The General has posted another stellar review of a children's book that advocates eradicating evil dandelions (read: illegal immigrants) from the beautiful hothouse flowers that need protection in a greenhouse (read: everyone else in America, but especially Republican voters, who apparently fear for their safety and…um…their safety, when evil "weeds" are lurking about their gated greenhouse neighborhoods, unless of course those "weeds" are doing the gardening or tidying up the playroom.).
In case you are wondering where such a spiff children's book idea could have originated, look no further than the open and welcoming pages of the Chicago Sun-Times which, today, accuses the Bush Administration of collaboration with the Nancy Pelosi's of the world in potentially reaching some agreement on immigration reform that stops short of…erm…eradicating all the unwanted "weeds" in our society.
But with the shift of power in Congress, the metaphorical wall blocking immigration reform only a short time ago is falling down, brick by brick. President Bush, who was unable to gain enough support from his party for his guest worker program, now can look forward to seeing one of his pet projects pushed through. New House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and new Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are on board to support a legislative package that will provide a path to legality and citizenship for illegal immigrants while tightening border security — a bill similar to the Kennedy-McCain compromise….
That Americans may have to wait many months before immigration legislation comes to a vote is surprising, considering how close Congress came earlier in the year to reaching an agreement — and considering the heated emotions that have made illegal immigration such a hot-button issue. Chicago was one of many cities where immigrants and their allies held massive public demonstrations to demand reforms. Legal status isn't something that should be doled out without being earned, but studies, including one by the Chicago Council on Global Relations, show our economic growth is tied to our ability to integrate the rapidly rising number of Mexicans in our midst. It's a timely concern, in practical as well as humanitarian terms.
Oh no…we have a "rapidly rising number of Mexicans in our midst." Quick, run for the border…oh…wait.
I suppose the only welcome quivers full of seeds in our midst are the Republican-leaning potential voter types that, presumably, are not the "Mexicans in our midst." (And yes, that particular phrasing was unfortunate on their part, wasn't it?)
Needless to say, this book is not on the Smith family Christmas present list this year, but you probably knew that, didn't you?
UPDATE: MSNBC reporting on a new Zogby/Hispanic PR wire poll putting support for the GOP among hispanics at 23% (trending downward) and for the Dems at 56% (trending upward) after all of this “demonizing the Mexicans” idiocy. How’s that working for you, Karl? (Will link this up if I can find more specifics online somewhere.)
Related posts:
- Shadegg (R) To Vote Present On Stupak Amendment
- GRITtv Live: Is Immigration Reform Dead?
- Joe Wilson: Both Lying and Stupid; Immigrants Buying Insurance Makes Sense
- RNC Ad Compares Pelosi to Pussy Galore — Time For Women to Exit the GOP?
- Minuteman Killer Co-Hosted Anti-Immigration Event in 2007 Featuring Tom Tancredo, Duncan Hunter and Fred Thompson
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FITZ!
Morning!
Fitz me agin
The striking thing is that such a book would be released just in time for the season of “peace on earth, good will toward men”
sorry, but there is an illegal employer problem in America, and because of it labor resources are undervalued.
there is no illegal immigrant problem though, there is no illegal worker problem, it’s an illegal employer problem
once we start enforcing the laws that prevent corporations from using undocumented laborers, put them in jail and give them substantial fines, the “immigrant problem” disappears
the last thing we need to do is help undervalue the middle class working resource and I am NOT on board with an amnesty for anyone that happens to have gotten some corporations to sponsor their stay here at the expense of decent salaries for the resource known as labor
LHP at 4 — yes, that struck me as well. SIGH Because, you know, Jesus spent so much time culling out his followers to only the purest of the people. *cough*
The Gas We Pass
perris at 5 — well, it’s not quite that simple but, yes, employers who are flaunting the laws exacerbate the problem tremedously and so long as it is profitable for people to come across the border illegally — and for people who are paid to bring them to do so — and about a bazillion other reasons that are all tied in together…well, we’re going to have a problem. But demonizing the folks who immigrate — illegally or not — by calling them weeds that need to be eradicated? I don’t even know where to start with that sort of base idiocy.
perris @ 5
I don’t believe in amnesty, it punishes those who play by the rules. Perris is rught, go after those who emply illegally and the problem disappears, virtually overnight. That being said we have to constantly re-evaluate immagration quptas to meet labor demands.
…if you don’t build it, they won’t come
“”Mexicans in our midst.” (And yes, that particular phrasing was unfortunate on their part, wasn’t it?) “
Wow.
Christy Hardin Smith @ 8
Recently I was contatced by a group of not-for-profits that is forming a task force related to eradicating human trafficing (they wanted some help with intros to law enforcement).
When thinking about the sales pitch I wanted to make to various prosecutors/local FBI etc. to get them to throw some resources at this (we had a terrible ragedy in NY Harbor a while back a cargo ship, I think it was called the Golden Venture, ran aground. People were being shipped from China in containers like cargo. Shades of Amistaad.)it occured to me that if you have a network operating that can smuggle workers into our borders, they can also smuggle terrorists, drugs, weapons, dirty bombs, you name it.
