No wonder these groups supporting illegal immigration are aligned with communist and radical groups. People have no value to them. These groups have no real interest in the conditions of the illegal workers; they simply want their cut of the money. No one on either side seems to even acknowledge what’s truly going on.

I refuse to accept the argument that we need this kind of labor going on in America just so rich people and corrupted corporations don’t have to pay so much for shoes and vegetables, or so they don’t have to push lawnmowers or dig holes. Which also means a loss of both streams of tax revenue and income, God knows the government loves that tax flow.

Not only does this belittle the American people, it turns the illegals into something regarded as less than human.

When I hear these people saying that we need illegal immigration, I see the America I love swirling around in a filthy toilet on the way to the sewer. That is my true visualization of this sector of labor activity going on inside my own country. It is bad enough that so much of what we have is made in sweatshops in other countries, then to be ok with it inside of our own borders? No, I for one am not ok with that at all.

Legalizing the illegals we have now will only lead to an influx of new illegals to fill positions left behind those able to leave the cruddy jobs.

Americas’ law enforcement needs to enforce the laws. Stop catering to the Mexican government and others. Stop helping Mexico with their greed and inability/unwillingness to provide for their own people, yet have no trouble of doing so at our expense. Go after businesses that hire illegals.

Tom Carsley

Behind me I hear barks along with clawed feet on weathered asphalt.  Yapping is urgent and closing, no need to turn and see what is coming up fast behind me.  Around this area we had a feral dog problem, several packs and a few loners running free causing all the trouble and mayhem they desire.  What’s going to stop them? 

It’s decision time. 

My choices at that moment were clear, keep running and be seen as prey to predator minds.  Or turn and fight.  No way I’m going to out run dogs. Not being one to be taken down by a leg bite on the run then mauled to death.

I took a breath, let it out and turned.

Knowing that the best way to handle these dogs was head on, present a strong front, discourage them. 

Was I afraid?  Well, yes.  A human versus several sets of snarling teeth and claws well, yeah I had some fear.  That fear was swallowed down and turned it to a more useful emotion: anger.  I may lose, but there is gonna be a fight first, and they’re gonna know I was there.  Also there was survival, it may not be an emotion, but it is a desire of first regard.

In my mind’s eye the battle was already taking place. Poke eyes, shove an arm down a throat, kick, punch, brawling dirty fight with some dogs.  Within that couple seconds of decision making time the battle was already fought, saw myself bloodied but victorious.  Standing with taught arms and clenched fists watching whimpering pooches trot off while glancing back at me over shoulders, tails between their legs.  A couple of the pack laying still at my feet. 

What really happened was another story.

Stopping and turning I faced maybe six medium sized dogs running in my direction from the shadows of the curve.  Hairs along the neck of the closest one to me were raised in a sure sign of hostility. He meant business for sure.  So did I.  Pack was still about fifty feet or so from me and closing not at full speed but a good clip.  They had a nice horizontal line coming at me that would make any infantry patrol squad leader proud. 

Not waiting on them to get to me I took quick steps toward them and barked my own, waving an arm while yelling “Get!”  It’s safe to say they were just not expecting that.  I even did the old trick of pretending to pick up a rock, have used it several times with dogs and has always made them pause.  In hindsight what happened next was comical.  All the dogs came to a slow trot and looked at each.  As if saying, “Hey, he’s not supposed to do that.”  Not losing any momentum I picked up the pace and got louder.  They stopped, turned and trotted off looking back at me every few steps maybe to see if I had changed my mind and wanted to play their game again.  I didn’t.

So while there was a chance of danger, injury and possibly even death; it seems all I faced that morning was a pack of dogs that were out for a chase, some barking and not much more.  When push came to shove and they were confronted by determined foe, well they did what all their kind does: High-tail it back into the shadows, tails tucked between their legs.

Now we are all going to face such moments, either alone, with friends, a community and even as a Nation.  We will have to make a decision, are we going to fight or be taken down?  There is no compromising with predators.

We need leaders that will stand with us and for us.  We don’t have that kind of leader right now, and our enemies know this.

One thing is for certain though, when the time comes to “kick ass” do it, not just talk about it all day and bringing an army of lawyers.

Originally published @ http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/06/fight_or_flee.html

I have gone to work, sometimes having to walk or bicycle miles to get there and earn a paycheck to support myself.   I have served my country; I have gone to war and around the globe as my nation needed me to do.  I have pursued more education; I continue to study new skills. I am an autodidact as we all should be.

Yet all that was shattered March 21^st 2010.  Everything we have ever been told, along with everything we have ever worked for to make out lives better via or own efforts have been tossed aside. 

Our people we sent to Represent us no longer do.  No, they resent us; for daring to stand in the way of their agenda of social reconstruction with the State being the “be all end all.”

