orlando Sentinel supports "immigration reform". Why?
Is it because they're "liberals", or something else entirely? I'll leave it to you to speculate.
However, their editorial "OK guest-worker plan" barely tries to make sense, being instead just one canard after the other:
Fed up with federal inaction to stem illegal immigration and other crime along their states' borders with Mexico, the governors of Arizona and New Mexico recently declared law-enforcement emergencies.
Who's feeding what to whom? Are they taking advantage of the Dems' political show to promote "reform", or are the Dems intending their big show to promote "reform"? Who knows.
Clearly, it is past time for Congress to fix this country's broken immigration system.
Clearly, it's past time for the Open Borders lobby to stop using that talking point: they're starting to sound silly. A variant was last spotted here from David Brooks, and past instances start here.
More [illegal aliens] are slipping across the border every day, despite huge increases in money and manpower intended to stop them.
Oddly enough, here's what Brooks said last week:
Since 1986, we've tripled the number of Border Patrol agents and increased the enforcement budget 10 times over, but we haven't made a dent in the number of illegals who make it here.
Both statements are BS: while we may have more people on the border, we have almost zero interior enforcement. The solution to that would seem to be beefing up interior enforcement, no? Apparently not to the Orlando Sentinel.
The most sensible proposals would create a guest-worker program that would let immigrants who register with the government and pass background checks temporarily fill jobs unclaimed by Americans.
Yes, tell us more about those "temporary" "guest" workers. What happens when they have children who then are U.S. citizens? Will we be able to send them back home in that case, or will our "guests" be here to stay? And, should we really emulate other countries that have "guests", such as Saudi Arabia? "Guests" in Germany haven't worked out too well, perhaps we should learn from their folly.
And, of course, you can imagine what "unclaimed" means. If a previously higher-wage job is offered for minimum wage, it will probably go unclaimed by an American. But, there are millions of foreigners who'd do the job just to get a chance to come to the U.S. to stay.
I don't think the Orlando Sentinel is "liberal", I think something else is involved. Expect to see many similar editorials in the future. Thankfully, most people seem to be waking up to what's going on and I don't think they're going to buy what these people are trying to sell.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:16 PM | Comments (2)
ABC/Disney bows to CAIR pressure, fires talker Michael Graham
ABC Radio has fired talk show host Michael Graham because of comments he made on his show about Islam. Graham worked at 630 WMAL in Washington D.C. From his site:On July 25th, the Council on American-Islamic Relations demanded that I be "punished" for my on-air statements regarding Islam and its tragic connections to terrorism. Three days later, 630 WMAL and ABC Radio suspended me without pay for comments deemed "hate radio" by CAIR.This had been supposedly over; in fact on August 2 Graham asked his listeners to stop complaining about the suspension. I don't know exactly what upset CAIR, but you can read more about his thoughts on Islam here.
CAIR immediately announced that my punishment was insufficient and demanded I be fired. ABC Radio and 630 WMAL have now complied. I have been fired for making the specific comments CAIR deemed "offensive," and for refusing to retract those statements in a management-mandated, on-air apology. ABC Radio further demanded that I agree to perform what they described as "additional outreach efforts" to those people or groups who felt offended.
I refused. And for that refusal, I have been fired.
It appears that ABC Radio has caved to an organization that condemns talk radio hosts like me, but has never condemned Hamas, Hezbollah, and one that wouldn't specifically condemn Al Qaeda for three months after 9/11...
You may remember Graham from when he attended an Open Borders rally and was allegedly jumped by not just peace-loving lefties but the cops as well.
Posted to Terrorism at 02:02 PM | Comments (2)
The Concert Against America
The "immigrant advocate" who proposed a July 4th boycott in Arizona is now planning a concert to raise funds for TV commercials supporting "immigration reform".Oddly enough, it doesn't seem to have gone over too well in at least one report. From Immigrant advocate plans concerts, faces criticism:
An advocate for immigrants is planning a one-day series of concerts to promote the idea of legalizing the status of millions of illegal immigrants in the United States... [the concerts might be in October...]Previous news about this "advocate" in "Foreigners declare war on Arizona".
But Bermudez has been criticized by some Latinos who question his motives and the strategy of collecting money from immigrants by telling them help is on the way.
Bermudez is the executive director of a Phoenix business that assists immigrants in filling out immigration and tax documents.
But he shrugged off the criticism, saying he won't keep any money for himself.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:48 AM | Comments (1)
Tamar Jacoby at Los Angeles Public Library: Tuesday, October 11 2005
America's foremost immigration expert will be at the Los Angeles Public Library's Central branch in downtown L.A. on October 11, 2005. Click the link to make a reservation; if this is being held in the same room I think it is there's only limited seating.
At some future date I'll compile a list of the questions she didn't answer during this interview. It might be interesting for several people to ask her to provide those answers.
UPDATE: Here's my report.
Posted to Los_Angeles at 11:05 AM | Comments (0)
Wellington Webb: all power to the People of Color!
Wellington Webb is the former mayor of Denver. He also started that city's illegal alien sanctuary policy that was in the news recently. A list of articles on that is here.A small, bilingual newspaper recently published a letter from him entitled "Webb urges unity among minorities":
...In order to face these difficult times I suggest a new consensus and coordination among four of the most respected and influential organizations in our nation. These organizations share a passion and commitment for education, social issues, economic opportunity and immigration.Whether groups calling themselves "The (Chicano) Race" are going to want to join up with blacks in anything other than a temporary coalition is certainly an open question.
They are the National Urban League under the charismatic leadership of President and CEO Marc Morial; the National Council of La Raza [The Race] with their talented and inspirational President Janet Murguia; the NAACP under the outstanding management of President and CEO Bruce S. Gordon; and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund [MALDEF].
These groups working together have already made a difference electing such leaders as myself to three terms as mayor; my predecessor Mayor Federico Pena, to two terms; former Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley and recently elected L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
Demographic projections tell us that "we", the communities of color, are going to be the new majority in this nation soon enough.
We must reconcile our differences on policy, overcome concerns about turf and keep our eye on the prize. Then we must take our show on the road together.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:01 PM | Comments (0)
Details on the Kennedy-McCain mass amnesty
There's a rundown of some of its provisions in "Amnesty Bill Opens Border".
Posted to Immigration2005b at 10:59 PM | Comments (2)
Help Ben Kelly, Ben Baeder, and Jessica Langdon do their jobs
Ben Kelly and Ben Baeder work for the San Gabriel Valley [CA] Tribune, which offers us "Bank's business plan spurs local protest". That article discusses a protest of Wells Fargo's acceptance of the Matricula Consular card (aka "IDs for illegals") on Saturday.
Jessica Langdon works for the Times Record News out of Wichita Falls, TX, and offers us "Immigrants given bit of helping hand". That article describes how the Dallas Mexican consulate traveled to their city and passed out those same sham identification cards inside the Wichita Falls Public Library.
Despite being located hundreds of miles apart, all three reporters seem to share the same problem: they don't know how to use google.
The SGV article only skirts the issue of the downsides of that card, concentrating most of its paragraphs on statements from Wells Fargo.
The Texas article includes no downsides whatsoever. The Texas article is, in fact, written in such a credulous manner you have to wonder what's really going on: it's difficult to believe anyone could be so gullible.
Here's a helpful link for all three reporters: matricula consular cards. Let's take a look at the results and see whether that would have helped them deliver more fact-based reports.
At post time, the first hit is "The Mexican Sham ID Card FAQ", followed by pages from Michelle Malkin and VDare. Then, still in the top ten results, come two pages from Congressmen.
From Rep. Gary Miller comes "Myth and Facts behind the Mexican ID Cards":
According to the FBI, Matricula Consular cards are almost exclusively used by illegal aliens. Anyone here legally has valid identity documents they can present to open a bank account, such as driver's licenses, Social Security numbers, or passports.
And, from Rep. Elton Gallegly:
The truth is that Poland, Mexico, Nicaragua, and other countries that are trying to expand their consular ID programs in the United States are doing so in an effort to force a de facto amnesty for their nationals illegally in this country and to allow them to receive services to which they are not entitled. Among which is the ability to use such cards to board commercial airplanes. This is a dramatic step back towards the type of security we had before 9/11.
Let's contact these reporters and give them a brief google tutorial:
Ben Kelly: (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2236, svintern@sgvn.com
Ben Baeder: Ext. 2703, ben.baeder@sgvn.com.
Jessica Langdon: (940) 763-7530, langdonj(at)TimesRecordNews.com.
Previously: "Apparently they don't get google in Tyler Texas"
Posted to Immigration2005b at 10:26 PM | Comments (3)
Houston Chronicle's Eric Hanson needs legal experts
The article "LULAC members dispute DeLay's immigration stance" contains what you'd expect: the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) supporting illegal immigration and playing the race card to do it. After all, race is more important than being a law-abiding American Citizen, no?
It includes this:
"Mexicans, Central Americans and South Americans are not bombing anything strategic in America. They are here to work," said League of United Latin American Citizens member Joel Salazar.
Last I looked those illegal aliens aren't robots. They are, in fact, human beings. And, as such, they use public services and they have political power because they receive support from racial demagogues, corrupt politicians, big business, and the like. And, they also form a power base for the country of Mexico, which continually keeps meddling in our laws.
For more on the latter, see the following:
"Bush Bill Would Aid Mexico's Meddling in U.S." ("...in the 1990s, Mexico embarked on a campaign of extending its political authority into the United States - not just over Mexican immigrants, but also naturalized and native-born Americans of Mexican ancestry...")
America's "amigo" (a Vicente Fox speech)
"Who is in charge of American immigration policy?"
Mexican Aggression And Its American Collaborators
"Mexico's Defense of Illegal Immigrants"
More meddling by Mexican consuls
Given Mexico's attempts to exert influence over our policies, you have to wonder which side LULAC is on. Perhaps if they're going to support Mexico's policies they should renounce their U.S. citizenship and move to that country.
As for the titular call for legal help, it comes from this bit:
Joe Vail, a University of Houston law professor, said gathering up those suspected of illegal immigration poses legal problems, such as racial profiling... Vail said DeLay's comments about not extending citizenship to American-born children of illegal immigrants runs counter to the 14th Amendment.
I don't know whether the reporter fully quoted him or not, and I don't know whether Delay advocated hauling random people in off the street (but I doubt it), but you don't have to engage in racial profiling. You might - just as an example - examine employment documents.
And, as for the 14th Amendment, it doesn't "run counter" to the amendment itself, only the way that it's currently interpreted.