Traditionally, the US has been very lax about the organized smuggling of human beings. It has always perplexed me. As a nation, we have expened vast resources to control the smuggling of amounts of drugs small enough to be hidden in little condom packets in the digestive tract of a “mule”, but very little in depth investigation of networks that can move large 2 legged mammals that need air, water and food during transport.
Humanitarian goals aside, you would think they would go after the networks capable of moving more cumbersome cargo because such networks would be able to move smaller inannamte cargo with ease.
But when has logic ever dictaed enforcement policy in this country?
And likewise, Kim Jong’s Xmas list will be impacted by these maneuvers:
http://english.aljazeera.net/N…..7FE281.htm
My favorite part is the caption under the picture. This is Aljazeera, after all. The very thought that those folks don’t have a sense of humor is brought into question.
Author Isabel Allende said this about America:
“We love immigration, but we hate immigrants.”
One of the tings I always admired about Ed Koch when he was Mayor of NYC, was a series of Executive Orders that he issues which provided for 3 very important things:
1) that parents could enroll their children is school without fear of being reported to INS
2)that people could seek medical care w/o fear of being reported to INS
3) that people could report a crime and have it prosecuted w/o fear of being reported to INS
he recieved a lot of criticism for it, but I always admired him for it and never missed an opportunity to compliment it. It was humane to the immigrant and protected society from ignorance, the spread of disease and the spread of crime.
It was an example of flawless logic. Something you almost never see in government.
Too much children’s literature is moralistic fingerwagging. All the best stuff is subversive – the Cat in the Hat, Tom Sawyer, etc.
Maybe that’s what scares folks like the dandelion eradicator. Can’t have those kids learning to think and act for themselves.
johnSwifty @ 13
Thanks for the link, my favorite part is the opening paragraph:
“Kim Jong-il is to have his access to iPods and other desirable gadgets cut off as part of US efforts to target sanctions directly at the North Korean leader and his power base.“
Make sure we neutralize the weapons of mass music storage! I had to check the link again to make sure this wasn’t the Onion.
A quote from John Swifty’s link :
This is hilarious! Our big play to stop nuclear non proliferation is to take away his I Pod? What next?punish him with no dessert? maybe send him to his room for a time out?
The man is the totalitarian leader of a powerful country? This is going to erode his power base? ROTF LMAO
OK Off to work. gotta get ready for depositions today.
Have a good one, pups!
perris, there’s more than one problem.
The first is the illegal employer problem as you mentioned; we aren’t addressing the demand side of the equation, only the supply side.
But we’re also ignoring the root cause — that’s an American problem with nearly every challenge we face. We tend to apply patches to problems, and we tend to allow patches supplied by people who have a vested financial interest in the patch, rather than seeking the root cause and addressing it directly. We also end up with even worse problems because we’ve not thought ahead far enough to see any unintended consequences that come from applying ineffective and corrupted patches.
So after all the weak and failed patches, maybe we can ask the real question underlying the immigration problem (legal or otherwise):
Why do people leave their home country?
That is the fundamental problem we’ve ignored; really quite stupid to do so, since this is a global question, and we’d probably get assistance answering it from global allies. It needs to be answered whether the result is illegal or legal immigration, since either have incumbent challenges.
Here’s another question we’ve ignored:
Why do people become terrorists?
Bet you the answer to this question is not too dissimilar from the answer to the previous question. But you’ll note that instead of asking this question and finding a solution to it, we Americans shot off across the ocean and began to rain down a hail of weapons, the cost of which probably exceeded the real solution by magnitudes of order.
Maybe if we answered the first question effectively, applied solid solutions, the second question would also take care of itself or be considerably smaller in impact.
Oh, the ending is also good.
“”It can’t hurt, but whether it works, we don’t know.’”
Umm, really? We don’t know? Please don’t include “me” in your “we”. I’m pretty confident it doesn’t work. Just call it what it is, a symbolic gesture.
Rayne at 20:
You know, I’ve wondered for years why American policy makers haven’t asked these questions in such basic terms. Who will we find who asks these questions and then formulates policy based on them?
Yeah, right. The Republicans worked very hard to demonize immigrants as a complement to abortion and gays. It failed and they lost. It should come as a “surprise” to no one that the Democrats aren’t going to immediately pass a plan that Republicans were desperately trying to cobble together to satisfy both the xenophobes and the cheap-labor business owners for the election. It’s a very good thing that the Democrats are going to take a few months to try to put together a plan that does the job right. One of the things Americans voted against, I like to think, was the blatantly partisan practice of ignoring a problem for months or years, and then declaring it so urgent that lawmakers must vote on it without understanding it.
If forced to chose between “Mexicans in our midst” and “gorillas in the mist” I’d have to go with the former, being one.
Mexicans are rather like the Irish. You either love them or you hate them. But they’re here to stay. Tough.
looseheadprop @ 18
Bring out . . . The Comfy Chair!
Rayne @ 20:
You nailed it. I think the reason these questions aren’t asked is because it would force us to have to look very hard at what is done to other countries via big bidness interests,”economic hit men”,the military/industrial complex,not to mention our meddling in other governments,stirring up trouble,starting infighting. America as a whole seems to think we never do anything wrong,we’re the good guys. If those questions get asked and answered,it shatters all those myths we’ve become very comfortable with. It would also mean we’d have to give up things and make sacrifices if the way we do things actually changed.
sofistic — yeah, I don’t know why, either. It’s not like this is a novel concept.