Sunday they voted for their Political parties agenda, they voted by the will of Pelosi, Reid and lead Dictator Obama.  In D.C. politicians no longer even pretend that it is us lowly fly-over people unworthy of talking to or hearing that sign the paychecks.  Oaths of office along with the Constitution have no meaning to these politicians; it is the Progressive agenda that matters only.  As it is even acknowledged that Democrats voted for this bill with a probability of not being reelected; that in of itself proclaims they know that votes of “aye” were against the will of the people.  Yet they in all probability sacrificed political careers for the agenda.

Health care was never the issue.  Inside the guts of that monstrosity the thugs passed Sunday are the compete dismantling of several basic rights, more taxation and illegal race-based preferences.  If it was all about health care it could have been done in 10 pages or less.   I would have to say that any person that believes this was a fine event in American history is nothing less than a short sighted fool as they go searching for what they can get out of it for themselves; the health of this Nation as a whole be damned.  Any person in the United States that can look at this bill and bring forth the word “good” without gleaning all the evil that dwells within as a Pandora’s Box of legislation should not be entrusted with any responsibilities that may give power over other citizens. 

The only people who will go untouched the longest will be the people that do not contribute to begin with.  I say remain untouched longest because being a deadbeat has become fashionable; with  any cuts too all the hand out based social services being cut last as free loaders need to be bought to vote.  However, once we truly hit the breaking point and all those subsidized lifestyles begin to lose funding, well, those will be exciting times.

Americans in the streets celebrating they won’t have to pay their bills anymore, as so many did after Obama was elected, that he would pay the mortgages, and electric and gas.  Yes, these are the class of Americans that now have supreme preference over working class Americans.  In the minds of such people it is better we all fail together than let anyone succeed.

Sunday saw class warfare at its finest; punishing success to fund those people that would rather not be bothered with investing in their own lives.

Sunday the Land of Milk and Honey became the Land of the Fleeced. 

America as we have been taught has died, no, was murdered as witnesses gasped and bloody handed killers smiled with glee congratulating each other.

Now her remains will steady become nothing more than a stinking corpse as it decomposes in the open for the world to see.  As our once shining vibrant living nation rots vultures of the globe are circling waiting on a clear spot to land and bite off a chunk of flesh to devour down their own gullets.

Thomas E.Carsley

Been noticing a lot of anti-God Hatred lately.  Fine by me is someone believes or they don’t I really could care less.  But it is the Atheists that push that if a person believes in God that somehow equates to ignorance, stupidity, backwardness.  As if an Atheists is somehow an enlightened being and has become a superior over all others. 

I call BS.

I would say that anyone that has an attitude of superiority such as that had better look into the mirror and face their own demons, there is something wrong with their life perceptions and self esteem.  Not believing in a God has no bearing on intelligence whatsoever; just as we all know that a certificate on the wall does not really mean a person is smart.  One group feeling they have superiority over another has a word; bigotry.

Now the other groups I truly have a problem with are those that dedicate their time to belittling and attempting to convert people to Atheism.  I have to ask, how dare you? What business is it to you what a person takes into their hearts and minds and chooses to believe?  Now you can say religions attempt conversions, and you would be absolutely correct, however I have yet to have a Mormon I turn away from my door exclaim how stupid I must be for not wanting to believe as he does.

I believe in free will as a natural state of humanity, it is no one’s place to push their God or anti-God views upon me.  To push, force, belittle, tower over, or intimidate.  Any one that does from either side is no better than the others which they oppose.  That is my mind on the issue, and I continue to find it odd that militant Atheists do not even see their own hypocrisy on the matter.

Now it is no secret that I am Ayn Rand fan and have had many mini discussions on the compatibility of Objectivism and Religion.  I say they are, for it is not the person’s personal beliefs and the choices involved that are not compatible. It is the religious man-corruption that is not to be mixed.  It is the corruption of the ideas put forth from mans early basic sense of self, natural rights, and advancement twisted by religious leaders for power and control.

If the Looters of religion specifically of Christianity would drive home “God helps those which help themselves,” the world would be that much stronger.  Instead we get those seeking more and more alms.

I would also point out that the moment any believer in Objectivism can no longer tolerate anyone else’s mind they have lost the lessons.  No one man can hold power over another, which is just basic Rand.

This applies very much to the Atheist with a superiority complex, the moment an Atheist believes he has become a more evolved being is when he became a full hypocrite and transcended into exactly what he perceives people of religion are.

In Galts speech he points out the use of religion to siphon off free will, desires and to make one sacrifice himself for the greater good; that greater good usually meaning the coffers of the Church, Mosque, Synagogue etc. In today’s America it also means the government and political ideals. Liberal ideals.

Our government today has become the master of forced sacrifice for the sake of others. All in the effort of buying votes from the Looters, the Looters benefit from the taking from the Producers. This in turn facilitates the increase of forced sacrifice via the government tax-whip.

I would have to ask, does anyone believe if tomorrow the world became completely wiped clean of religion that mankind would be altered?  I doubt it myself; there will still be the same issues of power and those that will use force against other men for power and controls.

