The news of the defeat of the “Comprehensive Immigration Reform” bill is a victory for America, certainly those who comprehend that what this Nation has accomplished in 231 years, compared to any other nation on earth in history, is something worth hanging on to.

For those who either have purely financial gain to gather from opening the floodgates of foreigners, or those who have effectively, by the penumbra right to privacy, aborted themselves to the brink of irrelevance in American politics, they actually see the defeat as a defeat. They do not understand the concept of America.

The Democrats wanted this to pass so they could present themselves, for the next several generations as “the party who granted you access to the ‘American Dream.'” This, of course, to a largely under-educated labor class, would sound great, and draw their loyalty to that party’s candidates.

Ironic sidebar: For a party that regularly campaigns for “equality” for all, this bill would have legitimized a sub-class of manual laboring peoples, that we need to do what the American’s won’t do. Consider how much of the need for this bill was portrayed in that light, then understand that there has become a subconscious caste system development in our collective psyche by this line of “reasoning.” Would “they” ever be allowed access to the American Dream, or would they be kept in enclaves to perform agricultural and hospitality industry jobs? What if they got “uppity” like the slaves in the 1800s and thought they were actually granted upwards mobility by the passage of such a bill as proposed and defeated? Would we then have to remind them we only brought them here to cut grass, pick oranges and change the sheets at our hotels?

Pardon me, but for all who supported this bill, would actually have been a great leap backwards, where a more “compassionate” form of slavery would have developed, but in this case, the modern days slaves are risking their lives to get here, as opposed to being run down by the Arabs or competing tribesmen to be sold to the WASPs.

The lies rolling out of the mouths of our politicians, who have become allergic to public discourse, are too many for mee to count. One that caught my attention several times over the last few weeks: “We can’t just go up to groups of ‘them’ and ask for their Green Cards.” Excuse me? Federal law says you have to have authorization to be here. When you are gathered, in the open (NOT IN THE SHADOWS!), awaiting work, why can’t you show your card? If you have it, then you get a job and not further hassles. If you don’t, then you are in violation of the law (a concept in our culture, in most areas, has become allergic to) and you have to deal with the consequences.

Ironic sidebar: It seems the illegal aliens received even more comprehensive civil rights, even before this entire debate, than did American citizens. I’m sure drug dealers would have liked not to have been stopped for “probable cause” circumstances, in parallel to the case of “probable cause” of groups of illegal aliens standing in the open in full violation of many local, state and Federal laws. I’m not advocating drug dealing, I’m using the issue of law enforcement being allowed to exercise their responsibility to exercise their duty to investigate suspicious activity.

Another striking lie: “It’s not amnesty.” Yes, there was a provision of a path to citizenship included, analogous to a constriction in a hose designed to throttle a flow. Good start. Problem: If, using a gross example of fluid dynamics, I set a sewer pipe sized component next to the small garden hose in the same flow of rushing water, both leading to the same place in the final reckoning, just where do you think the water will flow? Yep, straight into pipe “Z Visa.” No fines, no penalties, and, in many cases, you’ll not only be refunded all the taxes you paid, you most likely will qualify for a tax credit, as well, so you will forgo holding the money each week, but come the following summer, you’ll have a larger pile of cash as a reward. Think of it like an interest bearing account, courtesy of the American taxpayer.

Ironic sidebar: The press and others seem to get semi-apoplectic when they discuss the cash flow out of the US and into China. “THE TRADE DEFICIT!” they shriek. So what did the “Z Visa” do? Simple: You get to stay here, don’t have to become a citizen, and keep doing what you are doing now: Work, spend as little as you have to in the American “system,” and send the bulk of the money out of the US. Rape, economic style. Thank you “Big Business” and Democrats. Once more, a dichotomy exists as we tell our fellow citizens to buy American. look for the union label, and decry the shifting of work to foreign shores, then we say “Hey, come on down, we’ll pay you and you can take it home to your county!”