In fact, here's a quote from the author of that clause:
At the time the amendment was approved, the author of the clause, Sen. Jacob M. Howard, said the phrase relating to jurisdiction meant, "This will not, of course, include persons born in the United States who are foreigners...." ...In subsequent years, the courts invalidated the assurances of Howard; at this stage, an amendment to the Constitution seems the only means available to change the law...
Posted to at 12:16 PM | Comments (3)
Why the Democrats won't oppose illegal immigration
Mark Krikorian paints a bleak picture in "Liberal Two-Step: Dems pay lip service only on border control", outlining the interest groups that favor massive legal and illegal immigration, including:
- the environmental establishment
- the ACLU
- Big Labor
- the black establishment
- the race groups
Here's the ACLU bit:
The group refused an open-and-shut free speech case in New York City — because it was about limiting immigration. In 1999, an immigration-control group named Project USA started putting up billboards in New York with pictures of two children with the inoffensive (and accurate) caption, "Immigration is doubling US population in our lifetimes," citing the Census Bureau as the source. City officials threatened the billboard companies with financial retaliation if they weren't taken down immediately, and the companies caved. One staff attorney told Project USA privately that the ACLU couldn't take such an obvious free-speech case because "there is a large and growing immigrants' rights faction within the organization."
Posted to Immigration2005b at 04:37 PM | Comments (6)
Kind-hearted cheap laborers arrested at Camp Lejeune
From this:An anonymous tip triggered an investigation of undocumented workers at Camp Lejeune, resulting in 40 people being detained and a federal investigation, a base spokesman said.Previously in this long line of stories about illegal aliens working at military installations: "Arresting illegal aliens at Air Force base puts New York Times in tizzy".
Camp Lejeune officials detained 27 people at base gates during security checks Wednesday and another 12 at various construction sites Monday...
Details on where the workers are from, how they got on base and what will happen to them now were not immediately made available...
...Immigration and Customs Enforcement is not commenting now because the investigation is ongoing. Carpenter declined to mention any contractors by name, saying only that investigators were "looking into the practices of several contractors right now..."
Posted to Immigration_terror at 04:36 PM | Comments (1)
Another Carlsbad "Heckler's Veto"?
From "Mayor says Morrow to be billed for cops":Mayor Bud Lewis said he is going to bill state Sen. Bill Morrow $100,000 for costs incurred to provide police protection during an illegal immigration forum Aug. 11.I'm sure the ACLU will be all over this. Note that Carlsbad backed down from their attempts to cancel the meeting, and so has the city mentioned in "Heckler's Veto used by Moorpark against Friends of the Border Patrol?"
Lewis said yesterday that when people use city resources, such as renting a hall or building and need additional security or police, they should pay for it.
"I don't think any public official should be getting off the hook for that," he said. "My council has expressed this as well. As soon as we get all the economics on this, we'll be billing him."
Posted to Immigration2005b at 03:32 PM | Comments (1)
Reason Magazine's Hit & Run can't stand the heat [RETRACTED]
[UPDATE: In the comments, Matt Welch says this was a technical glitch. The last time this happened I sent an email to Tim Cavanaugh and my second email with my screen name didn't get a reply and the comment never showed up. The comment in this case has not shown up either. Nevertheless, I'm going to give Reason the benefit of the doubt in this case.] As previously discussed, the libertarian site Reason Magazine has banned blogger Xrlq from commenting there.Now, it looks like a comment I left is being moderated out of existence. This happened before on a Kerry Howley thread in which I included several links in my comment. However, this time I didn't include any links (other than the redirected one for my name).
The thread in question is "Happy Hawaiian Statehood Day!" from Matt Welch, which includes this:
I'll have more on this Monday, but in the meantime, I'll throw this chum out to you sharks: Assuming there was strong popular support -- which may very well be an incorrect assumption, but just for the sake of the exercise -- why shouldn't the islands secede? Isn't it finer to be a 49er?(Emphasis as in original). I left the following:
why shouldn't the islands secede?That received a "Your comment has been received. To protect against malicious comments, I have enabled a feature that allows your comments to be held for approval the first time you post a comment. I'll approve your comment when convenient; there is no need to re-post your comment" screen, and the comment has not shown up after a couple hours. If it does, I'll retract this post. However, I'm not expecting it to show up.
Well, let's see. Because they're currently part of the United States? That would seem to be obvious to about 99% of Americans, but not apparently to the less than 1% who are libertarians.
Here's another question libertarians might enjoy pondering: If China invaded Hawaii, why should we bother fighting them? Isn't it much better to just let it go?
And, another stumper for the libertarians: What about Maine? Who needs it anyhow?
And, of course: Why not Aztlan? After all, Mexico is the Party Country, and with the (former) U.S. Southwest under their control, Aztlan will be a fun new vacation destination!
Will the last sensible libertarian please turn out the lights on the Manassass Holiday Inn where you're conducting this year's convention? Thanks.
Posted to Bloggage at 03:28 PM | Comments (6)
Herndon VA: illegal alien hiring hall won't check immigration status
From this:The staff at a newly approved day laborer center in Herndon will not check the immigration status of the workers who use the facility, town officials said yesterday.Previously: "Herndon VA approves illegal alien hiring hall"
Herndon Mayor Michael O'Reilly, a proponent of the center, said organizers who sought the town's approval for establishing such a center told officials it was not their job to check the workers' legal status.
"The applicant said it was not their job and that they didn't have the capacity to enforce federal immigration law," Mr. O'Reilly said yesterday. "It was clear they will not be checking legal documentation."
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:48 PM | Comments (3)
Martin O'Malley, Douglas M. Duncan support illegal immigration
Douglas M. Duncan is the Executive of Maryland's Montgomery County, and Martin O'Malley is the mayor of Baltimore. And, they both fully support illegal immigration.From "Ehrlich says Duncan wrong on illegal aliens":
Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. says most Marylanders would disagree with Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan's view that local governments should embrace illegal aliens.So? The only difference between that statement and the equally vapid equivalent one from Ehrlich is that Ehrlich is able to make the distinction between legality and illegality.
"His [view] is divergent from most of the state on that issue... Citizenship should mean something... We are a country of immigrants, but we need to respect our laws, and we have a responsibility to enforce our laws."
...However, Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, who also is attending the conference, said he fully agrees with Mr. Duncan. Both Democratic leaders are considered likely challengers to Mr. Ehrlich's re-election bid next year.
"I believe that diversity is an American value," Mr. O'Malley said. "Immigrants contribute to our country and way of life."
See also "Duncan urges aid for illegals":
...Mr. Duncan said most immigrants are here legally and local government should concentrate on providing services to residents, not scrutinizing some ethnic groups for immigration violations or involvement in terrorism.See also last year's "Some people should be out of a job" for more on Montgomery County.
"I want us to be an open and welcoming community," he said. "The federal government needs to enforce immigration laws. ... Frankly, they have not been doing it."
Mr. Duncan said that as a county executive, and possibly as governor, he would back federal measures to address illegal immigration. He supports immigration reform proposed by U.S. Sens. John McCain, Arizona Republican, and Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:38 PM | Comments (0)
Is the Bush administration funding madrassas?
The DU (yes, I know) thread has some links and this official blurb:
"Accompanied by Zanzibar's First Lady, Shadya Karume, Mrs. Bush first visited the Al-Rahma Madrasa, where the two First Ladies met with school children and their teachers. The Madrasa is one of several pre-schools scattered around various villages in Zanzibar that have received over $200,000 this year through grants from the U.S. Agency for International Development. The funds are distributed through the Aga Khan Foundation to improve the quality of education by training teachers, especially in English, math and the sciences. The grants have also allowed more children to attend pre-school, who otherwise could not afford it. At the Al-Rahma Madrasa, the number of students this year increased from 55 to 67. The students greeted Mrs. Bush and Mrs. Karume with songs in English and Kiswahili."
Maybe they're the good kind of madrassas and not the, you know, foundries of terrorism kind of madrassas.
Posted to Terrorism at 07:28 AM | Comments (0)
CA Dem Party supports lowering voting age to 17
From the site of the Orange County chapter of the National Youth Rights Association comes this tidbit:
Late last month, members of the newly formed NYRA-OC traveled to Sacramento where, joined by members of the Berkeley chapter, they convinced the Executive Board of the California Democratic Party to unanimously call for the lowering of the voting age in California to 17... The lowering of the voting age honors our servicemen and servicewomen. More than 300 Americans who have died in Iraq were two young to vote for President at the time of the last presidential election before their deaths. Lowering the voting age would be a nice tribute in their memory... The NYRA-OC calls on Americans to join the 21st century and to be inclusive. Until everyone gets the vote, no one is free.
Aww, aren't they cute? Of course, as I've pointed out before, pushes like this get support from California Democrats because of race-based reasons: most of those new young voters would be Hispanic and those Hispanic politicians correctly believe that they'll tend to vote with their race. In other words, whether the teenagers who are pushing this realize it or (more likely) not, they're being used for racial reasons.
Some might think the idea of the voting age reduction is just a radical Berkeley idea, but what they don’t know is that this idea is not confined to Berkeley alone. Recently, New York City Councilmember Gale Brewer introduced a bill to lower the city’s voting age to 16. There is currently a bill in the Washington state legislature to lower the voting age to 16. Right now, ACA17 is a bill in the California State Assembly to allow 17-year-olds, who will be 18 by the time of the general election, to vote in the primary election. This is not a novel idea, as several other states practice this, including Maine and Maryland. In fact, the Democratic Party of California as well as the League of Women voters supports this bill. Recently, as a result of the efforts of Berkeley’s National Youth Rights Association, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 8-2 to support the right of localities to set a lower voting age.
Previously: "Proposal to Let 14-Year-Olds Vote Clears First Legislative Hurdle".
Posted to California at 06:16 AM | Comments (0)
"The Great Invasion: Mexico Recovers Its Own"
Here's an excerpt from a July 20, 1982 column from Mexican newspaper Excelsior. Of course, this is just one reconquista's opinion, but it no doubt reflects how much of the elite of Mexico thinks:Los Angeles, California. This is the second largest Mexican city in the world for the number of our compatriots settled there, and it must have as many Spanish-speakers as Madrid. The Anglo-Saxons are still the most numerous and there are a lot of Negroes, but the numerical advance of Mexicans is astonishing. Ten movie houses at once show the Cantinflas comedy "El Barrendero." On the streets one has the impression of a great Mexican city. "La Opinion," with a circulation of 60,000 copies, is one of three daily newspapers in Spanish in this enormous country. When did the Mexicanization of Los Angeles happen?