Where is the all trust worthy scientific community that spent the last 15 years lying to the world about global warming in order to facilitate the world wide Cap and Trade redistribution of wealth scheme to turn the lighted parts of the globe back into the dark ages?  Should we trust them any more than a man behind a podium or calling to prayer into a minaret?  I would say no, because even the most trained mind in logic has proven to be no guard at all against greed and pursuit of power.

Where is the scientific mind?  We have people in science telling us that forced reduction in population is needed.  Do I have to tell you what forced reduction spells out to be?  Where is the Liberal scientific advanced thought process that cannot care less about a baby in the womb?  Heartbeats, brainwaves no matter, kill it if you want.  Is that really the resulting thought process of an advanced mind?

We have an entire last century with millions murdered in the effort to stifle religion.  For power over men’s minds millions have been wiped off the earth.  I gave this point to a friend and he gave me a list of individuals that are/were atheists.  It is not about individuals, it is about regimes and governments. Using atheism to murder the opposing thoughts; that belief in any other power other than the government is worthy of a Death Sentence.

Now here would come the usual point of “this what religions have done in centuries past to convert humanity,” and yes, it is true.  When was the last Crusade, Spanish Inquisitions?  Again I would point out that those were all about power for men.  God was the tool.  Force the implementation.  Today it is the environment and politics, for example, how many millions have died from malaria because of DDT no longer being allowed? Malaria. What a shame in today’s world to die from that disease when it is entirely preventable and treatable. 

So, how does one group hold sway over the other?  They don’t, nor should they.  Anyone that wants to believe that they have the right to hold power over any other person or group, often with disgusting smugness, well, again, look into the mirror and study your own self first.  For it is easy to point out flaws and folly on either side of the fences.

A long time ago I had a girlfriend that smoked, when being hassled by non-smokers she would say, “I don’t try to make you start so don’t try to make me stop.”

If that is not a universal basis for mutual respect nothing is.

Discarded:

Keep in mind those running the government are the self proclaimed intellectuals that care about us Americans with all their heart.  Yet they only have heart enough for those unwilling to make the decisions of improving their own lives, politicians have no heart but open hatred for people that wish to rise and profit from effort. No, for the enlightened politicians it is about others sacrificing, not themselves.  Which is a factual statement based of charitable donations from Liberals is much lower than that of Conservatives.

Washington D.C. has become an alter of their own creating for worshiping themselves and forcing us to do so as well.

Tom E. Carsley

Wednesday, March 03, 2010

There has been a fatal flaw in the thinking, planning and implementing of the Progressive movement to seize power from We the People and redistribute it amongst themselves and other leftist organizations such as cronies Anita Dunn and Van Jones, unions, Al Gore’s Cap and Trade, community organizing facades such as ACORN, and so on in the pushing many bills that will rob Americans of money and freedoms.

These power players thought America was ready for the picking that Americans are in wanting of a change in government makeup.  Liberals believe Americans are caged animals, beaten, broken and ready to be led through life being fed whatever scraps are left over.  Nothing could be farther from the truth. 

Well, it is easy to understand that a progressive think-tank would think it was time to come out and liberate the masses.  When surrounded by people always complaining, blaming and wanting someone else to take responsibility for their lives and actions; it may be reasonable to think that all people across the country want the same, especially if that is the answer to the question the Progressives are asking.

Thing is, the independent Americans are never heard from, except when in truly dire need.  Most of the time not a peep will be heard from the day to day working class American.  While in the army we had a saying: it is the bad soldier with issues and always getting in trouble and needing help that will take up 95% of a leaders time, meanwhile the soldier being in the right place at the right time and with the right attitude might not even have anyone in the chain of command know his name. 

The left believes right now is the time to strike. Right now this is what all of America wants.  Americans want to be led in every aspect of life. Perhaps this also explains why the tea parties and the loss of recent elections have proven so startling to the Left. Though the Democrats are putting up a front, it is not exactly a poker face without tells. 

It may also explain the complete blind berserker rage the Left puts on full display for all of America to see.  This rage is not shamed or stood up against by any of the peoples that are host to the Left.  Rage is sent out and becomes viral to be passed along from blogger to commenter to left wing commentary on cable news.  Attacks on American citizens in an effort to shut them up or shout them down are appalling. Labeling Americans as seditious, anti government, racist, hicks, etc is about as low as this administration and the on board media can go. Attacking a private citizen for speaking out is in my mind the event which should be pursued and punished.

Today we had Obama saying there is nothing else to say about the health care bill. That even in the face of staggering opposition by the American people he and the leaders of the House and Senate will push it through.  That is not a position that will be backed or stood by for.  We have a long history of dealing with such people as these.

So what we have here in America are not a caged citizenry, but a cornered people.  If the liberals do not the rules when it come to backing a man, a people, or animals into a tight spot here it is: Don’t do it. 

Backing Americans into desperate positions and then expecting to come away unscathed, well good luck with that.

Protection of self, family, and property will NEVER be surrendered.  We are just as important as any self serving polititian, even more so, as we employ them. Time for them to rememeber that.

