Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Trouble on the Border

I don't know how many people read this blog.
Last estimates were somewhere in upwards of single digits.
Sometime in the next quarter some analysts predict breaking into double digits.
But I really would like some feedback on this one.
I'm in a political funk.
I'm disgusted with liberals, predictably.
I'm disgusted with conservatives.
And I'm uncomfortable siding with John McCain against John Cornyn.
There's an issue that has come down out of nowhere, like a handichopper on an unsuspecting potato.
Illegal immigration has been a problem for decades.
It has been one of those things we live with and joke about, like Congress.
I suppose it had gotten to the point where I assumed it was one of those things that would never be addressed, and if it were, it would be in some droning congressional session in the middle of August, with the pages and the C-Span camera men knocking back cappuccinos and punching each other to stay awake.
What becomes a hot push-button issue for a public whose list of concerns is topped by American Idol and NASCAR, and becomes outraged only when their direct deposit paycheck doesn't clear the bank until noon on Friday?
Who'da thunk it?
This is the first thing that bothers me.
As disenfranchised as I am with my countrymen, I'm bound to cast a jaundiced eye on any issue that roils such widespread concern. Such as it would be for one sober to live in a community of drunks. If there's a riot, chances are there's been a shortage or prohibition. Society in general is too stupefied to be upset over anything legitimate.
So what am I left with?
Across the board, there is one issue that unites us all in one common purpose: money.
If there's an uprising, as they say, follow the money.
Illegals are seen as being a drain on the old pocketbook.
So we've decided to build a what?
The first time I heard somebody raise the idea of a fence, I thought it was good.
As a joke, not an idea.
Fences work good for cattle and chickens.
People, however, bent on the American dream, will tend to be repelled by it only if it is forty feet high with high voltage running on top and underneath and manned by guards every 100 yards armed with assault rifles.
Such as the Berlin Wall.
And if you wish to run away screaming with hysterical conjecture at the comparison, don't let me stop you.
Let me say that I think the border should be beefed up, and the government should come down hard on employers who hire illegals.
I do believe illegal immigration is a problem.
I just find the idea of a fence ridiculous.
So we have a bill in the Senate with the express purpose of fixing the problem of illegal immigration.
Early on, President Bush advocated a guest-worker program; the best idea yet.
Conservative pundits howled amnesty, and it went the way of the president's approval numbers.
So now, we have another Bush-backed idea.
We have a proposed path to citizenship for an estimated 12 million illegals.
If you want legal status, which is an excellent deterrent to deportation, you own up.
You pay a 6,500 dollar fine, prove yourself proficient in English, pass a criminal background check, pay all back taxes, prove full-time employment, and go back to the Mother land to await a visa, for a minimum of thirteen years.
And conservative pundits howled amnesty again.
I'm seeing two Latinos, Miguel and Gorge, looking at each other with raised eyebrows and low whistles, "With friends like this, amigo, who needs amnesty?"
I hesitate to begin a list of the president's detractors on this because I should get to bed sometime tonight, but . . .
Sean Hannity takes the concept of beating a dead horse to new proportions, (Think of whacking a dried up jaw bone down the road with a stick) and then references all the flak he's taking over all the flak he's giving the president.
Laura Ingraham whines that all this time conservatives have begged the president to take the gloves off, and now he's taken them off and punched conservatives in the nose.
Peggy Noonan accuses the President of sundering the conservative coalition, serving notice on me that there was such a thing.
Michael Savage ravages the bill because the name Bush is attached to it and because if Michael Savage wasn't savage, he'd just be another nutritional expert with a political talk show.
Rush Limbaugh has opposed the president on this, but has studiously avoided joining the Bush bash.
President Bush doesn't do things for political expediency.
I do have a charming gift for understatement, don't I?
More later.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

A masterpiece! Everyone should read it.

Anonymous said...

You have a powerful way of getting your point across. I agree that the idea of a fence is totally ridiculous...What an incredible waste of our tax dollars! You'd think with the way our technology is supposedly exploding, the great minds could put their pea-brains together and actually come up with a working idea.
Anyway, great essay!

Unknown said...

Good points.

For purposes of national security, we must know, to the greatest extent possible, who and what is coming across our borders. Currently, coming through a border in which drug cartels cart/carry/truck/fly/tunnel billions of dollars worth of narcotics each year can't be too difficult for a few strategically placed Islamic extremists with suitcase nukes bound for Dallas and LA. Effective border protection will take a multifaceted approach, bringing physical, electronic, and human resources to bear on this challenge. But it's only one part of the overall solution.

Anonymous said...

Somebody should be paying you big bucks for your masterfully-crafted opinions! You've got me on your side on the guest-worker option.

Unknown said...

Way to go, Nathan. Your comments are great. Run for President and you got my vote. You are a master with words. Do you read anything by Josh McDowell?

Anonymous said...

Teresa, 'zat you?
Where might you be now?
Washington?
I lost track.

Unknown said...

We are in California now. In the Santa Cruz area. LOTS of border problem here. Hard to find a white person working or shopping anywhere sometimes.....lol. We are being invaded !!!! Whaz up wit yu? E-mail me sometime. "Webegone@gmail.com". Dave is impressed that you read C.S. Lewis. It is one of his favorite authors. You two would get along fine in a great political debate.