Yesterday I attended a Lecture by Juan Enriquez. A prominent Hispanic author with a degree from Harvard and CEO of Biotechonomy, a life sciences research and investment firm.
He had alot to say in terms of genes and survival. Specially, the survival of a country. Every major empire/country has met its end. And it was through the hands of greed, envy, hate and misunderstanding. The American people are worried about everything else BUT education and the future. Now, what IS the future?
There are over 14 million illegal immigrants here he said. They ARE having children and their children are having children. Hispanics ARE the largest minority. When it comes to the survival of a country, you have to learn how to treat people, talk about people and incorporate all. He used the example of Quebec and their license plate that says " I remember" You do NOT want to piss off so many people because what is said today and what is done today WILL be remembered.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307237524/sr=8-1/qid=1143649595/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-6625999-4393613?%5Fencoding=UTF8I never said I didn\'t consider them criminals. Yes, they broke a law and if caught they should be punished. And yes, they should not have broken a the law. What I didn\'t agree with was the context in which the word criminal is sometimes used. The way some American\'s describe illegal immigrants you would think that the illegal immigrants were all mass murderers.
The crime committed is far less objectionable compared to other crimes that sometimes people are allowed to walk freely from without punishment. All I\'m asking from the Government is a reasonable way to solve the problem. It is highly improbable that all illegal immigrants will be caught and deported. It is also highly improbable that any of them will come out the shadows if there is a "temporary" work program.
These people have made their lives here, illegally, but they are living the American dream. They are prime examples OF the American Dream. To live the American dream a citizenship is not needed.
But just in case you are wondering, the Bill of Rights never mentions that a person must be a citizen in order to be protected.
All immigrants—including those here illegally—are guaranteed the same rights as citizens, with only a few exceptions, e.g. the right to vote. The U.S. constitution grants to “the people” or “persons”—not just to citizens—the rights to due process and equal protection of the law, to freedom of speech and assembly, and to be free from arbitrary detention or cruel and unusual punishments.
And for that matter there is even an amendment with a clear use of language that states the difference:
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive ANY PERSON of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
And from the beginning:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO ALTER or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
Nobody is asking the government to abolish their immigration laws. All we are asking for is for a way to BECOME legal residents and permission to stay in this country. Citizenship is something that is optional AFTER becoming a legal resident anyways regardless if you are illegal or not or how you attained legality.
Although there are proper ways to become citizens or legal residents...many choose not too simply because the process demands too much sacrifice and time. Time that could possibly mean starvation and a degradation to a way of life that nobody should have to live.
In a country where Christianity among Conservatives is upheld to its highest, it is very ignorant and hypocritical to be so concerned with the welfare of one group and not of another. Or is it just faux-Christians that think this way?
This is not to say that the Mexican government gets away without reprimand. As a Mexican-American, I am pissed that they have allowed such a standard of living to take a hold of a once fruitful nation. It is also very unreasonable to ask a government with such a corrupt past to fix itself in so little time. It will take time and if a true solution to the problem is going to happen, it is not going to happen anytime soon.
As of now, there are close to 15 milion illegal immigrants. Lets be reasonable, can we truly kick them all out and have you thought about the consequences? They provide this country with the cheapest labor and are a source of income for all companies and manufacturers. They hold bank accounts, credit card debt, house mortages and car loans. If push comes to shove, they will leave and take all their money with them. What will they leave behind? I\'m sure one of you will be quick to point out "but they earned that money illegaly" True, but how are you going to stop them?
What will happen when legal citizens take over the jobs that they did? I\'m sure none of you will work under the sun for 15 hours a day for 6.00 an hour. Who is going to pay for the money difference once companies are forced to raise their payment levels to people that are not willing to work for so little? We are.
I have said many dumb things in the past but I have never initiated a "flame war" Look at what you wrote and tell me if I have the right to be insulted by anything you said.
I support Senator McCain\'s proposal. Pay some fines, learn English and go to school. Sounds reasonable.
It appears in Dallas the number of English speaking teachers is being drastically cut...and replaced by those that know English and Spanish. What is your opinion on that?
BTW, they were High School kids. I\'m not going to try to defend them or support them. Their ages ranged from 14-18 and most came from schools with a bad reputation. Please, do not be so naive as to group all people in the same group as those kids. Why do you not bring up the march in LA or Chicago?
AND, also BTW, I doubt the majority of the people protesting are "illegal" and do not underestimate the intelligence of somebody b/c of their status in this country. For example, "those illegals, their stupid,coming out in groups like that, their gonna get caught!" The majority are legal and like Senator McCain said, "they are the children and grandchildren"
Now, I\'m going to go to class come back and find many insults, unreasonable logic and of course the occational racial slur.