...They have marked social and family characteristics, agility for adapting to the environment and for conquering a great region, once primitive and virgin, that belonged to our fatherland, and we lost it. But it seems to be slowly returning to the jurisdiction of Mexico without the firing of a single shot, nor requiring the least diplomatic action, by means of a steady, spontaneous, and uninterrupted occupation...
...The U.S. upper classes in the western states live in increasing splendor. Their apogee of luxury and comfort doubtlessly marks the inevitable beginning of their decadence. The Mexican invasion continues...
The territory lost in the 19th century... seems to be restoring itself through a humble people who go on settling various zones that once were ours on the old maps...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:05 AM | Comments (0)
NM Gov. Bill Richardson supports illegal immigration
In a less-than-worthless segment of PBS's NewsHour, Jeffrey Brown sat there while New Mexico governor Bill Richardson and Mexican ambassador Carlos De Icaza said (almost) nothing of note. Brown had no even slightly interesting or slightly tough questions for them. The segment gave the false impression that everything is just a little bit askew down there, rather than the facts: Mexico's corrupt oligarchy is sending us millions of people with the connivance of some of our elected officials and other members of our own corrupt elite.
The interview did however have this newsworthy statement (needless to say, Brown did not follow up):
In fact my state, New Mexico, is the most immigrant friendly state. We have licenses for undocumented workers. We have scholarships for them to go to our university because we want to integrate them; we don't want them out driving without insurance. But when you have border security that is such a concern in terms of terrorist activities, in terms of drug smuggling, human smuggling, this is why we're asking for, pleas to both federal governments to just get a little more involved and active.
I think that statement makes it painfully clear that Bill Richardson supports illegal immigration.
You can send your comments about this segment here.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 08:46 PM | Comments (1)
David Brooks or Tokyo Rose?
I invite my readers to read the column "Two Steps Toward a Sensible Immigration Policy" from the NYT's David Brooks in a Tokyo Rose accent:
What do you say to the working-class guy from the south side of San Antonio? He feels his wages are stagnating because he has to compete against illegal immigrants. He watches thousands of people streaming across the border, bankrupting his schools and health care system, while he plays by the rules...
What's he doing in San Antone? That's what I want to know.
The system is out of control.
That's a stock talking point. I've been keeping track of its use, and my coverage starts here.
...Tough enforcement laws make us feel good, but they don't do the job. Since 1986, we've tripled the number of Border Patrol agents and increased the enforcement budget 10 times over, but we haven't made a dent in the number of illegals who make it here...
Yes, as my readers know the Bush administration is all about tough enforcement of our immigration laws. In the last year, three companies got enforcement warning letters. That's tough enforcement, I tell you what.
We've got agents chasing busboys while who knows what kind of terrorists are trying to sneak into this country...
Now, let's compare this bit from cheap labor cheerleader Tamar Jacoby:
[BP Agent Lee Morgan] criticizes the apprehensions as a waste of time and resources. "They're just poor people trying to feed their families," he shrugs... "What if the bastards come across here in Arizona and I don't catch them because I'm so busy chasing a busboy or a gardener that I don't have time to do my job--my real job--catching terrorists?..."
Speaking of the devil:
We need these workers, but we force them underground with our self-delusional immigration policies. As Tamar Jacoby of the Manhattan Institute says, "It's very hard to enforce unrealistic rules." ...So it doesn't matter how many beer-swilling good old boys appoint themselves citizen border guards, we're not going to get this situation under control until we understand this paradox: The more we simply crack down, the more disorder we get...
I think I'm going to stop right about here, ayup. Obviously, Brooks is more than just an NYC elitist. He's also a Bush-supporting hack, much like a more famous version of Hugh Hewitt.
He goes on to support both the Kennedy-McCain and Kyl-Cornyn massive amnesty schemes, parroting Jacoby's support for them. And, he ends with his support for "serious immigration reform".
This column appears under various names:
Immigration policy to suit San Antonio working guys
Regulating the flow of immigration
Brooks: Immigration: Let's get practical
Two Steps To Sensible Immigration Policy
I suggest that henceforth we put Brooks in the same category as Jacoby, Hewitt, and the rest.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:51 PM | Comments (4)
"The costs of immigration"
From Alfred Tella, "former Georgetown University research professor of economics" comes this rundown of the costs of the current de facto immigration system:It is often contended that low-skilled immigrants work in jobs U.S. natives don't want. That is doubtful. What American workers don't want are low wages depressed by the easy availability of immigrant workers. Many native-born are available for work and would willingly accept low-skilled jobs at the higher wage that would be offered if there weren't an excess supply of immigrants holding wages down...
Economist Ethan Lewis of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia recently completed a significant econometric study, "Immigration, Skill Mix, and the Choice of Technology" (May 2005). Using Census Bureau plant-level data, he examined the effect of low-skilled labor on technology adoption in U.S. manufacturing. The study concluded "plants in areas experiencing faster less-skilled relative labor supply growth adopted automation technology more slowly... and even de-adoption was not uncommon. ... The relative supply of less-skilled labor reduced demand for technology." In his paper, the author cited other related studies.
The negative effect of low-skilled labor on technological development is particularly worrisome. Technology-induced productivity growth in many ways is our golden goose. It boosts our incomes, lowers prices, fights inflation, helps keep interest rates low, gives us greater leisure, and raises our standard of living. What hurts productivity hurts us all. All told, the economic costs of low-skilled immigration are too high...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:32 PM | Comments (2)
Poll: 58% favor tighter immigration controls to strengthen national security
The article "Democrats gain edge on border security" directs our attention to this recent poll:One national tracking survey by the nonpartisan Public Agenda Confidence in U.S. Foreign Policy Index ranks stemming the flow of illegal immigration as a top international relations concern for the American public.If you download the PDF at the second link, you'll see that only one other question got a greater "a great deal" percentage: "Improving the effectiveness of our intelligence operations". The statement "it may be too easy for illegal immigrants to come into the country" generated 42% who "worry a lot" and 31% who "worry somewhat". Only 27% "don't worry". Only 2% named immigration as the "most important problem facing the United States in its dealings with the rest of the world". It probably isn't, so it would have been a bit more complicated but a more complete picture if people had been asked to rank the top five issues or so. The AZ Republic article also contains this:
Asked by the survey to rank proposals to improve U.S. security, respondents rated the tightening of immigration second only to improving U.S. intelligence operations.
Three-quarters of the 1,004 Americans surveyed for the index from June 1 to June 13 gave the United States a "C" grade or worse in protecting the borders, with nearly one-quarter handing out an "F" grade. Fifty-eight percent said tighter controls on immigration would strengthen national security "a great deal." The margin of error for the survey was plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Luis Miranda, a Democratic National Committee spokesman, stopped short of acknowledging there is a concerted strategy by the party and its candidates to seize on immigration as a potential wedge issue.
But he said the Bush administration and Republicans who control both chambers of Congress "haven't addressed the need for comprehensive immigration reform . . . leaving states in a bind."
Posted to Politics at 01:25 PM | Comments (0)
Herndon VA approves illegal alien hiring hall
From "Herndon Approves Day Labor Center":
The Herndon [Virginia] Town Council last night approved the creation of a formal, taxpayer-funded gathering spot for day laborers... in a 5 to 2 vote that several called the hardest decision in their public service, said they did not want to sanction illegal immigration, the chief concern of opponents of the center. Many of the workers the facility would serve are in the United States illegally from Mexico and Central America... But council members said they were helpless in the face of what they called a federal failure to police U.S. borders. They said it was their responsibility to bring order to a neighborhood nuisance that had become the town's most divisive issue in recent history... The approval means the town will help fund the center with $175,000 in public money...
Previously: Judicial Watch vs. Herndon, VA and "Project Hope and Harmony".
UPDATE: News from the American side of things:
Former Attorney General and Republican nominee for Governor Jerry Kilgore [says] "When we begin to use public resources to reward and encourage illegal behavior, we demean those who have followed the rules and entice others to continue to flaunt our laws. I do not believe it is too much to ask that people obey the laws of our society before they attempt to take advantage of what our society has to offer. Were the day labor centers under consideration equipped with a mechanism to verify that taxpayer dollars are not subsidizing illegal behavior, I would support them. Legally present laborers benefit our economy and their contributions are appreciated and important. However, it is likely that most of the workers for whom these centers are to be created are in fact illegally present and should not be receiving taxpayer-funded services... As Governor, I would support legislation that clarifies Virginia law to say that those who are illegally present are not eligible for public benefits, including the expenditure of taxpayer money for services such as the day labor centers in Fairfax County."
UPDATE 2: "Day Labor Center Faces a Fight From Loudoun Officials" informs us that the center abuts residential districts in the next county over, and two supes from that county might try to use zoning laws to block it.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:06 PM | Comments (0)
Mexico's illegal immigration staging areas
Last week, NM's Richardson called on Mexico to raze Las Chepas, a mostly abandoned outpost that's used as a staging area for illegal immigration and drug smuggling. "Mexico funds staging areas for illegals" has more on that and on Mexico's Grupo Beta:Many of the Mexican aid stations are maintained by Grupo Beta, a Mexican governmentfunded humanitarian organization founded in the early 1990s. Driving through the desert regions south of the border in brightly painted orange trucks, Grupo Beta's job is to protect migrants along the border, not arrest them.It goes on to discuss what are in effect the "American" branches of Grupo Beta: U.S. "human rights" groups that have set up similar aid stations on our side. The Presbyterian church is involved in one group. And, as part of our continuing struggle with government corruption:
In April, Grupo Beta worked with the Mexican military and the Sonora State Preventive Police to move would-be illegal aliens out of the desert areas just south of the U.S. border to locations east and west of Naco, Ariz., to avoid the Minuteman Project volunteers holding a vigil on the border.
A branch of Mexico's National Migration Institute, Grupo Beta also helped pass out fliers warning migrants that the Minuteman volunteers, whom they described as "armed vigilantes," were waiting across the border to hurt them.
In addition to the aid stations, the Mexican government has distributed more than a million copies of a 32-page handbook advising migrants how to cross into the United States. The book, known as "Guia del Migrante Mexicano," or "Guide for the Mexican Migrant," contains tips on avoiding apprehension by U.S. authorities.