It’s like treating an illness; all the cold medicine in the world only treats symptoms, not the virus itself. But we’re willing to spend more than half a billion in this country alone every single year on OTC cold medicines, not to mention other monies spent on alternative treatments (everything from chicken soup to goldenseal root).
oh Christy,
can never see “quiver full of seeds”
without this bit of WT goodness.
http://derenegade.blogspot.com…..sense.html
and this from Attaturk is worth of citation
http://img428.imageshack.us/im…..ars5oj.jpg
Rayne @ 20
Exactly. When Europe opened up to the East, they did a lot of economic development so that they wouldn’t be flooded with cheap labor. Here, our government declares that’s “their problem.” Yes, some of that is because elements of our government are beholden to people who want cheap labor, but it’s also because foreign aid has been demonized in the same way that welfare has, by a narrowminded view that only considers money going to the “undeserving” and not the effects.
looseheadprop @ 18
Whew, good thing there’s no smuggling in Asia.
Redshift — yes, agreed, EU countries have had different approaches to the immigration issue, but they still have a very similar challenge. France, for instance, has ongoing conflicts including street violence due to the acculturation issue of Middle Eastern emigres. Germany, UK, even Sweden have highly similar conflicts and budgetary struggles about immigration, legal and illegal; the volume of people moving is challenging their systems. They are all faced with asking the same question and finding the root cause.
what a ridiculous metaphor to use – kids like dandelions, because they’re pretty, but what they really love is the “blowers” or “puffers” they turn into and provide hours of fun blowing the seeds all over they’re friends.
Oh I forgot, wingnuts never had fun as kids, which is a good part of why they’re so mentally constipated and nasty.
.
MSNBC reporting on a new Zogby/Hispanic PR wire poll putting support for the GOP among hispanics at 23% and for the Dems at 56% after all of this “demonizing the Mexicans” idiocy. How’s that working for you, Karl?
There is a squirrel on the birdfeeder at the moment, and our cat is NOT happy about being stuck in the house. *g* (As if the squirrel wouldn’t kick her ass and then some if I let her out…lol)
Christy Hardin Smith @ 33
Ingrates! After all, we’ve got ‘Abu’ Gonzales as the AG. Think those furriners would be more appreciative.
Meant to complete my thought at 31 and hit Submit prematurely.
It seems to me if “Old Europe” has had the same problems that we do, the G8 would be talking about this, or it would come up at Davos, and folks would actually talk about the root causes to untempered immigration, legal or otherwise.
Christy 33 — Pew Center also released this week a report with highly similar data, showing overwhelming support in the Latino vote for Dems. As a friend pointed out from the Pew report:
Hmm. Must be that new math with which Karl was so pleased. Did he switch parties and not tell us?
Christy Hardin Smith @ 34
My cat looks at me very indignantlly when the pigeons sit on the fire escape outside the window. He whines and cries. He’s never been outside and has trouble killing moths, so I am not sure if he wants a shot st them, or he wants me to shoo them away so as to not insult his pride.
aaahh Rayne, was just waiting for that Pew Hispanic PDF to load – thanks
have been trying to find info on effectiveness of various voter registration campaigns – eg, how many votes did the Diocese of L.A. actually turn out, etc.
UptownNYChick at 37 — well, I am fairly certain that our kitty, Rascal, wants a shot at the squirrel. And I am positive that it would not go well, as she, too, is an inside kitty and can’t even really hold her own with our pampered little dachshund, who is a huge pushover. But I try to help her salvage her kitty pride by thanking her for not accosting my birdies and/or going easy on the dog. I figure it is the least that I can do… *g*
http://www.youtube.com/profile…..eeprogress
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I find it’s a fascinating juxtaposition. Latinos are on their way to becoming the majority in this country and they are being demonized by the right. It’s a desperate attempt to hold onto their view of what America is about. Them.
There needs to be accountabilty across the board on all issues that we face. It’s a complex issue with many levels. A fence and demonizing is not a solution. I
OT – CNN – CIA’s secret prisons in Europe were no secret to at least 10 European governments
Rayne @ 30
No question they have similar challenges, and they haven’t dealt well with non-European immigrants (making it particularly ironic or stupid that conservatives point to their problems as an argument to make our immigration/assimilation environment more like theirs.)
Incidentally, I don’t know if you read the study out from the French government a couple of months ago that actually debunked the widespread storyline that the street violence was caused by the Middle Eastern immigrant community. Apparently it was actually a general riot by the underclass with few hopes, not any particular ethnic group, and if anything, the Muslim community was doing more to calm it than fuel it.
Redshift @ 43
Yes, I thought at the time given there were 300 cities with riots, that included a lot of places that had zero Muslim residents. And good police departments looking for strangers.
This is a tad off-topic, tho it’s on the subject of MSNBC. In the last thread I touted Amy Robach, and within moments had reason to question that. But the more I thought about it, perhaps this could be a teaching moment for the MSM, especially MSNBC. So I sent the following to their viewerservices@msnbc.com
Sent in the hope that the MSM will set aside their ol’ spinnin’, stenographic ways…stop pushing the RNC wordsmithing…and live up to their First Amendment responsibilities. And that we’ll see more of the positive that Robach can be.