    Hand guns.  What are they good for in this world? It may seem like an easy answer but in reality the history and facts of this case are very complicated and emotionally charged.  In a protectionist society it is easy to think that only law enforcement should have guns.  That would be fine if everyone obeyed the laws and there were no outside dangers to consider.  However in the world we live in, not just the United States, there are many dangers that an individual should always have the ability to protect one’s self from. Our basic right to be able to defend ourselves should never be in doubt.

     A common one line joke, “gun control means never missing what you’re aiming at.” While this is a little joke with undertones of violence, it is truly an accurate way to describe the discipline needed when handling firearms. Like any tool that we have in civilization it is a tool that must be thoroughly trained in the operation, safety, and maintenance before handling.

     At no time should a loaded firearm be handled in an unsafe manner and even one thought to be unloaded should be treated as if it has bullets in it. Many people have been seriously injured or killed believing that a weapon was unloaded. At the very least a person will receive a scare when an unexpected round suddenly fires from an “unloaded weapon.”  “Oh, it’s not loaded,” are famous last words.

     Someone expecting to handle a firearm should become familiar with the firing mechanism and be able to inspect the weapon for flaws that may prove to be endangering. One should also be in the practice of assembly, disassembly, and the cleaning of a gun as even what may seem as a small amount of dirt of built up carbon can create serious malfunctions.

     Many weapons now come with a myriad of safety features and devices to attach to maintain that no one, like children for instance, are able to handle the gun if they should gain access to it, and be able to fire it. Knowing what is available for your gun of choice and using it may save your life or the life of someone you care about. For instance a Bersa Thunder handgun comes with both a safety tab and also a key that can lock out the trigger when not in active use. And of course no weapon should ever be stored loaded.

     In regards to the National Rifle Association’s Eddie Eagle children’s training program for gun use. It can be argued and sustained that at no times should children be allowed to handle firearms. No amount of training or perceived maturity should be used in “treating children as miniature adults,” (Snapp, Willis, Hardy.  2002), and allow them to have hand guns. There should be no hurry at all to put the power of life and death in the hands of children. Howard (2005) states that in a survey of 230 elementary school parents, 22% reported guns in the home and 85% of those reported do not practice safe storage, even in the face of over 400 child deaths annually in the United States. There is no excuse for these deaths if they happen in a home. There is too much attention placed on these kinds of wholly preventable accidents for them to happen. Florida has made it a crime to have any gun within reach of children less than 18 years of age, (Florida gun laws. 2006), however, this is a law that cannot be enforced until after a tragic event has happened. It is a personal responsibility to ensure that if a person is to own a gun, that the gun is at all times in a safe mode and unattainable by anyone, child or adult.

     Gun control as pertains to laws and the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution is a complicated matter and one that should be straight forward but have many different aspects. Many people believe that to have a safe society guns should be banned entirely and that only law enforcement should have them. 

     Any time there is a violent crime such as a lone gunman that attacks people or a child is killed when finding a gun at home or outside there are cries by some to blame the guns and even the manufacturers.  Instead of people realizing that it is the human that is at fault, not the gun. People will cry for more laws, more restrictions, and more punishment. Yet those laws only punish law abiding citizens, the criminals will not care what laws are passed, they will still carry guns. But now the criminals will not to worry so much about potential victims having guns to defend themselves.

     A very good observation on comparing the war on guns and the war on drug in regards to criminal access:

People who obey gun-control laws are less able to defend themselves against those who don’t obey those same laws. Moreover, there is no reason to believe that a war on guns will rid American society of guns any more than the war on drugs has eradicated drugs from our society. Those who wish to purchase illegal guns will be able to do so on the black market as easily as they purchase drugs.(LaRosa, 2002)

     Statistics show that without a doubt that in states and cities with narrow laws limiting the ownership of guns by private citizens that the crime rate is higher than in areas that more loosely allow ownership.

     However, authors of papers that are against the right to carry laws leave out data that shows crime decreases with carry laws, but is only critical of the law itself. It is very selective to leave out this vital part of information:

One of the first states to make it easier for citizens to carry concealed handguns in public places was Florida. Prior to 1987, Florida had a county-level “may-issue” carry permit system that allowed county officials to deny carry permits if they believed the applicant lacked “good moral character” (Kleck, 1997:368). As of October 1, 1987, the state law was changed to a state-administered, nondiscretionary permit system with carry permits valid throughout the state. The law allows permit holders to carry concealed handguns anywhere in the state, except in “places of nuisance” such as courtrooms or schools. The applicant must be 21 years old, provide evidence of having satisfactorily completed a gun safety program, and cannot have a felony conviction, history of mental illness, or record of alcohol or drug abuse (Florida Department of State, 2003a). In practice, applicants are rarely denied permits. Of the 837,280 applications received from October 1, 1987 through February 28, 2003, only 3,914 or 0.47% were denied a permit due to a criminal history or incomplete application (Florida Department of State, 2003b).