Others have been placed, with permission, on property owned by Pima County, Ariz.; the National Park Service; the Bureau of Land Management; and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.For more on Pima County in a related context, see "Tucson: free educations for all!". For older Grupo Beta news, see "Mexico Arrests 42 [Government Employees] for Migrant Trafficking"
Posted to Immigration2005b at 12:52 PM | Comments (0)
WSJ readers learn about "reconquista" in anti-Akaka editorial
Former Senators Slade Gorton and Hank Brown offer "E Pluribus Unum?" about Hawaii's Akaka Bill. That would create a race-based governing body in that state just for native Hawaiians. A blood test to determine eligibility is involved.
Of interest to the issue of illegal immigration, it includes this bit:
They would begin a process of splintering sovereignties in the U.S. for every racial, ethnic or religious group traumatized by an identity crisis. Movement is already afoot among a few Hispanic Americans to carve out race-based sovereignty from eight western states because the U.S. "wrongfully" defeated Mexico in the Mexican-American war.
No doubt there are thousands of WSJ readers who got that far and then said, "What???? But, the WSJ told me that we need open borders! What were they thinking?"
Posted to Immigration2005b at 10:34 PM | Comments (1)
Huffington Post: monetize before it's too late!
The HuffPo has a new look. They've also added a bunch of ads to their news side: a top banner, a skyscraper in the upper right, a google skyscraper further down, a big fastclick square after the third post, and yet another fastclick square between each individual post and its comments.
I believe this change falls into the "monetize the site before it goes dark!!!" category.
Posted to Bloggage at 09:41 PM | Comments (0)
Is your favorite mascot a furry?
I've never considered that before, and there's a very good chance that you haven't either. But, what if many of our most favorite sports mascots do that job because they're... furries? Could a good number of furries be secretly laughing at the fans who think they're just entertainers, when in fact they're "lifestylers" who get paid to wear a "fursuit"?Could some mascots be engaged in disgusting activities inside their costumes? Do mascots get together and engage in "furriness"? These possibilities are too horrific to even contemplate, so instead I'll just suggest going over to WikiFur and reading up on what may become the sports world's next great scandal:
Many furry fans do fursuiting for a job or to bring attention to an event or charity. This can include mascots, but not all mascots are furries. Many are hired through an agency to represent a character, while others bring their own constructions to an event instead. There are also several volunteer fursuiting groups across North America that either ask or are asked to entertain at various social functions. Some groups even set up their own charitable events or perform on the streets to passersby...Perhaps one day we'll return to a time when there were no such things as "furries".
Other furries enjoy wearing their suits for parades, exhibitions, or conventions. Oftentimes these are of a personal character who they are expressing as a form of role play. The fursuiter may consider themselves to be expressing who they really are. These fursuiters may also wear their suits to small, informal meetings among furry fans in their area...
Posted to WackyHumor at 01:50 PM | Comments (1)
Did Bush clone himself and create Texas' Carole Keeton Strayhorn?
Carole Keeton Strayhorn is running for Texas' governor, and the primary will be held in March 2006. She also seems to be a clone of our own lider George Bush:Immigrants, legal or otherwise, come to Texas to "put a roof over their heads" and Texas has a responsibility to provide them education and health care once they are here, Republican gubernatorial candidate Carole Keeton Strayhorn told a conservative GOP group today.Now surely she isn't corrupt enough to put their interests ahead of America's interests, is she?
In a week when the [Democrat] governors of Arizona and New Mexico declared states of emergency for counties along their border with Mexico, citing the "ravages and terror" caused by illegal immigration, Strayhorn took a conciliatory tone on the same issue. But she also said the state needs help from the federal government...
...[Some political science professor who was in the reporter's rolodex] also theorized that Strayhorn, in search for campaign dollars, is unwilling to take a close-the-border stance and alienate large homebuilders and highway construction companies who use immigrant labor and contribute heavily in Republican politics...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:44 PM | Comments (1)
"Catholic Church & Charities Illegally 'Aid and Abet' Aliens"
There's an article about that here. Obviously, I don't believe everything in there, and I tend to use as few exclamation marks as possible, but the quotes and the footnotes are good for future reference.
For instance, here's one I didn't know about:
Adrian Garcia, a former Houston police officer [and current Houston City Councilman], said HPD would monitor the Minutemen 'as they would the KKK, as they would the Black Panthers.'"
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:36 PM | Comments (2)
Indiana's Bank Calumet gives home loans to illegal aliens
The local paper reports:On Tuesday, Bank Calumet announced it would begin extending home loans to illegal immigrants, becoming the first locally-based bank to do so...I was unable to find the bank's press release, but if they actually came out and said they were giving loans to illegal aliens that would be something. Note that, from the playing-both-sides department, the same reporter offered a much more PIIPPy treatment of this story in "Bank Calumet opens home ownership to illegal immigrants".
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the federally chartered institutions that buy home mortgages from banks to sell as securities, will not buy ITIN mortgages. Both institutions are in the midst of studying borrowers' ability to repay such mortgages...
The FDIC and banks two years ago formed the New Alliance Task Force to expand banking opportunities in immigrant communities. That task force has 40 member banks.
Those banks have made about 800 ITIN loans since then, with a total value of $100 million. It has also led to the opening of about 70,000 bank accounts by customers using Mexican-government issued identification cards and ITIN numbers.
That is still not a large number of loans. Many individual banks originate far more than $100 million in home loans in a single year.
More than 300 bankers showed up for a New Alliance Task Force briefing at the Mexican Consulate in Chicago two years ago. Almost all were interested in the ITIN loans. But FDIC statistics show only a small number are actually now doing it...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:12 PM | Comments (3)
Heckler's Veto used by Moorpark against Friends of the Border Patrol?
Andy Ramirez of the group Friends of the Border Patrol was invited by the Simi Valley/Moorpark Republican Assembly to speak on Saturday, August 20. The meeting was to be held at Moorpark's City Hall.Now, that city has demanded a deposit of $5000:
Their President, Mr. Darin Henry contacted me earlier today with the following problem. He was informed by the City of Moorpark that they required an unreasonable amount for a security deposit, that being in the amount of $5,000. He asked me to contact "Mary" to discuss this further. I did so and informed her that we have not had any incidents at any of my speaking engagements anywhere in SD County and I was not personally requesting additional security. I had contacted Captain Richard Diaz of the Ventura County Sheriff's Department's Moorpark Station as a courtesy call to alert him to my speaking engagement. He indicated that they would have a couple of deputies keep an eye on the event, but that was it. We'd not have any additional security inside the building. If there was a problem, he gave me a telephone number and of course suggested 911. Again, I did not request any additional security for the event.You can call the city of Moorpark at 805.517.6200, or use this form. Emails of various officials are here.
However, Mary at Moorpark City Hall stated to both Mr. Henry and myself that they needed a $5k deposit for security for additional manpower. She further stated that they only had three deputies on duty and that if any were detailed to keep watch on the SVMRA event, she'd have to request additional deputies and that would increase city costs for their security. I informed her as I had Captain Diaz that I'd not requested any additional security. However, she was rather adament and informed me that we'd be on our own as a result...
Note that this situation is similar in some ways to recent events in Carlsbad, which were resolved. See "Carlsbad Unified School District to allow immigration meeting".
UPDATE: Coverage also in "Group balks at Moorpark's deposit request".
Posted to Immigration2005b at 08:47 PM | Comments (0)
A subtle visual cue from the New York Times
Don't get me wrong. I'd definitely do her. It's just that she's not the, shall we say, model type.
And, what's up with that finger?
(Banner ad spotted on sitemeter.com; it might just be from an affiliate of some kind.)
Posted to WackyHumor at 12:39 PM | Comments (0)
Discounted college educations for all!
Discussion of Orrin Hatch's anti-American DREAM Act and similar state laws have been featured here several times in the past. These laws and proposals give illegal aliens discounted college educations but out-of-state U.S. citizens will continue to pay the full price. The DREAM Act hasn't yet passed, but several states have already passed similar laws.
This post directs our attention to this crystal clear provision of the 1996 Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an alien who is not lawfully present in the United States shall not be eligible on the basis of residence within a State . . . for any postsecondary education benefit unless a citizen or national of the United States is eligible for such a benefit (in no less an amount, duration, and scope) without regard to whether the citizen or national is such a resident.
Obviously, those states that have laws giving discounts to illegal aliens must give those same discounts to U.S. citizens, regardless of where they live. That means that - providing this provision is enforced - if they're going to give discounts to illegal aliens, then they have to give a discount to everyone else.
As with other things, the problem now is enforcing the law. In the Kansas case, US District Judge Richard Rogers ruled that the citizens who sued to get Kansas' law overturned had no standing: only the DHS has standing to sue over violations of that provision.
Now, the Washington Legal Foundation has filed a complaint with the DHS for another state:
We filed a complaint against Texas with DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, which is supposed to investigate civil rights violations under the immigration laws. We claim that Texas practice denies the civil rights of US citizens living outside the State who are denied the same in-state rates given to illegal aliens.
Whether the DHS is required to investigate and take action is not known. But, if there's a loophole expect them to find it.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 07:59 PM | Comments (2)
"Homeland security doesn't exist."
Leo Banks offers a long article about ranchers directly on the border entitled "Images From the Battleground". It includes this:The Border Patrol doesn't release a by-nation breakdown of those it arrests, and the agency is particularly tight-lipped about arrests of special interest aliens, known as SIAs. These are individuals from the list of about 35 countries the U.S. considers terror threats. But the Weekly has obtained SIA arrest figures from a federal law enforcement source who asked to remain anonymous.
From 2000 through 2003, plus the first nine months of fiscal 2004, agents in the Tucson sector, and the Arizona office of the Yuma sector, arrested 132 SIAs. The numbers include 10 from Afghanistan, seven from Iran, 12 from Yemen, 11 from Pakistan and three from Iraq.
Using the common estimate that the Border Patrol only catches one out of every three who cross, or as some believe, one of every five, we can calculate that upward of 660 individuals from terror-threat nations have crossed into our country through Arizona.
Those SIA arrest figures, by the way, include six individuals from Saudi Arabia, the country that produced 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 maniacs.
Homeland security?
Along the border south of Arivaca, you'd best stand back when you utter those words, because the subject tends to make folks spitting mad. Even Robinson, a silver-haired, soft-spoken gentleman, gets a fire in his eyes when he talks about it.
"It's a joke," says the 67-year-old, semi-retired veterinarian. "Homeland security doesn't exist."
Posted to Immigration_terror at 02:42 PM | Comments (2)
Can Father Andrew Greeley be safely ignored?
Yes, he can. Apparently in addition to being a Catholic priest he's also a sociologist and an author of potboilers.