~ Sandy
OT CNN – US may pull out of Anbar Province
perris @
5
I agree with this, except the premise that illegals are being employed by corporations. The vast majority of illegals I see employed (I live in LA) are not employed by easily auditable entities. The vast majority of them are employed by either construction crews, which have so many contractors and subcontractors that the head company doesn’t know what the subcontractors are doing, and the rich as nannies and gardeners.
Construction crews are easy to find– just go to a construction site and there they are. I’m told by my friends who work in this business that 9 times out of 10, a construction site is manned mostly by illegals, with one journeyman-level person (mason, electrician, etc) guiding these guys as extra pairs of hands. The contractors like it because they’re cheap and only have to pay one skilled laborer, the illegals like it because they’re paid, and the ones who really end up suffering are the home buyers, because the contractor skimped on the skill. Turns out, when buying a condo in LA, you get to see the minutes of the HOA meetings (and this might be true for everywhere else as well), because suing the contractor over shoddy building isn’t that uncommon. Every so often, INS makes a sweep of the regular day laborer hangouts, but the laborers themselves are often tipped off ahead of time (hell, even I know ahead of time, and I’m only tangentially connected to this world), so enforcement is weak at best.
As for nannies and gardeners, well, these are individuals employed by individuals. That’s extremely hard to track. My wife wanted to hire an illegal nanny, and I told her I wasn’t hiring anyone I couldn’t buy health insurance for. At the point that I’m hiring someone, I’m an employer, have to pay social security, etc– and at that point, having a nanny becomes a non-starter for all but the richest of families. She herself was a nanny in college, working for $7/hour for 50 hours a week, which she considered a good job, but I could see as she described her working conditions, she was starting to realize how exploited she’d been. This is an impossible situation to fix on the face of it; so long as two incomes are needed just to maintain an income to own a condo the size of most Americans’ living rooms, the need for cheap child care will be high.
As for Rayne @ 20’s comment, I think the answer to her question, Why do people leave their home countries, the answer is pretty straightforward. They leave because they can have a better life, with more money and a more stable society. That we have a society that makes it impossible to care for our own children and one that disdains skilled labor is our own damn fault, but it makes a niche that the illegals can come in and exploit. A guest worker program is just a patch, as has already been stated, and not a cure. The cure is more progressive reform to allow for a single earner to support a family, and to help our neighbors cleanse the corruption in their country so they can also have a good life there.
maybe because . . .
http://stevegilliard.blogspot……dness.html
Yet another salvo from the xenophobes.
I have news for them,
get used to eating burritos, suckers.
This problem is not going away.
This is just the latest in a long history of immigration in this country.
The Irish.
The Chinese.
Just two examples of a wave of certain ethnicities immigrating into this country and being demonized.
Not only demonized but exploited as cheap labor.
I personally do not see a “fix” to this problem.The worlds population has exploded with fewer and fewer resources.People have to live, and they are naturally going to try and get to the best environment to do that.
Redshift — yes, I understood that part of the problem with the rioting in France was the underclass and related to employment levels, but that’s the parallel to the problem here in the U.S. It is the manipulation by the Repug racist elites of the white underclass that is generating the growing hate buzz in this country.
Think about the source of the book about which Christy’s written, and the group that will actually purchase it.
And think about how likely legal immigration of Middle Eastern peoples to France is being used to foment discontent; to the white underclass in this country, does it matter any longer whether an immigrant is legal or not, or whether the employer of the same has acted legally or not?
That’s why the root question is: Why do people leave their home country? It doesn’t seem to matter whether immigrants are legal or otherwise, conflict can be brewed up against them as the proverbial “other”. We are still talking about racism, whether here in the U.S. or in France, with racism deliberately used as a political tool here in the U.S.
cbl @ 48
not crushing anything
Where are all the displaced refugees from our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and Lebanon ending up?
They are our responsibility too. But they are ending up in Syria, Iran and Pakistan if they are lucky placing an enormous burden on those countries and Jordan has now started turning people away.
Redshift @ 90. Thanks for providing that information. Unfortunately, much of Europe (esp. Scandinavia) has become very intolerant and racist toward their immigrants. Sad to see these previously open countries become this way, but perhaps it is, after all, the very real and ugly side of human nature…
good gawd twolf – hearts and minds indeed
Breaking MSNBC…
Frist not running for prez
this seems to me like a very speculative prediction. it presumes so many things that I don’t think can happen.
one. they will be impeaching the executive, and the idea that the idiot is going to agree to anything is most presumptive in my humble opinion. He is a child that does not have any experience working with another human being. he is a drug addled simpleton that doesn’t understand the nuances of polite conversation, let’s not assume he will change until we see even one instance of rational behavior. He has never exhibited rational behavior in the past, so assuming he will is not logical, in my opinion.
two; the idea that congress would act on immigration in any serious way seems quite remote. they don’t care about anything that doesn’t get them votes, and they are so shallow, they will wait to see if someone else takes the lead for them. I think they will put it on the back burner for ever.
