Posts

I Am Appalled - Why Aren't You?

Where is the Outrage?  So, after many recommendations, I watched the first season of Homeland, and found the finale disturbing and disheartening. I was angry, not because the villain is free, or the heroin does not triumph, but because of the basic premise (spoiler alert) - that the CIA and vice president are trying desperately to cover up an intentional drone attack on an elementary school that killed 82 students, because they don't believe the American public will stand for this atrocity. This is disturbing to me, not because of the valid, justifiable, reaction of the American public in a fantasy television universe, but the real life lack of conscientiousness of the American public in the world today. I was incredibly disappointed and ashamed to learn that the American public does not have the morality or indignation to be righteously appalled by horrific, shameful, killings of innocent civilians on our behalf.   Over the last two months, we learned that, ...
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Latin American Trade And Immigration Reform

              The Need to Include Trade Reform in Comprehensive Immigration Reform   This year, immigration reform will again be debated in Congress.  There will be those who want to close our borders and penalize without exception and there will be those who wish to open our borders and allow for mass legalization. I am extremely wary of each of these proposals and all they fail to address the root causes of immigration. And without addressing the causes of immigration, any solution based solely on the affect of immigration can be effective or truly humane.    Progressive groups are pushing for mass legalization and understandably so, because there are now 11.9 million people living and working in the shadows, [1] under constant threat of abuse, penalization, or expulsion, despite their contributions to our society and a rate of criminal conduct lower than that of US citizens. [2] These people deserv...
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In Defense of Mexican Immigrants

I have had it up to here with Americans’ outraged over the gall of Mexicans and other illegal immigrants entering our country; as if illegal immigrants truly had a choice. Take the case of Mexico, for example, the birthplace of the majority of illegal immigrants in this country. The minimum wage is $4.50 A DAY, which according to statistics is not enough money to buy sufficient food for one person to survive, let alone their children. At least a third of all Mexicans try to survive on wages within $2.00 per day of the minimum wage. Labor laws in Mexico are a joke and unpaid overtime, shoddy conditions, and uncompensated injuries are the norm. Any reasonable person, faced with the same circumstances as these Mexicans, would do anything to escape their situation, including flee to a neighboring country, with a minimum wage 14 times higher than their own, to be able to work with dignity and put bread on the table for their children. How can we have such little empathy for their plight? ...
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Dear Senator, This letter is a plea from a citizen of the United States who is deeply troubled by the actions taken by our president as he prepares for war against Iraq. I can no longer sit by and watch while he destroys world wide diplomatic ties and alliances, increases international anti-American sentiment and, as a result, increases the possibility of terrorist attacks within the United States and to Americans abroad. I cannot sit by and watch the government of the United States causes the loss of respect of the world community. I do not wish for America to be seen as an imperialistic rogue power acting outside of the bounds of international democracy. Is a war against Iraq worth the loss of the respect of America in the eyes of the international community? And if a war is "won", we risk attempting to rebuild a country in which anti-US sentiment has been cultivated for thirty years. In spite of all this common sense, it is clear that I, as a citiz...
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