And, he's also a smear artist, as the column "Bigots forget own immigrant roots" shows. You see, we who oppose illegal immigration have dehumanized illegal aliens (what we "bigots" call "vermin"), much like the Nazis did with Jews. In fact, the "feds are easing this country ever closer to a police state" in which "brown people" are "oppressed" and "persecuted." "Immigrants" have no legal rights. Etc., etc., etc.
My only question is, is this guy a pundit or some mumbling street person found in a Hollywood donut shop at 3am?
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:35 PM | Comments (7)
Angelina Jolie now (almost) Cambodia's problem
Actress Angelina Jolie has been granted citizenship by the government of Cambodia, People's Daily Online reports. The major question, of course, is when she will renounce her American citizenship:
[King Norodom Sihamoni] signed a royal decree approving Jolie's citizenship on July 31... The reward is for Jolie's grand environmental work and assistance done to Cambodia, [an NGO worker who broke the news (?) said], adding that the movie star has provided 1.5 million US dollars to assist wildlife reserves in Cambodia's remote northwestern provinces... During Jolie's stay here last July, Prime Minister Hun Sen mentioned to offer her citizenship. After meeting with Hun Sen, Jolie said that she was very proud and honored that Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen would give her a Cambodian citizenship...
Posted to Celebrities at 09:39 PM | Comments (0)
Standing in solidarity against Reason Magazine
The purported secret project designed to completely discredit any libertarian form of thought, otherwise known as Reason Magazine, has banned fellow blogger Xrlq from commenting there.
This blog stands in solidarity with comrade Xrlq against the loony libertarians.
Posted to Bloggage at 09:36 PM | Comments (1)
Paula Abdul found chaste; to continue at Fox
The world rejoices as it learns that Paula Abdul - the world's hottest TV song and dance competition judge - has been cleared of scurillous charges that she abused her lofty role to obtain favors of a personal nature. A special investigator - hired by Fox News - has determined that she's pure and wholesome enough to remain on that network.
Sources indicated that a statement from Abdul reportedly said:
"Once again, I thank my fans from throughout the world for their undying love and support."
Sources close to the celebrity hinted that generous Paula is considering personally giving many of her fans a special gift: "perhaps an autographed nail file or similar." Earlier this year, Abdul testified as an expert witness in attempts to clean up the dirty nail salon industry.
This ruling is yet another blow to the credibility and career of Abdul's accuser:
[Losing American Idol contestant Corey Clark] was dumped from "American Idol" in 2003 because he failed to reveal a prior arrest. In July, the Sacramento County district attorney's office decided not to press criminal charges against Corey for a hotel food fight that got out of control.
Posted to Celebrities at 06:49 AM | Comments (1)
A terrorist cell in Orange County, CA? (Part 2)
The previous post "A terrorist cell in Orange County, CA?" discussed a possible cell in La Habra, CA. John & Ken of KFI have been following up on this story after speaking with FOX News terrorism analyst John Loftus.
First, they spoke with a local CAIR spokesman, who says that he knows the supposed terrorist. He says that the supposed terrorists does have non-mainstream views, but he doesn't believe he's violent or otherwise supports terrorism. (Insert CAIR disclaimer here, as well as perhaps a definition of taqqiya).
When he discussed this on Fox last weekend, Loftus gave out the address where the supposed terrorist lives in La Habra. The first segment of this post linked to a transcript of Loftus' appearance. However, you'll note that I left out the address.
Now, John & Ken are speaking with someone who claims that he lives at that address, and he has no affiliation with the supposed terrorist, but that he still gets mail for people with Arabic names...
Posted to Los_Angeles at 05:15 PM | Comments (0)
NM's Richardson declares border emergency
New Mexico's Bill Richardson is pro-open borders and pro-racial solidarity ("...we have to put aside party and think of ourselves as Latinos, as Hispanics, more than we have in the past."), making this report a bit interesting, but not really all that much. He's pledging $1.75 million to four border counties to help them build fences and other things related to border security:Richardson's declaration said law enforcement officials have used all available resources to help with border security. But those efforts haven't alleviated the situation, which he said "constitutes an emergency condition with potentially catastrophic consequences."UPDATE: Gosh, that's odd. The AP report seems to have left out some absolutely unimportant quotes, now supplied by CNN:
"Recent developments have convinced me this action is necessary _ including violence directed at law enforcement, damage to property and livestock, increased evidence of drug smuggling and an increase in the number of undocumented immigrants," he said...
"We don't want contagious diseases to contaminate our food supply and disrupt our agricultural economy," Richardson said in a statement before his trip...
The declaration says the region "has been devastated by the ravages and terror of human smuggling, drug smuggling, kidnapping, murder, destruction of property and the death of livestock... [It] is in an extreme state of disrepair and is inadequately funded or safeguarded to protect the lives and property of New Mexican citizens."Meanwhile, Bush's friends to our south have issued their own statement:
...Richardson... criticized the "total inaction and lack of resources from the federal government and Congress" in helping protect his state's residents along the border...
Mexico said the declarations "don't jibe with the spirit of cooperation and understanding" and ordered its consul in Albuquerque to meet with New Mexico officials "to promote appropriate actions by the officials of both countries."Obviously, we wouldn't have a border problem, or it would be greatly reduced, if there were some more responsible and less corrupt country to our south.
..."The Mexican government considers that some of the New Mexico government's statements are generalizations which don't jibe with the spirit of cooperation and understanding needed to address border problems," Mexico's Foreign Relations Department said in a press statement.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:08 PM | Comments (3)
Redistricting back on the ballot
CA Supremes voted 4-2 in favor. Developing...
UPDATE: See "Supreme Court allows redistricting initiative on November ballot" for the details.
Posted to California at 05:04 PM | Comments (0)
Atwaterian: AVNC "Special Election" marred with gross errors and irregularities
Local Fletcher Blvd. businessman Luis Lopez reports via email:On August 11, 2005 the Atwater Village Neighborhood Council held its "special election" to fill 3 vacant positions on the AVNC Board, the governing body of our local "town government"...Follow the money, my friends, follow the money. That's all I can say at this point in time. Except, I'll say one more thing: watch for the sparrow. Yes indeed, watch for the sparrow, truthseekers.
Yet after the email announcement declaring that there were only four candidates and only one contested position for the board (Resident – Central Atwater) the AVNC "found" two additional candidates that supposedly flied prior to the August 4th deadline...
Arpy Simonian, a long time active and respected member of this community, lost this election. She lost this election not because of lack of community support but because the AVNC miserably failed to properly give her (and voters) proper notice that there was a 2nd candidate seeking her position...
Posted to Los_Angeles at 03:13 PM | Comments (0)
Massive development planned for Griffith Park
One of the more lunatic ideas to come out of L.A. involves our own Griffith Park, one of the largest urban parks in the world. In case you aren't familiar: it's hardly the wilderness, but there are actually large tracts of undeveloped land there, hills, hiking trails, and the like. While there are several developed amenities such as the Observatory, Zoo, Greek Theatre, etc. it's also possible to hike for a mile or two without seeing much beyond a closed road or a picnic table or a shed or similar.Now, city leaders are drafting a Master Plan for the park, and it's got some real doozies. I've only checked out the first, but I have little doubt that this partial list (provided by Save Griffith Park) is largely accurate:
- Six multi-level parking structuresThe last idea is particularly insane. No "lighted platform" is needed, just your eyes. If they feel the need to build something like this, do it on Hollywood Blvd. Perhaps they could form a public-private partnership with the organization that owns most of the property there.
- Introduction of traffic into the interior of the Park
- Creation of a hotel, restaurant, culinary school and sports complex in the Park's interior
- Two aerial tramways
- A "pleasure pier" over the L.A. River at Los Feliz Boulevard
- A lighted platform to "view" the Hollywood Sign
The idea of a pier in the L.A. River is likewise nuts. First of all, that's in the only section of the river that isn't just a concrete drainage channel. One wonders what effect that would have on the only portion of the entire river that's slightly "natural". One wonders also how they would do this when the river is only 100' wide or so. And, what happens when flood season rolls around and the river is about to overflow its "banks"?
As for the first, consider this quote from their PDF:
To provide additional parking for Park visitors and consolidate parking for some activity areas, parking facilities with amenities shall be developed, including information centers, transit and trolley facilities, office space and possible recreational facilities...While I don't know whether that was written with lawyerly care or not, it's certainly wide open enough that that "office space" and "meeting space" could turn into office buildings and conference centers.
The tops of all proposed parking garages shall be used for 'green' or recreational/office activities. These can include gardens, sport courts, or Park office/meeting space...
There's a public meeting about this on September 12. If you're in the area I urge you to attend.
My proposal is a bit complex and is sure to be controversial. But, I'm sure it would work. First, we declare no more development in Griffith Park. We'll just maintain it like it is now. Then, we undeclare L.A. to be a sanctuary city for illegal aliens, and we let it be known that we can no longer afford to care for any member of the third world who can sneak into our country. Then, with .0001% of the savings from that, we charter a cruise ship and order it to take four years to circle the globe. Then, we put all of L.A.'s political, business, and media leaders aboard that cruise ship.
Posted to Los_Angeles at 09:48 PM | Comments (2)
How many open borders loons can dance on the head of a pin?
The article "Illegal immigration polarizes Christians" contains several lunatic statements and assertions, but none more loony than this:Dennis McCann, professor of Bible and Religion at Agnes Scott College said he'd be surprised if Jesus had much sense of borders and jurisdictions other than the Roman colonial system.That follows several other statements from church leaders supporting open borders. But, surely, we can give Jesus more credit than he's given by the less-than-thoughtful (far-lefties?) quoted in the article.
In all things concerning the Romans, he was indifferent rather than hostile, McCann wrote in an e-mail.
"He seems to have emphatically rejected zealotry or the idea of armed struggle against imperial occupation. Thus, I would be surprised to find Jesus endorsing any kind of punitive policy against illegal immigrants. Probably, if asked, he would favor amnesty for those already here, and generally would favor a borderless world, where people could come and go freely without interference from the state," McCann wrote. "That's my guess."
In fact, here are a few questions they might want to ponder:
1. Would Jesus support ethnic nationalism, racial solidarity, and the like? Would he support those who want to bring more people to the U.S. simply because they're the same race as they are?
2. Would he support church leaders who want to take advantage of the bad situation of massive migration in order to expand their flock? Would he consider those church leaders corrupt?
3. Would Jesus support the Mexican oligarchy's plan to ship their excess population to the U.S. instead of taking care of them themselves?