to assume that congress people are not generally corrupt is a mistake. their jobs are based on corruption, not on service for the people of their districts. they start campaigning for more donors the day after they are elected until the day the people vote, and it is a never ending cycle. their only concern is for themselves.
for a small example; no one, none, nill, null, nada; stood up and filibustered any action brought by the executive that they disapproved of. Instead of standing up for their convictions and basic decency, they declined to act at all. This makes me believe that not one of them has the interest of anyone but themselves at heart.
the idea that this will change seems remote. we have seen six years of perversion. we have seen 6 years of inaction when anyone with guts and character could have acted. Did they? no.
we are relying on people that are probably all sociopaths. let’s face it. our government is totally broken and corrupt. At some point we must face facts and figure out if you continue to try to fix something, or create something that works. our representatives have no interest in the latter, for it is against their interests.
optimism is a wonderful thing, but it is not based in reality at this time.
Christy and UptownNYChick,
My two indoors-only kitties watch the birds and periodically chirrup/meow themselves. As they’re the type to fall off the table while napping, and then give me a look that says, “I meant to do that”, I would never trust them outside.
Cozumel @ 53
Darn, that would have made for some great comedy.
mmr — I don’t think illegals come here to “exploit” opportunities. I think they come here out of desperation, to feed parents and children they leave behind. I can’t imagine for a second the kind of desperation that would drive me to leave my children for years, maybe decades, in order to support them, knowing I may never be able to make it back to see them because U.S. laws would prevent my return.
Note that we aren’t talking about illegal Canadians here. We are talking about Latino workers for the most part, along with Asians and Europeans from Russia and Slavic countries. What is fundamentally different about Canada compared to these other countries, that Canadians don’t seek illegal employment here? Why would anyone endure the dangers of being stowed like chattel in an ocean container to make it here?
Exploitation of Americans?
Sheesh. I think I need to step away from the computer for a bit.
Sharon @ 55
I miss my kitty. He stays in the country with my grandmother when I travel. The last time (Aug.) she got sick, so he’s staying with her to do rehab work. It’s amazing what a small animal can do to help people.
He will come home after Christmas, Grandma is healthy and heading to Florida.
Couple of statistics from the Bureau of Census “Statistical Abstract of the US.”
Immigration rates:
1907 – 14.8 per thousand
2001 – 5.7 per thousand
Also a question:
Why don’t we just have a work visa for Mexicans like everybody else? I mean, I know we do have various classifications, but why is illigal immigration an issue at all?
A speculation:
Suppose there were well paying jobs in Mexico. Would they still wish to go to the US? If so, why?
And here I thought the topic was going to be dandelions and global warming. A much more serious topic and a real possiblity with the dandelions taking over the world.
mmr @ 47
I’m doing to throw in my “ditto” on this one. I’ve never had a job that didn’t require proof of citizenship, and I suspect that most big corporations run the same way. They probably subcontract out a lot of the shit-work to the lowest bidder, and that’s the one that uses day laborers.
twolf1 @ 46
Can we say we lost now? Or will bubbleboy hearken back to the fight for Anbar province this way?
I need to clarify my post;
I do not in any sense demonetize any immigrants of any ethnicity…certainly not Latino, I am Latino
I do not demonetize anyone that is trying to improve the lives of themselves and their families
I also recognize it’s not only corporations that employ undocumented labor
I don’t care who it is that’s employing undocumented labor, and what ethnicity that labor is, those people need to be fined if not a corporation, and fined and jailed of they are corporations
I am also not against a program that gives laborers citiszenship.
that program would NECESSARILY include collective bargaining for their labor
they are NOT allowed to undervalue our labor product.
now, if we can come up with a program that provides citizenship for the laborers that have been contributing to our community, but gives them a collective bargaining forum so they don’t undervalue our labor resource, that I think everyone who is not a bigot will be on board
OT: I’m liking Webb more and more…
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15941127/
angie @ 62
It’s not going to happen. At least not yet. There’s just no way for Bush to NOT be asked about the “cut and run” strategy for Anbar.
angie @ 62
Is that cut-n-run or pull-n-pray?
sofistic 59 — and what if foreign workers were to pay state and federal taxes (since they rely upon U.S. infrastructure while here), but be allowed ultimately to freely return to their home country?
Amazes me that the same people who complain about immigration aren’t any too happy with our current debt burden (Pat Buchanan — hello?), and yet don’t see a solution under their noses.
Jesus B. Ochoa @ 24
No comparison in the culinary arts.
(Other than a tendency to overcook meat)
My being one and married to the other.
twolf1 @ 56
He’s standing outside hoping for a draft.
CNN now reporting the Frist not running story. Cats everywhere make huge sighs of relief.
twolf1 @ 69
I don’t know about that – if I were a cat, I’d be a bit nervous. If Frist is going to have all that extra time on his hands, he’s got to do something to keep himself occupied . . .
twolf1 @ 69
must post whenever cats are mentioned, so sorry, it’s like a drug to me;
not mine;
Cat’s DiarY
DAY 752 – My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of escape, and the mild satisfaction I get from ruining the occasional piece of furniture…Tomorrow I may eat another houseplant.
