Today I am angry

If you are stopping by for a laugh, which I normally try to provide, you have stopped by on the wrong day. Unlike the jokes about making Dad into a tea pot or restaurants themed like coffins, this one is NOT designed to garner laughs. I wrote this somewhat in anger. I had to wait a couple days before writing this reply, a reply, by the way, that I hit "reply to all" on in the email I took it from. So first...here is the email that was sent to me:stop by on the other side for my response.
********************************************************************************

OFIR members and supporters:
The Federation for American Immigration Reform, (FAIR), is going to organize another, 'Hold their feet to the fire' rally and lobbying effort September 8 - 11 in Washington DC. OFIR has sent representatives to previous events.

You may recall that the Hold their feet to fire rally is an event in which talk show hosts from around the U.S. do their programs live. Victoria Taft and Lars Larson attended previous ones. There are usually about 8 talk show hosts who do their shows live at the meeting headquarters. If you attend you will have the opportunity to meet them personally. Lou Dobbs will be at this year’s rally.

This would be a wonderful opportunity for American citizens to go to Washington DC and lobby their U.S. Senators and Representative about the impact of illegal immigration. FAIR will organize the rallies and lobbying efforts. When I attended I had the opportunity to talk directly to many Congressmen including Representatives Duncan Hunter, Tom Tancredo and members of the Oregon delegation.

Lee Vasché, co-founder of the OFIR PAC, will represent OFIR at the Washington DC event this year.

We encourage OFIR members to attend. If you are interested please let us know and we will get the program information to you. You can e-mail OFIR at o4ir@excite.com or call the office at (503) 435-0141.

Jim Ludwick

Wonderful late news today!!!! – Notorious amnesty supporter and Open Borders fanatic, Rep. Chris Cannon (R-Utah) has been ousted from Congress! Jason Chaffetz routed the La Raza Republican by over twenty points in the Utah primary yesterday. Chaffetz was strongly supported in his campaign by Team America PAC for his Tancredo-like immigration positions. He was outspent by Cannon by $600,000 but still won!

*********************************************************************
And below is my reply; read all the way to the end because it does not end the way it starts.
*********************************************************************
This absolutely seems like something everyone should support. I mean, it can do nothing but show our care for our neighbors. It reminds me of Manny and Julie and the difference these policies have made in their lives. With their baby boy they were literally starving to death. Desperate, they did not know where to turn. But some family helped them out and they were able to move to where the economy was not so horrific that there were literally no jobs...not just not life wage jobs, there were no jobs plain and simple.

With help from their family they were able to put a roof over their heads...to be sure, it relied on the generosity of their family but at least they got a roof. And Manny found a job. It was several miles away and the only way he had to get to and from work was to ride his bike on dark roads but at least he had a job. Sure, it did not pay a lot...certainly nowhere near enough for he and Julie to have a place of their own with their kid but they have a place. So off he goes to work, literally risking his life should a car no see him and accidentally swerve onto the shoulder. At least they had food and a roof over their head.

We should be proud that our efforts allowed this success story. Except the fight is not over and neither is the story of Manny and Julie.

Because through our efforts his job situation has changed. You see, because of our constant efforts to show our love for our fellow man, Manny was unable to renew his papers. Julie's are still good for a while...but Manny's ran out. Yeah, he was a legal immigrant with a temporary visa.

But since his papers ran out he was fired from his job. He now must find a way to pay his way home which is a return to the poverty stricken state that put him in the place where they were starving to death. Julie and their boy can either stay here until her visa runs out while Manuel returns home to starve to death...or she can go back now and start starving to death early. What a great choice that we, the most loving people on earth, have directly and actively made possible. I wish to thank each and every one of us.

You see, our hysterics and hatred towards the illegal immigrants have made it where once they return to Mexico it will be 10 - 15 years before their case will be reviewed. We have made our country safe once more so some high school kid can rake in enough money to ensure herself a nicer prom and the hard working guy who tried to feed his family is back where he belongs.

After all, Manuel is just the kind of guy we don't want in this country. He works hard, studied to improve his English, took care of his family in extremely difficult circumstances and for a brief time it seemed he would be able to make a life.

But we stopped it. And if we keep working we can keep on stopping stuff like this with our over the top, blind hatred and unreasoning, borderline non-sensical fear.

Yeah, the tone here is pretty sharp, bitter and biting, largely because Manuel, Yuli and their kid are both friends and relations to me and my immediate family. And seeing the direct result of the idiotic policies we as a country are adopting, including but not limited to the billion dollar wall being built, are not the sort of attitudes and behaviors I have any desire to be associated with. Quite the opposite.

For the first time in a long time I feel moved to action. As a general rule I stay out of politics. But when they get into the realm of immorality, as this one seems to be doing, then it is time we the good people of this country make a stand.

So I encourage everyone to stand up and do what we can to ensure that the policies we work for are not the policies that lead to the destruction of lives to sate our hatred and make sure we can buy 2 televisions instead of one.

I for one cannot take the hatred any longer, though. Yes, the system is broken. The right way to fix it is not the way we are trying.

Drew

********************************************************************************
As a general rule I try not to be strident and angry. There are times when, frankly, it hits to close to home. If you were Manuel, what would you do? Would you legally pack your bags and head back to a hopeless situation? Or would you illegally stay in the country, do whatever you could to stay under the radar to care for your family? Would you start working "under the table" and take your chances? To me...pretty much a rhetorical question. I know what I would do.


There is a reason many of us...and in the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you here I am a registered Republican though I have never, not even once, voted the party ticket and very seldom indeed voted for any candidate from either major party...but there is a reason many of us from both parties favor some sort of amnesty.

Are there bad people that come across the border? Unquestionably yes. And yes, it drives me nuts when I see people flying the Mexican flag here, I have no interest in speaking French or Chinese when I go to order a smurfing Big Mac...but I also am not so spiteful and hateful that I want to sentence people to death to satisfy my own sense of seemingly righteous indignation.

I am very angry about this and not writing clearly at the moment so I am going to give it a rest. But expect a return to this issue in the near future.