4. Would he support corrupt corporations that profit off illegal immigration? Would he support, for instance, the bracero program or other similar guest worker schemes?
5. Would he consider that those currently in the U.S. have the right to say who should enter their country?
These church leaders should leave the policy to those who are able to think things through, because they're clearly incompetent.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 09:34 PM | Comments (7)
Hanson on illegal immigration and guest workers
There's an interview with Victor Davis Hanson here:...If there were not a perennial supply of cheap labor, wages would rise, and would draw back workers to now despised seasonal jobs; something is terribly wrong when central California counties experience 15 percent unemployment and yet insist that without thousands of illegal aliens from Oaxaca crops won't be picked and houses not built. At some point, some genius is going to make the connection that illegal immigration may actually explain high unemployment by ensuring employers cheap labor that will not organize, can be paid in cash, and often requires little government deductions and expense...His latest column "'Guest' workers or Helots?" makes a lot of sense too, except for the part about a one-time amnesty: there's no such thing.
Church leaders can step forward and talk honestly about the problem in terms of morality—is it so ethical to hire someone, pay him cash, break the law in doing so, and then expect the public to pick up the cost when such an employee is sick, hurt, laid off, or aged?
...There should be no more public tolerance for the racism of an organization like MECHA [a Spanish acronym for the Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan] with its slogans like "a bronze state for a bronze people" or "everything for the race, nothing for those outside the race." Why in 2005 there is still a movement like La Raza ("the race") baffles the mind; would we stand one minute for a "Volk" movement of whites that could only be racist in defining people by how they look rather than what they do?
Previously: The liberal case against illegal immigration, Part 2
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:50 PM | Comments (9)
Is the "immigration debate" about to turn nasty?
The post "Bush, Big Business to join forces, oppose wishes of American public" discussed Bush's latest plan to push for massive immigration: joining with large, corrupt corporations to create ads and what will most likely be similar propaganda to what we've come to expect from his administration.
Yesterday on KFI's John & Ken show, KOGO's Roger Hedgecock mentioned that he thinks they're going to go all out with the smears, including trying to portray pro-borders folks as akin to David Duke. He didn't provide more information, but, considering the money involved I wouldn't put stooping that low beyond them.
In perhaps an indication of what might be coming, or perhaps it's completely unrelated, see the 8/1 AP story "Hate groups turn focus on Hispanic immigrants". One way to read that story is as propaganda designed to smear those who oppose illegal immigration.
Of course, since the great majority of Americans oppose illegal immigration, it will be interesting to see what happens if the Bush administration starts calling those millions of people names. Perhaps in the end it will help millions of people see whose side many of our leaders are on.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:39 PM | Comments (3)
A terrorist cell in Orange County, CA?
According to Fox News' terrorism analyst:
...Al-Muhajiroun has offices in both New York and London. They were the parent organization, the Finsbury Mosque, of the subway bombings. Their leadership in New York was responsible for planning the subway bombings. What we're finding out is that they have a sister organization called Hizb al-Tahrir. And al-Tahrir is, if you will, the operational or training arm, Muhajiroun is the recruiting arm. Now the Russian Secret Service says that Hizb al-Tahrir is the secret radical arm of the Muslim brotherhood... the new elected leader of the terrorist group Hizb al-Tahrir lives in Orange County, California. And that he has direct ties with the same groups in London. In fact, the group, the Islamic Thinkers Society in New York--that used to be the address, the post office box, of Iyad Kilal, also called Abu Tarik. And he lives... in La Habra, California...
Posted to Los_Angeles at 05:23 PM | Comments (0)
White Mountain Peak: I came THIS close.
On Sunday I tried to get White Mountain Peak, the third-highest summit in California at 14,246'. It's also the easiest CA 14er. I got to somewhere around 14,146' and turned around. On the one hand, I wasted a lot of gas getting there. On the other, I was able to avoid getting fried. Details at my new hiking site OutdoorLifestyle.com: White Mountain Peak trip report.
Posted to OutdoorSports at 12:55 AM | Comments (1)
Favorite non-blogs?
I'm really sick of blogs. So, please take this opportunity to herein list your favorite - or least favorite - sites which are not blogs. These must be sites that never use the word "blog", "blogger", "blogosphere", or any of the other sickeningly cutesy words those odious people use.
Posted to Bloggage at 07:04 PM | Comments (6)
You, the immigration blogger
Here's your chance to comment on these articles which haven't yet been featured in their own posts:* Despite plenty of finger-pointing, border protests relatively peaceful
* Latino Restaurant Workers Offered Free Financial Management Classes (Freddie Mac is involved, and someone from a mislabeled far-left group refers to "undocumented immigrants". However, no word is given on whether the workers are legal or not, although we might be able to surmise that many or most are given the involvement of these groups. And, of course, we might ask what other race-based programs Freddie Mac offers.)
* And, more importantly, this interview:
Bush said he expects Congress this year to adopt one of his key legislative priorities, an immigration bill that permits "guest workers" and tightens border security, particularly along the U.S. boundary with Mexico...Actually, there's broad agreement that Bush is not doing his job. There's absolutely nothing stopping him from having enacted his border security initiative at any time in the past five years. Perhaps one day some brave reporter will actually call him on his BS, but don't expect that to happen any time soon.
On immigration reform, the president said he hopes to resolve differences with members of the Senate who are pushing for a more lenient law for illegal immigrants seeking work in the United States.
"This should not be an amnesty program," he said.
Bush's plan would provide temporary visas to guest workers. They would have to leave afterward, and program participants would get no special consideration when they apply for legal residence.
"It's very important for the American people to know immigration reform will be done with a border security initiative that makes it clear to the people that we will do everything we can to stop illegal people from coming into our country," Bush said.
He said a well-run guest worker program would help border security by taking pressure off the Border Patrol. If those who wish to enter the country to work can do so legally, he reasoned, fewer will try to infiltrate the border secretly.
Flush from the series of legislative successes last week, the president expressed confidence that he can cut through strong, opposing political feelings on immigration and come out with a bill.
"I think there is broad agreement that the system is not working," Bush said. "It's a very important issue and it's an issue that we've got to get right."
Blog away!
Posted to Immigration2005b at 02:52 PM | Comments (3)
"The costs of illegal immigration are huge"
A small Iowa paper has a common-sense editorial on the costs of all that "cheap" labor.It concentrates on just two of the many areas that could be discussed: the costs incurred by the federal Office of Migrant Education, and JAMA's report on a nasty strain of TB:
...One sensible means to reduce the spread of such a dangerous disease would be to, of all things, secure our borders. But the CDC's investigator, in keeping with the touchy political correctness surrounding illegal immigration, dismissed the obvious solution at a press conference releasing the study. "If we hope to accelerate progress and guard against resurgence of TB," said Dr. Reuben Granich, "we must employ innovative public-health strategies - not border closings."Of course, back in the days of Ellis Island, people were sent back home if found with a contagious disease. That's not possible with the current self-service immigration system and self-declared citizenship, together with political corruption and/or political correctness.
No one has suggested actually closing the border, only patrolling it and actually enforcing our nation's immigration laws. Such is the wackiness of the immigration discussion, or lack thereof, that a CDC official would suggest Americans wait for unspecified "innovative public-health strategies" to be developed rather than directly attempt to reduce the flow of infected people into the United States...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 05:32 AM | Comments (6)
"What Would It Cost to Deport Illegal Aliens?"
Remember the laughable Center for American Progress study saying it would cost $41 billion a year for five year to deport all illegal aliens currently in the U.S.? It gets eviscerated here:And while we’re in fantasyland, let us also pretend that the $41 billion per year figure is even remotely accurate. The Federal Government has an annual budget of $2.34 trillion per year. Our Gross Domestic Product is a staggering $12 trillion per year. $41 billion would be just 1.7% of the Federal budget, and a miniscule 0.34% of our GDP.When you read the rest of the article you will be amazed. To be frank, I didn't explore their "study" in depth since the surface was bad enough. But, the way they calculated the $41 billion is ludicrous. If the CAP tells you the sky is blue, look outside to double-check.
Yet the Center for American Progress would have us believe that this sum is so far beyond us that we should instead surrender our country to whomever shows up in whatever numbers, rather than pay it. To put it in perspective, 0.34% would be $148 for someone earning $43,527 per year, the median family income in America...
...Uncontrolled immigration is ludicrous. A nation without the most basic power of all -- the power to defend its own border -- invites lawlessness and disaster, especially after September 11th...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 07:40 PM | Comments (1)
Can I comment on Instapundit posts?
Yes, you can!
In fact, you can comment on the posts made by Insty, Sully, Josh, Mickey, and all the rest over at BigMediaBlog. It's like a forum, except it's just designed for one thing: to provide (unauthorized of course!) comments for sites that don't have comments. Every day there's a new open thread for 17 sites, including many of your favorites.
If you see an entry at Instapundit or DailyKos or one of a dozen other sites and you disagree with it or it's just plain wrong or, leave your comments at that site.
In addition to BlogsForBush, Instapundit, and DailyKos, there are daily threads for these sites:
DemocraticUnderground
Andrew Sullivan
TalkLeft
Kausfiles
Talking Points Memo
Professor Bainbridge
National Review
NYT
WaPo
LAT
TV/cable
Other MSM
Other media
And, BigMediaBlog has a comments feed that you can subscribe to. So, check it out.
Posted to Bloggage at 11:22 AM | Comments (1)
More on Rep. Jim Kolbe and irony
The post "Rep. Jim Kolbe, welcome to irony!" discussed how people suspected of being illegal aliens had broken into the cabin of that Congressman and advocate for massive illegal immigration.The AP follows up with an unbalanced report called "Break-ins by migrants seeking food, rest a fact of life on border". Bottom line: it's OK, they're just coming here to work and, well, if they have to break into a house or two along the way, well, I guess that's just a fact of wacky life on the border.
The AP interviews two far-left, open borders organizations which are, naturally, misidentified:
Kat Rodriguez, coordinating organizer for the human rights group Derechos Humanos, said residents in southern Arizona have come to expect occasional stories of migrants who need food or a place to rest breaking into homes.Do tell. In fact, I hear that Kolbe is a co-sponsor of the Kennedy-McCain massive amnesty scheme. So, we know he's strong on enforcement and all.
"It's frustrating for them and no one likes it, but they know it's desperation," Rodriguez said...
The Rev. Robin Hoover, president of the humanitarian group Humane Borders, said the burglary at the congressman's home was ironic but not unusual.