Check this out from “The Dark Side of Illegal Immigration:”

[…]
An article in the San Francisco Chronicle stated that Mexicans living in the U.S. send between $6 and $8 billion back to their families every year, making them the third-biggest legitimate force in the Mexican economy, after oil and tourism. Additionally, US taxpayers pay for all the direct and indirect costs of “housing” the Mexican illegal aliens. In essence, it’s an unofficial form of foreign aide. Mexico isn’t about to control its borders, since Mexicans fleeing their country for work in the U.S. send plenty of money back to their own country.

While the $6-8 billion number is often quoted, a fairly recent story in The Brownsville Herald, Banks seek stake in billions sent home, notes that some estimates place the amount of dollars going south in 2006 will be $45 Billion, which was up from an estimated $30 Billion in 2004.

Regardless of the amount, all that money is leaving the US economy and not creating additional job opportunities here. Additionally, all that money represents jobs Americans used to have.
[…]

The net result of the above deficiencies are we would allow massive excusing of illegal acts, and absorb massive quantities of low paid, uneducated talent. At the same time, the bill would have reduced the number of well educated, high tech workers coming to the States. Many of those fully appreciate what the American Dream is and want to come, and on top of that, we need them here. Why? Because…

Ironic sidebar: Back in the early ’90s, the Airlie Council chartered a study, projecting the number of high tech job in the country and the number of high tech graduates projected. Guess what? One was climbing exponentially, and the other falling off a cliff. You guess which one is which. Add to that, India had established a national goal to become the best software engineers in the world and put the plan to work. Go figure why you see so many people of Indian heritage in top level positions in our IT and other technical related industries?

Enough of rehashing the past. My point today is the demonstrated voice of the American public, long thought to have developed laryngitis (something I’m sure the President, Senator Kennedy and McCain counted on), left the realm of the “Silent Majority” and spoke up. That is encouraging and actually, expected of this society. This voice can be put into play when issues of such significance arise, as it should be. Therein lies the opportunity: Using “The Voice” to let our elected representatives hear what we have to say, and ask their thoughtfully considered votes along those lines.

I’ve long been a person who looks at “situations,” and then devised a solution. Having reached that point, the long term strategy of reaching the “end game” begins. Tactically, much of the plan then is devised to come into play in phases, with the given that each step to the end is taken on the most direct path, while recognizing some temporary inefficiencies are required along the way. Those are to be kept to a minimum, but the key is to lay out the phased plan to get there, and ensure they are all interlocking pieces of the puzzle, and not a series of disjointed efforts that waste much. The elephant, as Dr. Deming taught, is to be eaten one bite at a time. The President and the Senate wanted to stuff the entire elephant in our mouths, while we slept.

Now that the text of the “Immigration Reform” bill is out to the general public, I submit the other half of “The Voice” is to not just say what we don’t like, but to now offer suggestions on how to take care of a significant National issue. That is our responsibility to stand up and be counted as not just complainers, but people concerned about moving forward intelligently.

I often considered, early in the run up to the current war, why President Clinton kept sending the FBI around to all the trouble the al-Qadea visited upon us, while President Bush was sending the military. The best answer to myself is one of their professional training: President Clinton was a lawyer by training and professional practice. President Bush was a business man. President Clinton see pretty much everything as crimes to be investigated, President Bush sees things outside or shores as military issues.

My point here is they are limited by their professional filters, as we all are, when working out plans of actions on any topic. I submit, however, when people of differing backgrounds get together, then far more coherent results are the outcome. The real bottom line: Congress is comprised of a vast majority of lawyers, with little other differentiation to bring other experience to the table. That’s where “we” come in.

Want to make a difference? Get a copy of the immigration bill, some strong coffee (or Red Bull) and go to it. When you see holes, omissions, etc, make a note and then consider how you would fix the noted issue. Draft up a letter to your Senators and representatives and let them know you have an idea and would like to help, attached for their consideration.

What an opportunity. We all have it. Why not exercise that part of “The Voice” now we have stabilized the situation?

Expanded opportunities lie in gathering groups of like minded problem solvers, in person or virtually, and blend an array of disciplines and backgrounds, then send a more detailed input into the system.