                     (Tomislav V Kovandzic,  Thomas B Marvell. 2003) 

     Why does crime go down in regions with more gun friendly laws? The most accepted cause is that criminals, like any predatory animal, don’t want to risk injury to themselves in the attack on a victim. If there is a strong possibility of the victim having a gun to fight back with, that victim may be left alone.

     Many people will not accept that idea. However, it has been proven time and time again in history that when the means to defend one’s self is taken away, crimes, genocide and humanitarian disaster is close behind. There are many cases throughout the world such as Rwanda, Sudan, and other regions in Africa where people have had their means of self defense removed and then been slaughtered by those that still have the power.

     People want to believe that if there are laws that everyone will follow those laws. However, that is just an illusion of safety and can be more of a threat to the well being of a family that any gun could be. 

     Another common saying is, “better to have one and not need it, than to need one and not have it.” This could be about as true a statement as they can come, imagine if someone at Columbine had been lawfully able to have a gun at the school, or at Virginia Tech or on September 11 if pilots or lawfully licensed and/or trained people were allowed to have their handguns with them at all times? Lives could have been saved if not for the Zero Tolerance rules.  All these laws do really just make all the people in those areas easy targets. It is also these rare and tragic events that spark such emotional reactions to guns and the call for gun laws.

     Finally as the facts clearly state throughout the paper it is that the ability of each individual to have the capacity to protect against harm of street crime or home invasion.  There may not be time or even opportunity to contact authorities as a crime is being committed and life is at risk. It has been shown that if criminals believe there is a high probability that a potential victim may be armed they will not attempt the crime or go to other places where the personal risk is lower.  Through education, laws that punish mishandling of firearms, and devices that can lower the risk or even eliminate all together the loss of life to accidental firings, can we have a better understanding on the use of handguns. 

References

    Agresti, J. (2008, March 08). Just facts.com. Retrieved May 25, 2008, from Gun    control: http://www.justfacts.com/guncontrol.asp

    FDLA (2006). Retrieved May 25, 2008, from Florida department of law enforcement: http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/FSAC/CRIME_Trends/violent/index.asp

    Florida gun laws. (2006, February). National rifle association. Retrieved May 25, 2008, from State laws: http://www.nraila.org/statelawpdfs/FLSL.pdf

   Gerry Snapp, Cecil L Willis, Marjorie S Hardy. (2002). Eddie Eagle Gun Safety

Program. Review of medium_being_reviewed title_of_work_reviewed_in_italics. Family Relations, 51(4), 364-366.  Retrieved May 25, 2008, from Research Library database. (Document ID: 220538281).

    LaRosa, B. (2002, November). Freedom daily. Retrieved May 25, 2008, from The future of freedom foundation: http://www.fff.org/freedom/fd0211f.asp

    Patricia Kunz Howard (2005). Parents’ Beliefs about Children and Gun Safety. Pediatric Nursing, 31(5), 374-9.  Retrieved May 25, 2008, from Career and Technical Education database. (Document ID: 912485201).

     Research shows many amazing studies and analyses of this subject. From the logical and well thought out to the complete opposite fringes of Hispanic groups wanting to kick all Europeans out of the Americas in the name of a mythical Aztlan nation (La voz de Aztlan. Volume IV. Issue 28. March, 09 2008). The reviews have been startling; they are all over the place in perspectives. 

     This research is going to limit too simply two matters, the research for this essay goes into these directions: unity through language and advancing education through English immersion.

     Over the many past generations our ancestors came here having many different goals yet overall the desire was to be Americans, and a factor of that becoming an American was the pride in knowing English. There is pride in becoming a part of something held dear, dreams, and aspirations, saluting the flag of the nation and getting goose bumps as it goes by, being able to speak the tongue of the land.

      In America today, there are 311 languages spoken in the home once the day is done.  More than half are indigenous, 162 are pre-European languages (National Virtual Translation Center. 2007). While it is perceived by the public that Spanish is an up and rising overwhelming language (Oxford Analytica. 2006), statistically speaking, it is only 10% of the population speaking it at home (NVTC 2007). Granted, those figures change with a migratory mainly Spanish-speaking population coming and going from their countries of origin (Migration Policy Institute 2007). English is the number one household language at 82% (NVTC 2007), all other languages, aside from English and Spanish, combined make up 8% (NVTC 2007).