"Congressman Kolbe has very attentively tried to do things about the border and enforcement and now you have this big irony of someone breaking into his house," Hoover said...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 06:13 AM | Comments (1)
Over 2.5% of the budget of Colorado's El Paso County goes to jail illegal aliens
The sheriff there wants ICE to open an office, this report says. Yes, this is a small matter, but it's things like this that can help people get a handle on this problem:[Colorado] has an estimated 200,000 illegal immigrants, and about 30,000 in El Paso County, Maketa said.
Bensberg said he took interest in a local ICE office when he heard that county taxpayers pay $1.2 million a year to hold illegal immigrants.
"With a budget of $40-$44 million a year, that's a significant chunk," he said.
Bensberg would like to see a federal office open here, where ICE could operate along with other federal agencies...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 06:06 PM | Comments (1)
There's nothing "fishy" about this site!
Have you ever thought about just how weird it is to see people posing with giant sea creatures?
Well, you might not have done that, but I have.
And, that's why I started a new site: fishosaur.com.
Check it out and let me know what you think.
Posted to Bloggage at 05:51 AM | Comments (1)
Coke, Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, Shasta, or?
What side are you on in the Great Cola Wars? While I realize that any soda is bad for you, I usually get the 3 liter Shasta Diet Cola, which costs just a buck at many places.
Are there any new sodas in the marketing pipeline that we should be aware of?
I say "soda", do you say "pop"? If so, why? I've heard but haven't verified that in the "UP" (upper peninsula of Michigan), they refer to it as "fizzwater". Do you think that's accurate or was that person pulling my leg?
What other names of cola products can you think up? Discuss.
Posted to WackyHumor at 07:32 PM | Comments (4)
Some people aren't worth the time it takes to try to help them: discuss
Why do I waste my time trying to help people who are apparently unable to appreciate my (more or less) worthwhile advice?
A recent example comes from radio host Phil Hendrie. You'd think that if a famous blogger such as myself starts offering not just advice but a link, Hendrie would be a slight bit grateful. I mean, he's a moderately well-known radio personality, but he's new at the blog game. So, I left a comment at this entry pointing to this helpful post. The comment has been deleted. Note, of course, that it might have been an underling that did that.
Then, there's my long-running attempt to improve the effectiveness of DTN. They still haven't fixed those easily-fixed problems even after yet another message, this time sent using FPM's form. Once again, their frontline less-than-bright persons might be the ones who get those messages.
And, over two weeks ago I tried to offer some advice to the new site smartbusinesspractices.com. For instance, their left menu barely works in Firefox. I got a form letter in reply, and the problems still haven't been fixed. The previous disclaimers might apply here as well.
In all these cases, the problems I discussed are fairly easy to fix and would improve those sites' effectiveness. And, the value of my advice could be easily verified with a search on those issues.
The problem with all these appears to be quite simple: operator error. I'm going to stop trying to offer advice to people who are apparently unable to understand it.
Posted to Bloggage at 11:15 AM | Comments (0)
Chris Cannon declines debate with Tom Tancredo
The news is in "Cannon declines debate with Colorado rival" from Robert Gehrke of The Salt Lake Tribune. Can you spot where Gehrke has made false or misleading statements in his report?U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, known for his outspoken and sometimes outlandish views on immigration, will be in Utah later this month and agreed to debate his political rival, Rep. Chris Cannon.A cute joke from Cannon follows. As far as the completely non-cute news goes, start here for my coverage.
Cannon says he has more pressing engagements - working on the irrigation system at his home.
Tancredo, a Colorado Republican and leading spokesman of the anti-immigration movement, was invited to the state by the group Utahns For Immigration Reform and Enforcement, or UFIRE, a group that battered Cannon over his immigration stance during his 2004 re-election bid.
He agreed to spend Aug. 24 to 25 in the state, making appearances in St. George, Provo and Salt Lake City. On behalf of UFIRE, Bluffdale City Councilwoman Martha Speed invited Cannon to debate Tancredo at an event in Provo on Aug. 24, but Cannon said he will be indisposed...
Posted to Immigration2005b at 08:57 AM | Comments (2)
L.A. Newspaper Group has an immigration blog
Fulfilling his quota of discussing vitally important matters once every month or two, Insty informs us about a new blog covering immigration matters: Beyond Borders.
Scroll down to the bottom or peel back the URL and what do we find?
A Special Report on Immigration by Inland Valley Daily Bulletin and The [San Bernardino] Sun
Those papers have published some good articles and some bad as well. The blogger doing this is one Conor Friedersdorf, who appears to have worked for that newspaper group and contributes to Claremont's Local Liberty blog. He also has a low-traffic blog of his own entitled Unconventional Wisdom.
Unfortunately, the new blog seems a bit credulous, but perhaps that's an attempt to be fair or provoke comments, such as with this post that takes Tamar Jacoby seriously. At post time there are no comments that I could find.
UPDATE: There are a few comments now, but I note that like other sites they appear to be using the idiotic nofollow tag on links in comments.
Posted to Bloggage at 09:55 AM | Comments (2)
Judicial Watch vs. Herndon, VA and "Project Hope and Harmony"
With a name like "Project Hope and Harmony" it can't be good, and it isn't. The city of Herndon, VA wants to commit public resources - money and land - to build a day laborer site. As previously discussed here, the vast majority of those laborers are illegal aliens.Now, Judicial Watch is threatening legal action against the town unless they scrap their plans:
...Judicial Watch's clients' concerns are numerous, but center on the use of taxpayer resources, including town property and county funds, to facilitate illegal activity. An official Fairfax County study concluded that 85% of "day laborers" lacked legal documentation permitting lawful employment. The proposal before the Town of Herndon entails committing public funds and resources to facilitate the illegal employment of undocumented aliens - a crime. Federal immigration laws make it illegal to "encourage or induce an alien come to, enter, or reside in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, or residence is or will be in violation of law." 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv). Federal immigration laws also make it unlawful to aid or abet the commission of such acts. 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(v)(II)...UPDATE: The city's planning commission voted against building the site. On August 16th the city's Town Council will vote on the matter.
"Public officials cannot commit taxpayer's funds and public resources in furtherance of a crime - no matter how well-intentioned," stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. "Any attempt by Herndon or Fairfax officials to aid and abet criminal conduct with taxpayer money will be met with swift, strong legal action on the part of Judicial Watch and our clients," Fitton added.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 08:53 PM | Comments (18)
Utah's problem with "American" politicians
For a nice state filled with awesome scenery and generally nice folks, Utah has given us some really unsavory characters politics-wise.
There's Orrin Hatch and his anti-American DREAM Act.
And, of course, Rep. Chris Cannon.
And, there's one other that was mentioned here before just once: "Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., Mexico, and illegal immigration".
The latest disturbing bit on the latter can be found in "Gov. Huntsman's CFR Membership -- The Rest of the Story".
Posted to Politics at 08:45 PM | Comments (0)
GOPUSA reports on JW's border crossers FOIA
Back in June we discussed the FOIA request that Judicial Watch filed concerning the poll of border crossers that the Border Patrol had conducted. It showed a large uptick in attempted crossings because of Bush announcing his guest worker plan.
The poll was abruptly terminated after three weeks, and BP agents were ordered to spin the results and the effects of Bush's big plan.
Now, in a rather interesting occurence, GOPUSA offers a summary of the FOIA request entitled "Border Patrol Secrets". It doesn't go as far as I did, but it doesn't pull its punches:
Bush administration officials directed Border Patrol agents to mislead the American people... President Bush had just announced a new "temporary worker program" (to read, amnesty) for illegal immigrants... This is hardly the stuff of open, honest and responsible government... Here are some of the more disturbing survey findings the Bush administration tried to keep from you...
You'll recall, of course, that GOPUSA is run by Bobby Eberle, who also has an involvement with Talon News. The latter employed Jeff Gannon (who's gay BTW). Why, the dKosopedia even has an entry on this. Perhaps GOPUSA wants to be on the right side, not the Bush side.
Posted to Politics at 08:34 PM | Comments (0)
Rep. Jim Kolbe, welcome to irony!
Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) is one of the co-sponsors of the Kennedy-McCain mass amnesty.
About a week ago he seems to have learned the meaning of irony: his house was burglarized by a group of people who they assume are willing workers on their way to the jobs that Americans used to won't do:
...the burglars focused on fixing a snack and getting cleaned up. Kolbe's microwave showed signs of recent use, as did his shower. Officers found wet towels piled up in the bathroom... Before leaving the house, they took a snack and a change of clothes...
They didn't take any of his big-ticket items, but maybe next time they'll leave some trash behind or do all the other things that the little people on the border that Kolbe doesn't care about have become used to.
For the pro-borders alternative, see Randy Graf. That site has much more on Kolbe.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 08:24 PM | Comments (0)
Soros-funded Media Matters deletes yet another comment
Their message control is getting pretty funny. Perhaps I should start a new category just for my comments that they've deleted.The latest is the comment I left in "In NY Times book review, Posner rehashed tired "liberal media" claims". Yes, of course I saved my comment:
If you go to BoreAmerica you'll see that it's been over 7 days since the Air America scandal broke. Yet, none of the "non"-liberal media outlets like the NYT, WaPo, LAT, or their smaller brethren have covered this issue.Previous examples start here.
Seven whole days without a peep from the "non"-liberal media.
For another example, check out this table. It has two stories side-by-side: one from the Chicago Tribune, the other from the N.Y. Daily News. I'd imagine that 99% of Americans would say those paragraphs had the exact same structure. They even share phrases. And, they both promote the same "liberal" legislation.
Anyone who says that the MSM is not "liberal" simply reduces their own credibility.
Posted to Bloggage at 08:11 PM | Comments (0)
Bill O'Reilly: "Left Attacks Politician for Fighting Illegal Immigration and Shutting Down Slumlords"
O'Reilly discusses the case of Long Island's Steven Levy in Left Attacks Politician for Fighting Illegal Immigration and Shutting Down Slumlords:...Rosalina Dias was charging the illegal aliens around $200 apiece to live in squalor [in her clownhouse in Farmingdale]. That means this vile woman was taking in about $12,000 a month for a house that cost her about $86,000. Dias was able to do this for more than 60 months.I wonder whether the Soros-funded Media Matters will discuss this column? Or, do they realize that if they do everyone will realize just whose side they're on?
The only reason Dias was shut down was because a politician named Steve Levy, the Suffolk County executive, demanded it. And what did Levy get for his trouble? Well, he was roundly criticized by The New York Times and Newsday, and viciously attacked by ideologues. One of them, Reverend Allan Ramirez, told Newsday Levy was guilty of "ethnic cleansing."