DAY 761 – Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they were walking almost succeeded, must try this at the top of the stairs. In an attempt to disgust and repulse these vile oppressors,I once again induced myself to vomit on their favorite chair…must try this On their bed.
DAY 765 – Decapitated a mouse and brought them the headless body in attempt to make them aware of what I am capable of, and to try to strike fear into their hearts. They only cooed and condescended about what a good little cat I was… Not working according to plan.
DAY 768 – I am finally aware of how sadistic they are. For no good reason I was chosen for the water torture. This time however it included a burning foamy chemical called “shampoo.” What sick minds could invent such a liquid. My only consolation is the piece of thumb still LODGED between my teeth.
DAY 771 – There was some sort of gathering of their ccomplices. I was placed in solitary throughout the event, however, I could hear the noise and smell the foul odor of the glass tubes they call “beer..” More importantly I overheard that my confinement was due to MY power of “allergies.” Must learn what this is and how to use it to my advantage.
DAY 774 – I am convinced the other captives are flunkies and maybe snitches. The dog is routinely released and seems more than happy to return. He is obviously a half-wit. The bird on the other hand has got to be an informant, and he speaks with them regularly. I am certain he reports my acctivities. Due to his current placement in the metal room his safety is assured. But I can wait, it is only a matter of time…
rat bastahd @
64
I was working with my son earlier this morning when I read about the Bush-Webb conversation. I don’t want W anywhere near my son, either!
CNN – Colin Powell says Iraq is a civil war and that ChimpCo should call it such so it can deal with the realities on the ground
“the situation meets the standard of a civil war”
perris 63 — there is a method for citizenship as well as getting papers for legally working in this country, but it’s badly broken.
I know I read an article in the last year published in a newspaper from Colorado about the immigration process. It’s taking as long as seven years to process people.
If I’m an impoverished Mexican citizen, how do I feed my kids and my parents for seven damned years while I wait for legal status?
twolf1 @ 73
if I may, I must quote my own blog (my home page)
We refused to call it an insurgency and therefore didn’t prepare for insurgents.
if we refuse to call it a civil war we will not be addressing the issue the way it needs to be addressed
Thanks to twolf1 and others above, Per msnbc, Frist not running
Rayne @ 74
well, of coure the system is broken, it needs to be fixed.
that would include collective bargaining for whatever they do, they are not allowed to undervalue the rest of the labor force.
OT-Great inspirational read over at The Next Hurrah
Rayne @ 57
Rayne, I don’t think we’re using the word ‘exploit’ in the same way. I’m meaning it in a kind of militaristic sense, as in, I see an opening in my opponents defenses, and I’ll exploit it. In the case of anyone trying to get by, if I see a hole in the defenses of the system that is keeping me separated from food, shelter, etc, then I will exploit that opening. This is an aggressive action; moving from Mexico to NYC is no small trip, and requires a great deal of sacrifice (as you yourself pointed out) in order to make ends meet. It also implies a kind of anger at being forced to do this move in the first place, which I don’t think is entirely unfounded. The demonstrations in LA were peaceful, for the most part, mainly because I got the impression that they knew that riots would be bad for the cause, not because it hasn’t been thoguht of in the past. I might also be putting some of my own feelings in there; I know that I would be extremely angry if I had to endure that kind of move in order to take that kind of work for that kind of pay.
As for the Mexican political situation itself, it’s interesting to note that Mexico had the first photographic news agency, founded by Augustin Casasola in about 1905. There’s a great photo of him developing his prints, with a gun in his belt, taken in 1925–even then, the idea of bringing truth to the people was a dangerous business to be in in Mexico. After its revolution, the country had been plagued with single party rule so blatant and for so long it would make most Americans scratch their heads. News reports regularly quote Catholic church officials, showing the power that religion has over daily affairs, and the recent elections were plagued with similar ‘voting problems’ as our 2000 election. The country is very divided along class and race lines, and it’s not surprising that those who ended up holding the short end of the stick decided to leave.
I can almost understand why the fix to illegal immigration has to be internal to the US; the amount of work that would go into fixing the Mexican state via external influence is mindboggling, the kind of positive foreign policy this administration has shown little proficiency or inclination to practice. I’m not at all confident that another administration could do it well either; apart from reconstruction of Germany after world war 2, what other kind of positive nation-building has been done to another country, while still respecting that country’s sovreignty?
John Casper @ 76
I wonder if it had anything to do with that poll that came out the other day saying he was the least likable gooper?
Ed*ard Teller @ 72
WASHINGTON, DC – Sen. elect James H. Webb (D-VA) today cold-cocked President George W. Bush in the east room of the White House. The newly elected Webb was attending a reception honoring the incoming 110th Congress. Following a testy exchange about Webb’s son serving in Iraq, Webb slugged President Bush, laying him flat out on the floor. One observer stated “Jim Webb was able to do what most Americans only dream about – knocking the President on his ass.”
Frist’s reason for not running – “I want to spend more time with my cats.”
OT– Nice job of undercutting the hand-picked al- Maliki by the WH today; blame anyone but the preznit.
I got your back stabbing right here, Nouri!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15944072/
Wrt pulling out of Anbar, this might simply be bowing to pressure from the Saudi’s and Syria. We’re going to stop bludgeoning our old counterweight to Iran, the Sunnis, so we can focus on bludgeoning a portion of the Shia militias, al-Sadr’s group.