    We are Americans; the operational language of America is English.  Whether there is a Constitutional Amendment or not.  If a person comes to the United States it should be expected that they adjust to this country, not the reverse. Can it be imagined a military made up of people all speaking other languages and trying to communicate a mission. Or in a business trying to pass on a plan of action, yet it never goes anywhere because no one can fully understand the intent of direction? A climate of political correctness, extremist lobbyist (Tancredo, T. 2006) and corporate pandering (Latin Know. 2006) is affecting this aspect of the language war that is simmering just below the surface of our society. Instead of pulling America together under a common condition, they are all instead creating divisiveness among the people of the Nation. Americans all celebrate their cultures, recognize our heritages, but together we are this, we are Americans, and to take this quoted passage from Theodore Roosevelt all the way back in 1915 and is still just as meaningful today, just forgotten,

     Roosevelt, T. (1915)

     “There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism. When I refer to hyphenated Americans, I do not refer to naturalized Americans. Some of the very best Americans I have ever known were naturalized Americans, Americans born abroad. But a hyphenated American is not an American at all. This is just as true of the man who puts “native” before the hyphen as of the man who puts German or Irish or English or French before the hyphen. Americanism is a matter of the spirit and of the soul. Our allegiance must be purely to the United States. We must unsparingly condemn any man who holds any other allegiance. But if he is heartily and singly loyal to this Republic, then no matter where he was born, he is just as good an American as any one else.”  (Chapultepec, Inc. 1999-2006).

     Americans live by the attitude of recognition when dealing with all manners of heritages in this Nation. For example, as someone having traveled to other countries that do not have the tapestry of cultures as we do, and as much as I loved experiencing the cultures of the world, I could not wait to get back to the United States and immerse myself in all the colors, languages and fantastic people of this country. Though it seems we are slipping and letting the standards slide (Turbak, G. 2008). There are even naturalization ceremonies being conducted in Spanish (Turbak, G. 2008).  The standard of expectations of new immigrants to learn English is not being held up; instead it is being lowered to make accommodations (Jacoby, J. 2002).

     The United States fails with a lower standard, the farther America slips into no longer being a nation of united peoples, we will only become divided and then we will surly fail all who are in search of the American ideals so proudly and strongly held onto. 

     Many have the belief that the while many younger Spanish speaking people feel that learning English is a burden and resist it, it is their parents, that in a Florida survey (Turbak, G. 2008), stated that learning English was their 4^th priority for the education of their children, learning Spanish place 67^th in priority (Turbak, G. 2008). All the while school bilingual classes instead of immersion are having no affect on the drop out rate of Spanish speaking students. The drop out rate has remained closely the same hovering around 44% now and as it was when the program started (Institute of education sciences 2000). This is the highest drop out rate of any sector of American society (IES 2000). This dropout rate is higher among Hispanic students coming in from other countries than those born in the United States (IES 2000). However, the percentages drop dramatically as the generations go by to about 15%, yet still nearly twice that of other sectors (IES 2000). Perhaps the direct immersion into the culture can be the cause of this lower drop out rate of second generations and beyond.  The evidence of the statistics points directly in the direction of teaching English all the time and not having these bilingual programs throughout the school grades.

    Children raised in direct contact instead of continuously taught in the culture of origin as time goes by do become more of the American norm. My own home is an example of this.  My wife is from Puerto Rico, and even though it is an American territory, the language is Spanish. My children are fluent in both English and Spanish.  English because my wife and I recognize that America is English based and to advance and have opportunity to take and not have to wait on anything the children must know English. My wife does not hide behind the argument of, “it is my culture,” she knows being an American is first and yet she maintains her heritage. Speaking English is not a threat to her culture. As a part of this same example, while we having been living in Puerto Rico it is nothing for a Puerto Rican to boldly tell me I need to learn Spanish to live there, and that person would be correct. Yet in the United States, if I were to tell a Spanish speaker that they needed to learn English, I immediately would have an accusation of racism. That is so far the point that political correctness has taken us to in always trying to be nice to everyone. No one would ever live in another country and expect the host nation to convert to your own language, you would have to learn the host nations.

     While language in America is by no means a simple argument, the research presented here is that the United States should and always be a diverse yet never divided people. As time and generations go by the American Dream will always be the same. Heritage will not be lost. Cultures will still be there. Each group must preserve individual pasts. To be here in America it is necessary to become an American, and here the day-to-day language is English. Presented here is a clear case of being able to speak the common language of the United States to advance in society, become educated, independent and be able to become a more productive member of American society. By allowing the catering to another language and not being more steadfast in influencing the desire to learn English we are ultimately hurting the United Stated and more obviously failing the youngest and newest within our society. A stand must be made to counter the bilingual America. Instead, guide immigrants to learn English and become Americans that are more productive.

References

Chapultepec, Inc. (1999-2006). Theodore Roosevelt, quotes, sayings, and aphorisms
       Retrieved February 18, 2008 from http://www.theodore-roosevelt.com/trquotes.html

Institute of Education Sciences. (2000). Drop out rates in the United States: 2000. 

       Retrieved March 10, 2008 from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2002/droppub_2001/

Jacoby, J. (2002). Bilingual education’s voluminous failure. Retrieved March 09,       

       2008 from http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=1925

Latin Know. (2006) The Latino marketing report. Retrieved March 09, 2008

       from http://latin-know.typepad.com/latin_know_the_latino_mar/2006/02/index.html

La voz de Aztlan. (Volume IV. Issue 28. March, 09 2008). Fidel Castro Ruz says US

       should return Aztlan back to Mexico. Retrieved March 09, 2008 from

       http://www.aztlan.net/castroaztlan.htm

Mount, S. (2006). The U.S. Constitution Online. Official language legislation.

