I'm still standing.
I'm sure many of you thought that after the suicide ratings and the long time between updates that I had offed myself. No dice. I'm way too lazy to do something like that. I'm waiting on a nice brain tumor.
I am concerned that Lady Liberty has lost her recipe book. There once was a time when America was the "great melting pot." Immigrants would give up everything and often faced great danger in coming to our shores. And when they got here they found work, learned the language (or at least tried to) and further added to the rich tapestry of the American culture. They made sure that their children were educated the same as the children of those whose ancestors had emigrated from foreign shores generations ago.
Well folks, the pot isn't melting very well anymore. There are too many immigrants who expect the rest of the country to conform with the language and customs of the place they were fleeing. They demand that government communicate with them in their native tongue and scoff at the idea that they need to learn English. And unfortunately there are plenty of dopey multi-culturalist hippie yahoos who are only all too willing to comply. Immigrant school children being taught in dozens of languages and learning English only as second language? Using a hyphenated American title as a crutch instead of a description of heritage? It's time to lay down some ground rules. Learn English. It is the unofficial official language. Emphasize the American part of the hyphenated American. At least make an effort. I know that during the latter part of the 19th and the early part of the 20th centuries most immigrants congregated to certain parts of major cities with those of their kind. And I know that they endured a great deal of prejudice. This is still happening. But although I was not around, I get the impression that there wasn't the separatism back then that exists today. So come on, kids! Let's all get together and keep this country the best darn country in the whole wide world! What do you say? Are you with me? Yippee!
And another thing ...
Time for a position statement. I am not against immigration. As you may have figured out, I believe it is one of the things that helps make us us. We have a unique culture that consists a blend of just about every other culture on the planet. We have food and music and words from a multitude of countries, but not the same as in those places. They have been Americanized. Mixed with the existing to create a new thing. Cubans in Miami. Irish in Boston. Poles in Chicago. There is even a growing Mexican immigrant population here in Nashville. They are all Americans now. And we are better for their being here.
However, illegal immigration is, well, illegal. I realize that everybody in the world wants to live here and that we should let in as many as we can fit, but we can't. If you are living here illegally, you must leave. We need the guards at the Mexican border. We need the INS to look into cases of unlawful entry and to deport those who snuck here in a ship, airplane or car trunk. I disagree with those (usually conservatives) who think we should close our borders to immigration. But at the same time, I don't believe an unregulated influx of people is the best thing either. We can't have everybody over to the house to stay. I'm sorry.
And another thing ...