This sounds great until you realize that our supply lines and line of retreat run through Shia dominated provinces all the way to Basra. The reason our supply lines have not been cut yet, is because the Shia think we’ll defend them against the Sunnis. Whack a mole lives.
To Christy, Looseheadprop, and others in the
legal commmunity…
An interesting take in today’s Globule…
Jack
http://www.boston.com/business…..al_skills/
lina @
81
Many dads’ secret fantasy these days…………
Would W stand his ground if Webb took a swing? Or cut and run? Would the SS stand aside and lap the moment up?
Mel @ 78
Completely agree, thanks for the link.
angie @
83
I like how the memo was ‘leaked’ just at the right time. It couldn’t have been on purpose.
twolf1 @ 82
poor cats.
Anyone see the new show about the Frist house? Apparently they remodeled it and it looks suspiciously like the one at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Maybe he’s going to sit in there an pretend.
There is a fundraiser for Esten on December 9th in western NC. Anyone can go.
The brochure:
A benefit, concert and silent auction to honor Esten Maxwell will take place Saturday, December 9th at The Score Board in downtown Pittsboro from 4pm-midnight. Esten, age 3, was diagnosed with leukemia this past October. Please join us for an evening of music and friendship to honor and support Esten and his family. $5.00 at the door for 8 bands! All proceeds go directly to the Esten Maxwell fund. A flyer is attached. Please print and post, forward this email and spread the word! Special Performances by mostly Chatham artists
end of brochure
To send a check, make check out to Esten Maxwell and send to:
Tracy McInturff
978 Chatham Church Road
Moncure, NC 27559
egr again:
To get updates and send messages to the family, you can sign up for his CarePage using his name.
I have no relation with the family unless you want to count the ancestors who passed thru western NC about 7 generations back.
UptownNYChick @
89
Maybe he plans to invite Santorum and Allen over so they can play government.. or, heaven forbid, doctor.
Ed*ard Teller @ 86
My gut says that Webb’s got too much moral courage to take a swing at Bush. He doesn’t need to do it to prove anything to anyone. I’d be more curious if Bush got ticked enough at being dissed to take a swipe at Webb, figuring the Secret Service would keep him safe. . . . and then discovered his mistake – after Webb responds by laughing, not swinging back.
I’m on dialup, but I’d sit for hours waiting to see that on YouTube.
twolf1 @
91
Seems like a script right from The Rude Pundit.
mind the Ziggurat!
(apologies if my edit was too late)
I would like to announce this here first… I will not be running for president on 2008.
OT
wow– Robin Wright and Thomas Ricks get it. This has been bugging me forever.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01499.html
Just a quirky aside, but does anyone else think about the Martian in the Bugs Bunny cartoons every time the pelonium radiation poisoning story comes up? “It’s the ilonium q-32 space modulator.” I know, it’s not funny, the man died — but I keep hearing the newscasters do the story in the Marvin Martian voice in my head. (I clearly need more sleep…)
twolf1 @ 95
And will you be spending more time with your family, going into rehab, or are you disgusted with the vast amounts of money you’d have to raise if you ran?
LOL– I am in moderation for quoting the wapo!
oopsies.
new thread
mmr 79 — that’s why I mentioned G8 and Davos.
This is NOT an American problem. It’s a global problem.
And it’s going to take global solutions.
p.s. Does Japan ring any bells?
Christy Hardin Smith @ 96
Me too. In my case, I need more coffee.
Peterr @ 97
I just want to spend more time w/ my cats.
Peterr @ 101
Russia ex-PM’s ‘mystery illness’
angie at 100 — you are freed up — and I checked the post and have NO idea why the spam filter picked it up. It’s a mystery!
“That’s not what I asked you,” Bush said. “How’s your boy?”
“That’s between me and my boy, Mr. President,” Webb said coldly, ending the conversation on the State Floor of the East Wing of the White House.
THAT”S my secret fantasy, too: To completely snub, coldly and without remorse, a public figure I despise.
What a wanker -”That’s not what I asked you”.
Christy, thanks for addressing this issue, I just returned from the south west border area and was told that a lot of U.S. Park funding (what’s left of it) is being redirected for the Tijuana Berlin wall. The future prosperity of our country will likely include Canada and Mexico as the E.U. will include Turkey etc. I think 50 to 60 percent of illegal immigrants are of Mexican origin, who are the others?
Rayne @
102
As soon as I posted, I thought of Japan :) But again, that’s postwar, and they needed the help after we’d removed two of their cities from the map.
Mexico’s a bit different– they aren’t war ravaged, and our track record with helping Latin American countries is something like 0-21. I’d be really cautious with intervention into Mexican affairs, is all I’m saying.
I do like the idea of making illegals all citizens or guest workers, then taxed, and then unionized to bring up the standard of pay.
Could this be the word that landed angie in the clink?
specialist
John Casper @ 84
What is so odd about this is that just yesterday Bush was railing against the possibility of “terrorists” setting up safe havens in Iraq. This would seem to do exactly that and with al Qaeda no less since Anbar is where al Qaeda in Iraq is headquartered.
Mommybrain at 110 — oooh, I bet you are correct.