       Retrieved February 18, 2008 from

       http://www.usconstitution.net/consttop_lang.html

Migration Policy Institute. (2007). Migration statistics for the United States. Retrieved

       March 09, 2008 from http://www.migrationinformation.org/datahub/charts/fb.1.shtml

National Virtual Translation Center. (2007). Languages spoken in the United States.

       Retrieved February 18, 2008 from

       http://www.nvtc.gov/lotw/months/november/USlanguages.html

Oxford Analytica. (2006). Spanish on the rise. Retrieved Sunday, March 09, 2008 from

       http://snurl.com/21d1l  [www_forbes_com]

Pro-english language advocates. (2002). Teach our children English. Retrieved  

March 09, 2008 from http://www.proenglish.org/issues/education/bestatus.html

Turbak, G. (2008). The Social Contract Press. The campaign against English. Retrieved

       February 18, 2008 from

       http://www.thesocialcontract.com/artman2/publish/tsc0403/article_347.shtml

Tancredo, T. (2006) Treason lobby electing new (Spanish-Speaking) people in Denver

       Retrieved March 09, 2008 from http://www.buchanan.org/blog/?p=81

I believe there are millions of Americans who would strongly protest that. Among them are the approximately 130,000 Americans currently in Iraq and Afghanistan, trudging the terrain in full-body armor and combat loads, and at least triple number that who have pulled tours. Body armor alone is 50 pounds, 120 rounds of ammo is about 20 pounds, an M-16 is 7 pounds, and MRE and other gear adds up to 15 to 25 more pounds. Now go about for a day or more with all that. Oh, and let’s not forget, people are trying to kill you the entire time.

How many Mexican or Central or South American military personnel are in these areas? ZERO.

Mexicans are so willing to do the jobs that no one else “wants” to do? Well, there is genocide in Darfur that no one in the world wants to dirty their hands with. Is Mexico sending peacekeepers? NOPE. Somalia is still a hell hole, Mexico, ya’ll wanna head over there and help out?

I’ve been to Korea. I didn’t see any Mexican troops over there helping guard the DMZ. Maybe Vietnam could have been different if 12 million illegals had helped out instead of only thinking of themselves. It would be a great help if Mexico and all points south would help in the War on Terror.

World War II should have been called “World War II Minus Mexico.” The only thing the Mexicans did was not take Hitler up on the plan to invade the United States. Later, South America helped out by taking in all the Nazis on the run. Good work there, guys.

So, I guess the people south of us are really brave, marching in our streets, demanding rights and amnesty, but they sure are cowards when it comes to making any changes in their own corrupt countries or helping out in the world stage of events. Is it any wonder the chihuahua is the preferred dog? All bark and no bite.

Are any countries in this hemisphere besides Canada doing anything to help out the rest of the world? Is there a single thing coming from down south that we actually need?

Several countries to our immediate south are going down the gutter. Is anyone down there doing anything to fix it? Heck no. They are bailing out like rats, and at the same time re-creating the same failed environments here.

America has been so helpful in bailing out these corrupt governments for so long, they now expect it – just as our welfare people do here. They don’t want to earn it, but have the mentality that we “owe” if to them. America is nothing more than a welfare state to the world now. These other countries are all grown up; it’s time to let them fail or succeed without us.

Let’s fix ourselves, starting with voting out all these rich boy glad-handers and getting some people who can actually solve a problem or two.

Ask anyone in Polk County who’s lost his job in construction to corrupt contractors who want to cut costs by using illegal workers, if we need illegals. If there were no illegals, people could make a decent wage. My stepfather was a block mason making $24 an hour in the early 1990s. Now, no one gets more than $10, yet the cost of living has tripled.

These American workers have been robbed of a higher standard of living by the greedy back-room dealings of the rich and getting richer. Only the wealthy are using the illegals as nannies and house help, so of course they will be against deportation. God forbid they spend time with their own kids, or maybe do their own laundry.

Any fool who says we need illegals needs to take a look outside their bubble, because we don’t. To say we need them is the same as saying we need sweatshops and forced prostitution. Do we really need indentured servants? Is that what the liberals are saying? Are they saying we need not worry about ghettos in our towns? Well, as long as they are not in their towns, right? Some cities are passing resolutions to be safe havens for illegals. I cannot wait for the floods of people to hit them up.

Don’t tell me Americans are lazy. It looks to me like we are doing the jobs that no other country in the world wants to do. We send our money to save people, we send food, and most of all we send our children to defend and protect the same people who would gladly stab us in the back. We put up with being called racists while saving Muslims in Croatia from genocide and helping out the very illegals who plan to take parts of our nation. We are called warmongers for keeping the battles away from the American streets where the people who hate us live. We Americans protect a land that has not seen war on its own soil in more than 100 years. What other nation can say that?

Lazy? Well, I’ll take lazy over a coward any day.