I used this in a post long ago about N.O.W., but it applies once more to us: (SU)³

And along the way, consider these words of Teddy Roosevelt, for they also, have a message for us today, in these times, in these circumstances.

Tracked back @: Yankee Sailor

D-Day Order – June 6, 1944
by Dwight D. Eisenhower

You will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.

Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped, and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely.

But this is the year 1944. Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41.

The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeat in open battle man to man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground.

Our home fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men.

The tide has turned.

The free men of the world are marching together to victory. I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty, and skill in battle.

We will accept nothing less than full victory.

Good luck, and let us all beseech the blessings of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.

More random thoughts:

Nancy Pelosi chides Hugo Chavez for shutting down RCTV, while speaks of implementing the “Fairness yeah, right! Doctrine” to force conservative (read opposition) voices off the airwaves.

John Edwards and Barak Obama want universal health care. Stick with me here: Won’t that make us live longer? Excuse me, but I think this flies in the face of the humanity caused “Global Warming” syndrome currently sweeping the nation. If we are making it worse, why do they want to make sure we stay around to pollute the atmosphere that the animals have to also breath from?

Speaking of that: How about those who decide not to have offspring, as they see just another “polluting unit” (“PU” for short) being created and….as we all know, it’s a bad thing….

So now the President hops on the “Global Warming” band wagon. Either he’s trying to upstage those who set up the Kyoto Treaty, or he’s maybe looking for cross-over Democratic votes? I’m confused.

John McCain says we need to let the illegal immigrants have their way, or they might riot in our streets, but we have to stand up tall against the Islamic terrorists. I’m even more confused now.

Not only do we have to do as John McCain implies, we need these workers here because we are lacking Americans to do the work. Yes, about 40M some, many of which would have been of age by now.

Europe had to let lots of low cost, immigrant labor in for the same reason (but they never knew years ago they were helping the environment by not having little Europeans) and look what’s happening now. It doesn’t take even a homegrown experiment to see what’s coming in a few decades.

We decide to help install an anti-missile DEFENSE in eastern Europe, Russia gets upset. I guess the possibility of no longer being able to nuke your neighbors to the west has got a burr under their saddle…

A sitting President can lie to a Grand Jury while under oath and just be dis-barred and a White House staffer can make statements while not under oath during an investigation that aren’t true and he goes to jail for 2.5 years.

Something I am not confused about is that I am “extra-curricular politics.”

Ah, we are living in interesting times.

The President says we need to help secure the Iraqi borders, so foreign fighters don’t come in….

The President, and the Congress (for the most part) says it’s too hard to secure our borders, so we should just accept those here…

Am I missing some thread of consistency here?

Either we take the easy way out in Iraq and commit no more resources to control the Iraqi borders, because, as the Democrats will say it’s not effective and too hard…or we put the effort in over there and OVER HERE!

Anyhow, I think there is a dynamic of both the Republican and Democratic parties being in a turf war over the prospect of new voters to fill their ranks. It’s like Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts fighting it out to control the market. It’s all about power.

Forget the sports analogy, we need some people brave enough to throw themselves on the political hand grenades, or man the Ma-Duece in the face of about 100 people “eying you with bad intent” so that the rest of us survive, even if it means your political life ends. Yes, I prefer the military service model, thank you Mr. Arkin.

Which ever party looks the “most magnanimous” believes they will get the voters to enter and swell their base. We “extra curricular politics” (speaking as one of “those”) aren’t the issue in their mind, but we just may be come the very next election…

Heads up from Flag Gazer via email:

Sgt. Rafael Peralta: Act of Honor
This Saturday, May 19, 2007, at 6:00/7:00 p.m., Act of Honor about the hero Sgt. Rafael Peralta.

The History Channel’s summary:

On November 15, 2004, Sgt. Rafael Peralta died while fighting to secure a key insurgent stronghold in Iraq. Peralta and fellow Marines were ambushed by guerillas who then lobbed a grenade at them. Already seriously wounded, Peralta shielded his companions by covering the explosive device with his body, saving their lives and sacrificing his own. Watch Peralta’s extraordinary journey from Tijuana, Mexico to San Diego to the streets of Iraq. Included are interviews with his widowed mother and three siblings in San Diego. I urge you to watch and learn about a true hero, a Marine, an American.