Bustednuckles @ 49
Bustednuckles @ 49
I thought Foley won that award.
I suppose I’m an anomaly, but I’m grateful Mexicans still look on this country as worth coming to…
mmr 109 — we already are intervening in MX. Every American corporation that has transplanted operations to MX has an effect on the economy there, as well as the politics. But should American corporations be doing this in the absence of conscious discussion at a meta-level about the impact of American corporate investment in MX?
This is why I mentioned G8 and Davos; this is where meta-conversation must occur. These American corporations aren’t just American, per se; they are incorporated in Delaware, but function globally. They are at risk of losing their investments if the stability of a country in which they have facilities or in which they count on sales should happen to to tank. The dialogue about risk management is already happening without us, at a layer below the G8-Davos, within the corporation(s) and without us at the G8 and Davos meta-level. What I envision is a discussion about cultural investment; corporations can either expose themselves to losses due to instability, or invest the money to improve the local economies in which they do business. What would improved education do to Mexico, for example? What would improved infrastructure do? Could the network of foreign companies that already exist in Mexico have a deeper dialogue beyond improving profitability?
edit: I forgot to add that Mexico is ripe for revolution once again, if you are following what has been happening in Oaxaca. It is only a matter of time before a de Silva, Chavez or Morales comes to power, if we do not begin the dialogue. And what then of immigration, legal or otherwise?
Hugh @ 110
Oh, but it was Sa-ddam who had the al-Qaeda connection. Anbar, who knew about him? Let’s hope we don’t have to unseat Anbar. Oh, I forgot, we did it already. It was memorable. Like Guadalcanal.
Christy Hardin Smith @ 97
Where’s the Kaboom, there was supposed to be an earth shattering Kaboom.
This incident just reinforces my view that Putin is simply an evil bastard who never moved past his KGB origins. My long standing view is that if terrorists ever get possession of a nuclear weapon it will be because Putin gets tired of our “colored” revolutions and decides to give us something else to worry about.
Rayne @
114
My understanding of American corporate intervention into Latin American politics is that the history has been less than beneficial to the natives. Sugar companies, the Panama canal, the current situation in Venezuela– most American corporate interests can only see to the next quarter, not investing 20 years into the future. That’s why our track record in Latin America has been so bad, traditionally, in my opinion. There’s no reason for these guys to invest in the local economy when the local econmy gives them no incentive to do so, ie, won’t force them to do so. And if they do, then the company will just take their ball and go play with the neighbor. In the end, it’s the country that’s desparate for the company’s presence, not the other way around, because these countries aren’t getting together to present a unified front.
This may be what you mean by Davos (and I must admit to being ignorant of the term). The idea, and I wish I could take credit for it, or assign credit, but I don’t remember where I heard it, that countries whose sole good is labor all band together to generate a labor exchange. Just as hard goods, like oil, pork bellies, etc, all have exchanges, those countries get together and commoditize their labor, and then set their prices accordingly. As there’s OPEC for oil, there’d be something like LPC (Labor and Production Consortium). If you want the cheap labor, you’d have to go through the LPC. That way, if a company just wants to take their ball and go play with the neighbor, the neighbor will offer them the same price.
My point is, the only way to remove the advantage of a multinational corporation’s ability to select the location of their facilities based solely on the cheapness of labor is to remove that cheapness from the equation altogether. The LPC, as I imagine it, would change the rules of the game; companies that put down roots somewhere would suddenly have to consider relocation costs and costs of allowing local shabbiness as part of their cost/benefit equations.
mmr –
Hence Chavez; what happened to the Venezuelan oil industry? Or Morales and Bolivian hydrocarbons in total? These are the models towards which Mexico will trend, very easy since Pemex is already a state-owned company; it would be much more difficult to pull this off in a country like the U.S. because state-ownership is not embedded in culture or laws.
It behooves the foreign nationals to think wider, deeper, longer than the next quarter, particularly when it comes to oil. It is an illusion that the people need them more than these corporations need the people. Sustainable success requires embracing symbiosis.
“My cat looks at me…”
OT: why so many cats in left blogostan? I would have thought mostly dogs inhibited the left shpere being that cats are socially snobby and egotistical – much more of right wing bent. Is it just that cats are easier to maintain in liberal cities?
.
zoot at 120 — we have both a cat and a dog — and a three year old. And we live in a tiny town/rural area in West Virginia — not exactly your “liberal city” stereotype, but there you are. So, can’t speak for city folks, but we’re a fairly inclusive little household. ;-)
Rayne @ 118
I realize the thread is probably dead at this point, but I did want to mention something about Chavez. Friends of mine are Venezuelan expats, and they can’t stand the man. According to them, he’s just a populist leader and a demogogue; the leftist version of W, with just as much ability to listen to his detractors as our own dear leader. I don’t know the truth of the matter, I just know that my friends have contradicted most, if not all, of the reports that have come out of Venezuela about Chavez. As far as they’re concerned, he’s the reason they left.
Having said that, I agree with you, I think. It’s just that the idea of a nationalized labor union (or really, an internationalized labor union) is a bold stroke, and one sure to be castigated by the current media conglomerates that get their paychecks from the steady flow of cheap labor.