That was music to Newsday's ears. One of its headlines tipped the newspaper's hand: "Dozens of Men Now Left with Nowhere to Go."
How about going home to their respective countries and obeying the law, Newsday?
But The New York Times was even worse. In an editorial the paper stated: "Mr. Levy sang the law-enforcement tune ... bemoaning the dread danger posed by Latino flophouses and charging that TV stations and newspapers ... had been wrong to point out the problems with Mr. Levy's callous assault on slumlords."
Posted to Immigration2005b at 12:48 PM | Comments (2)
Why is the FDIC helping illegal aliens get home loans?
I asked that in last year's "Who is the FDIC? And, why are they working with a foreign government to subvert our laws?".
The blog-like article "Mortgages for Illegal Aliens Encouraged by FDIC" has another round-up on this issue.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 11:45 AM | Comments (3)
Have you stopped bashing immigrants?
Cindy Rodriguez of the Denver Post wants us to know: "Bashing of immigrants must stop". ("Beating of wives must stop" was apparently taken.) She reports on the formation of a new group of "Latino" activists. Based on her description, the group seems to have at least two goals:
1. Confuse people over the difference between illegal immigrants and legal immigrants.
2. Smear anyone who wants border control with various names like "bashers", "hatemongers" (two of Cindy's smears) and the like.
For instance:
Civil-rights attorney Adrienne Benavidez, one of the leaders, explains why: "Those who spout mean-spirited rhetoric, seeking to dehumanize immigrants, don't move immigration reform any further along. It's important that we don't allow that kind of negativism to dictate this country's policies or our values."
Who else is involved?
Smart people lead this group - Pam and Ricardo Martinez of Padres Unidos, Nita Gonzales of Escuela Tlatelolco, Lisa Duran of Rights for All People, to name a few
The last group is also named "Derechos Por Todos"; I don't know which is the favored name or whether they've recently changed to the English version.
Duran appeared at the First Data/Western Union forum where an American was reportedly attacked. See the end of this recent post for another speaker at that meeting. She supports driver's licenses for illegal aliens and opposes police working with BICE. She also seems to fall into the "we didn't cross the border, the border crossed us" camp. In 2003 there was a roundup of illegal aliens working at the Air Force Academy. Duran called it "racist."
Looking into the other "smart people" is left as an exercise. It looks to me like we're dealing with people who oppose the best interests of this country out of racial grounds and whose only form of argumentation is to call people names.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 10:38 AM | Comments (8)
Si, El Presidente
Want to see something disturbing? Go to the RNC web site at rnc.org and click on their "photo gallery", which is one of the three links above the main picture on the front page. Notice anything... odd about all six of those pictures? Details here.
Obviously, if almost everyone in the pictures were black or Asian it would be more noticeable for most; if almost everyone were white it would result in "liberal" outrage.
Now, let's go a little further... Got the box ready? Extra-strength? OK, take out a few feet, then double it over and snug it down. Snug it down even more! OK, now we're ready.
Recall, of course, that "P." is "Hispanic". And, recall that Bush is a strong supporter of things like CAFTA, FTAA, NAFTA, and all the other plans designed to "integrate" the U.S. with the other countries in the hemisphere. Make sure your hat is snugged down tight, then recall that the Bush family tends to think long-term. If they had the opportunity to be a hemispheric dynasty, would they turn it down?
And, here's another interesting thing to think about: what happens if the Republicans' supposed plan to convert all those millions of Hispanic "immigrants" to GOP voters goes south, and most of them continue to support Democrats.
Would George P. Bush have an Arianna Huffington-style change of heart and decide to run as a Democrat? After all, to most people power trumps ideology, right?
Posted to Politics at 08:46 PM | Comments (3)
AVWatch: Los Angeles Times still covering up Villaraigosa's past
The previous post ("L.A. Times newsflash: the citizens are angry about illegal immigration") discussed the LAT article "Anger Boils at Illegal Immigrants", which contains this near the end:
Vilified too was Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa — not for his heritage, speakers said, but because of his membership in MEChA, a Chicano rights organization, when he was a student at UCLA.
Memo to the Times: Villaraigosa has renounced that "Chicano rights organization". You don't usually renounce things that are good. Calling something a "rights organization" implies that it's good. Please, revise your spin guide.
I guess old habits of covering up for Villaraigosa's past are hard to break.
Note also the backhanded smear from Times reporter Lisa Richardson: "speakers said".
And, the "so-called" liberal media just can't get their story straight on this issue. As pointed out here, the SacBee said that AV "quickly" renounced MEChA. "Quickly" as in a few decades and about a week before the run-off election.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 01:43 PM | Comments (0)
L.A. Times newsflash: the citizens are angry about illegal immigration
The Los Angeles Times reports in "Anger Boils at Illegal Immigrants" about a meeting held Thursday of last week at Pico and LaCienega sponsored by Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson and the Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny. The confab was called "Blacks and Hispanics: Allies or Rivals?" The L.A. Times is now free to report that non-PC thoughts were thought, and non-PC statements were voiced. Oh, the horror! The audience of 80 was split between whites, blacks, and Latinos. On the same apparent side as the LAT was Councilman Bernard C. Parks. The subtitle of the LAT piece is "...Calls for tolerance draw jeers." Parks apparently urged the "tolerance", which is apparently a euphemism for "let employers of illegal aliens take advantage of you while I help":...Terry Anderson, a radio host who has long opposed illegal immigration, was one of several panel members who blamed illegal immigrants for, in their opinion, stealing jobs from blacks and crowding schools and neighborhoods to unbearable limits.The article also attempts to cover up Antonio Villaraigosa's past. That's covered in the next post.
"We have been invaded; there's no other word for it," Anderson said.
The audience clapped and cheered.
Debbie Hernandez, a white member of the audience, said: "Blacks are losing their middle-class status because of illegal aliens. I am willing to go to the streets with my brothers and sisters over this."
Sherrie Johnson, a resident of Torrance, told Parks, "You aren't taking a stand for the right side of the argument.
"I believe the purpose of going through the steps to become a citizen is because it protects the country," she said...
Posted to Los_Angeles at 01:29 PM | Comments (1)
Why isn't Bush doing the job he swore he'd do?
Matthew Dowd, "who was the chief strategist for the 2004 Bush-Cheney campaign, is the senior adviser to the Republican National Committee" has a guest editorial in the NYT entitled "The Mexican Evolution".
Basically, it says that because of the lower birth rate in Mexico, we don't need to worry that much about illegal immigration from that country. In fact, he thinks we might have seen the highwater mark.
That's a relief! It's good to know that President Bush is not doing the job he swore in an oath to do because of very long-term trends.
To cut to the chase, let's look at this little nugget:
...What's more, businesses that depend on a steady supply of low-paid illegal immigrants to keep costs down - restaurants, farms, construction companies - will most likely need to adapt by increasing salaries and benefits so they can attract legal immigrants or citizens as workers...
What's wrong with that analysis? Obviously, those businesses that rely on illegal labor that undercuts American wages aren't just going to raise their wages and benefits if no Mexicans are available. They're simply going to start over again with people from some other country. There are dozens to choose from. In fact, Mexico could transform itself from sending its own people to making money off sending people from other countries. See the OTM issue for a preview. And, of course, there's a whole cottage industry of pundits, "human rights" groups, business leaders, and so on that advocates for cheap labor. That industry is not going to dissolve itself willingly.
Since that part of his analysis is clearly wrong, there's little reason to read the rest unless you want to see just how out of touch the administration is. Nevertheless, there are many other questionable nuggets in this analysis, including a few smears.
The bottom line is that it's quite clear that not only is Bush not doing the job he swore to do, he's opposing the will of the vast majority of Americans on this issue.
If this is the administration's answer to illegal immigration, it's time to impeach.
UPDATE: Calling all population and GDP statistics nerds! Disingenuous Dowd's editorial is criticized in depth here:
...Dowd advises us all to just lie back and enjoy illegal immigration for 20 more years, and then it will go away... Obviously, he wants us to ignore the damage illegal immigration will do to America between now and 2025, and how much trouble all the illegals who get in between now and then will continue to wreak after 2025...
UPDATE 2: Mark Krikorian responds here.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)
On Andrew Sullivan, patriotism, and treason
Earlier I had a post here in which I said some rather unfortunate things about Andrew Sullivan. I used some strong language and some scurillous innuendo. I have removed that post and I deeply regret making those statements, most of which I believe are not completely true.
I do, however, hope that one day "Sully" returns to his senses - and his previous position - of supporting Our Leader. Perhaps one day we'll hear him taking the Bush Pledge. Perhaps all he needs to do is read "Why I Like George W. Bush" (redstate.org/story/2004/7/25/155049/493) or - even more appropriate for him - "Why I Like Dick Cheney" (sdai-tech1.redstate.org/story/2004/7/27/23591/3849). Team Bush would welcome Sully with open arms if he ever decides to return to the light.
As for the so-called "Bush Suck Up Watch" that he posted:
"It must be very strange to be President Bush. A man of extraordinary vision and brilliance approaching to genius, he can't get anyone to notice. He is like a great painter or musician who is ahead of his time, and who unveils one masterpiece after another to a reception that, when not bored, is hostile." - John Hinderaker, Powerline.
Is there anything in there that isn't true?
Posted to Bloggage at 11:06 AM | Comments (1)
DHS HQ misspent wireless funding for Arizona agents?
In 2004, Congress allocated $100 million to be spent on wireless communications for use on the border by DHS agents. The amount in 2005 was $86 million. Now comes "Border money bypasses Arizona":As much as $60 million that Congress approved for wireless communications technology used by federal security agencies has been spent on bureaucratic expenses that have nothing to do with the program, said Charles Cape, the zone manager for the agency's wireless initiative in the Southwest, which includes Arizona...Cape wants to spend the money on radio repeaters mounted on weather balloons because ground repeaters don't work in some canyons, wireless computer terminals for BP vehicles, and a wide-area radar system.
But none of that money has reached Arizona, said Cape. "I've never seen one dollar since I've been out here," said Cape, 64. "There's nothing. They've sucked it all up at headquarters."
Cape has filed complaints with the department's inspector general and the independent Office of Special Counsel, seeking investigations into whether money designated for wireless technology has been misspent...
See July 12, 2004's "D.C. hamstrings border officers" for a similar story, and see March's "Watchdog [Clark Kent Erwin] details confrontations with Ridge" for details on the former DHS inspector general.
Posted to Immigration2005b at 10:36 AM | Comments (0)