For more information see my posts which include many comments by
Sgt. Rafael Peralta’s family and friends:
Sgt. Rafael Peralta – New Photos
HERO: Sgt. Rafael Peralta
[This is a reprint of my most recent blog post: Sgt. Rafael Peralta:
Act of Honor
*This email is a one time ever mailing to all of my Gmail contacts. If you don’t know me, don’t worry, you will never receive another
message from me. I apologize for any inconvenience. Thank you.
Don Danz
http://www.DanzFamily.com

This is a repeated post, but a story worth reading and remembering on this day.

---

This is, by necessity, a long post. It is a story to honor those who have braved combat, and displayed great courage. Please read it through, and then tell others about it.Somewhere in a box, I have a picture. It is three elementary school children and a blonde German Shepard-Elkhound mix puppy standing next to a monument. The picture was taken in 1962 or 63, and it is my two sisters and I, and our dog, Scooter.All of that is important, and it’s not. What is not as important is how my life has been intertwined with the name cast on the brass plate, and what is is the bigger story, the story of how that name came to be placed on the monument.

As I sat down to gather the links, I re-read the Medal of Honor citation. It covered a period from April 29th through May 21st. One some web pages, the day of this man’s most significant action, is listed as May 5th, 1945, which, was a Saturday, by the way. Hang on to that fact, you’ll need it by the end of the post.

The monument was then, the day of the picture of my sisters and I, located near a sugar cane field on the island of Okinawa. It was there my father told us a story of an Army Medic by the name of Corporal Desmond T. Doss, who distinguished himself (that day) by climbing an escarpment, repeatedly, venturing out onto a machine gun fire swept battle field of open, relatively flat ground, to recover his fellow soldiers, and lower them down the escarpment to safety. A brave man indeed, but he was braver still, in the context of then, and even today than those key points describe.Desmond T. Doss is (he is still living) a 7th Day Adventist. This Christian denomination does not believe in the taking of life. Desmond Doss could have easily avoided service in WWII. Because of his upbringing and personal faithfulness, a request for CO status would have, most likely, been granted without question. Yet, Desmond T. Doss joined the Army, not to kill, but to save lives.

Note before the “jump:” Desmond Doss passed away 3/23/2006.

Read the rest of the post here in original form

James Hornfischer’s second work is a wonderful a read as his first, “Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors,” which I discussed in this post.

“Ship of Ghosts” tells the story of the history of the USS HOUSTON (CA-30), from her time as the Flagship of the Asiatic Fleet to her loss in combat action, which is a remarkable tale in itself, then proceeds to document the life of the survivors, captured by the Japanese, to become the slave labor, intermingled with Japanese engineers, natives, Australian, British, and Dutch POWs that built the Thai-Burma railroad. Once captured, the crew of the HOUSTON had their lives intertwined with the crew of the RMAS PERTH, which was in company with and fought alongside HOUSTON, suffering the same fate, and the “Lost Battalion,” an Army National Guard form Texas (2 Bn/131 Regiment of the 36th Div). It is a story that sheds the light of truth on combat actions not well told before, but possibly more importantly, the actual conditions and situations that existed in the building of the Japanese railroad, dispelling the myths from “The Bridge Over the River Kwai” and “King Rat.”There is heroism, courage, determination, persistence, and sheer guts displayed on almost every page. The range of personal accounts, from the most junior to the most senior involved in this history are remarkable. The writing is, as in his last book, engaging and draws you into the story.I began reading this as the crisis of the British sailors and Marines was occurring a few weeks ago, and found the stories of how POWs handled their captivity at opposite ends of the spectrum of military character.The stories of the naval battles, between the massive Japanese Fleet and it’s supporting Imperial Army and Naval air forces and a out-numbered set of surface vessels from several allied nations trying to do their best to hold the Japanese back with out the luxury of air support, dedicated port facilities of logistical support. Some insight into the tactics used by both sides are discussed, useful to historians of Naval Warfare.Within the book are many stories with in the story, or natives who assisted the Allied prisoners, the medical conditions and how they were handled in the deep jungle under extreme circumstances, the Japanese freighters, carrying POWs to mainland Japan being sunk by US submarines and stories of US POWs who worked in the shipyards and factories of the Japanese.An interesting historical note is when the HOUSTON was sunk, the citizens of the Houston, TX area collected money to buy a new USS HOUSTON. The money ($34M) was sent to the War Department and not only funded a new light cruiser, but also money to build an escort carrier, the USS SAN JACINTO (CVL-30). This was the CVL that President George H.W. Bush flew from when he was bombing Chi Chi Jima and was shot down.

Not only did the Texans open their wallets, but they had a recruiting drive and more than 3000 men stepped forward to join the armed services to replace the lost 1,168 crewmen of the HOUSTON.

As the book works it’s way to it’s conclusion, there is information of the War Tribunals for those in the Japanese chain of command.

Well worth the time to read this well researched work.

Additional Notes:

• A blog for the USS HOUSTON (CA-30) is here.
• Notes on a dive on the USS HOUSTON by the son of a survivor.

Tracked back @: Yankee Sailor, Third World County

From Lion in Oil blog, and interview with a college football player who decided to enlist in the Marines. A first person view with some real solid thinking revealed…

The “teaser:”

[…]
(2) As a college graduate, you had the option to attend Officer Candidate School (OCS) and become an officer in the Marines. Yet, you decided against that path. Why did you decide to enter the Corps as a enlistee, or as you put it a, “grunt?”

I looked into going to OCS, but the more I talked to people the more I was told that this war was being fought on the enlisted level. Corporals and Sergeants lead patrols over here, not Lieutenants and Captains. I wanted to lead, but I wanted to make sure that I was in a position to lead men where its needed most, in combat. I’ve been blessed/burdened with that responsibility.
[…]

Some would say they wanted to care for their political future while enrolled in Army ROTC, and some men, like Jake, look at the future and know it’s about doing it right.

Thanks, Jake, from afar for taking the high and hard road.

H/T: Little Green Footballs

Welcome, Lizards! If you aren’t too busy, and didn’t see it Friday, check out the Gathering of Eagles photo my friend took.

Well, first off…shouldn’t we be hollering “LOAD AND LOCK!”? Just a rhetorical question, but lookee what I found surfing about the net:

The picture is on the blog Calvey in Iraq, an Army National Guard Captain now “over there” who used to be an Oklahoma State Representative. Talk about someone who knows the political ropes!He left a comment on LCDR Smash’s (aka “Marches with Moonbats”) post about the anti-war demonstators in DC on 3/17/2007.I chased the link and found this worth a thousand words (of legislative printing) picture…

Tracked back @: Third World County, Dragon Lady’s World

A shipmate from USS FIRST SHIP was one of the many veterans standing tall on Saturday, 3/17/2007 in Washington, DC.

He sent this memento. The picture was taken early Saturday morning at the Lincoln Memorial:

(click on the picture for the larger, original photo)Lifted from “SITREP 01:”

The traitors couldn’t have numbered greater than a thousand or so while the vets surely had mustered three or four times that. In addition to the usual suspects, Cindy Sheehan, Jane Fonda, Cynthia McKinney, Maxine Waters, etc, there was a decidedly younger crowd, appearing in dress and demeanor as I recall the “flower-children” of the late 60’s. A few “brave” traitors ventured among us with their messages of peace and were met generally with disdain as indicated by the below clip from WJLA TVs (Wash DC) website.

and…from “SITREP 02:”

The “Eagles” arrived at 0600 and began milling about smartly. I snapped this photo with my cell phone as they unfurled one of the banners prior to any “traitor” arrivals. This was on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Fox news was the only network that accurately depicted our force strength at 3 to 4 times that of the moonbats.

Another bit of history from a Vet…

Tracked back @: Stop the ACLU, Stuck on Stupid, Big Dog’s Weblog, Is It Just Me?, stikNstein, Right Wing Nation, Third World County