     My idea of the perfect dog is one that will protect my family. One that will be vigilant over my kids while they play in the yard. One that will die protecting us as members of its pack.

A little more than a week ago, we saw a sign for German shepherd puppies at Wal-Mart. Perfect. We called the people and went to the house to see the dogs. My son is 4 years old and has never really spent a lot of time around animals, so he was a little nervous seeing all the puppies.

The people who owned the dogs had the adults put away, but they went to get the female to give us an idea of what the puppies would look like as grown-ups. The dame came out and, immediately alerted with the strangers near her pups, she barked and half charged and was doing a double take because of the owners yelling at her.

My son was screaming, which just added to the melee. I scooped him up and extended my arm toward the dog in a “Halt!” gesture. Tommy had his arms and legs wrapped around me tighter than ever before in fear.

By now the owners had the dog headed back inside, but to my boy all he could say was “She had big teeth.” In his little view of it, all he knew was that a large set of teeth were coming at him.

All the puppies were inside a large shelter with straw on the floor. Tommy and I walked in there, and the puppies, being what they are, swarmed all over him. He asked me, “Are they going to eat me?” I said, “Of course not. They want to play.”

I thought it was funny hearing him ask that. It cracked me up. But now, more than a week later, I’ve had some time to think about that. There was my son, who I love more than anything, walking into a den of strange, big-toothed animals that scared him, and he thought he was going to be eaten and die in so much as he could comprehend such acts, and yet he trusted me enough to brave it anyway and stand his ground. He trusted that I would protect him and preserve his life. He believed his father would keep him from any harm.

We got one of the puppies, a fine mellow animal, and we are molding her into a member of our pack. We have to teach her the rules of the house and how to behave. We have to reward and punish her behavior.

Now I put this into the context of what is going on with illegal immigration. We are trusting our government to protect us from the big teethy problems that are coming at our nation from all sides. It is impossible to comprehend that the government would not protect the lives of its citizens any more than my son thinking I would not protect him. I will never abuse that trust, as the people in Washington, D.C., should never abuse ours. Our leaders should be stepping over themselves to protect this nation, to secure our lives and ensure that we are not having our throats ripped out.

Unfortunately, they have been on autopilot in D.C., too busy doing polls and making PowerPoint slide shows to get out on the ground and actually solve any problems. They have the mentality of, “If we make a law, it will be OK.” But without enforcement of the law, it is meaningless.

Too much attention is put on the fuzzy helpful worker that came here to make some money and have a better life. But let’s not forget about all those who have the teeth and are here to cause harm, to destroy lives and take what they can – with no regard of being a part of the pack.

ON SHEEP, WOLVES, AND SHEEPDOGS

By Lt.Col. (ret.) Dave Grossman, Army Ranger, psychology professor, author of “On Killing” and the upcoming “On Combat”.

“Honor never grows old, and honor rejoices the heart of age. It does so because honor is, finally, about defending those noble and worthy  things that deserve defending, even if it comes at a high cost. In our time, that may mean social disapproval, public scorn, hardship, persecution, or as always, even death itself. The question remains: What is worth defending? What is worth dying for? What is worth living for?” – William J. Bennett – in a lecture to the United States Naval Academy November 24, 1997 

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One Vietnam veteran, an old retired colonel, once said this to me:  “Most of the people in our society are sheep. They are kind, gentle, productive creatures who can only hurt one another by accident.” This is true. Remember, the murder rate is six per 100,000 per year, and the aggravated assault rate is four per 1,000 per year. What this means is that the vast majority of Americans are not inclined to hurt one another.

Some estimates say that two million Americans are victims of violent crimes every year, a tragic, staggering number, perhaps an all-time record rate of violent crime. But there are almost 300 million Americans, which  means that the odds of being a victim of violent crime is considerably less than one  in a hundred on any given year. Furthermore, since many violent crimes are committed by repeat offenders, the actual number of violent citizens is considerably less than two million.

Thus there is a paradox, and we must grasp both ends of the situation: We may well be in the most violent times in history, but violence is still remarkably rare. This is because most citizens are kind, decent people who are not capable of hurting each other, except by accident or under extreme provocation. They are sheep.

I mean nothing negative by calling them sheep. To me it is like the pretty, blue robin’s egg. Inside it is soft and gooey but someday it will grow into something wonderful. But the egg cannot survive without its hard blue shell. Police officers, soldiers, and other warriors are like that shell, and
someday the civilization they protect will grow into something wonderful. For now, though, they need warriors to protect them from the predators.

“Then there are the wolves,” the old war veteran said, “and the wolves feed on the sheep without mercy.” Do you believe there are wolves out there who will feed on the flock without mercy? You better believe it. There are evil men in this world and they are capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so, you become a sheep. There is no safety in denial.

“Then there are sheepdogs,” he went on, “and I’m a sheepdog. I live to protect the flock and confront the wolf.”

If you have no capacity for violence then you are a healthy productive citizen, a sheep. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath, a wolf. But what if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? What do you have then? A sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the hero’s path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed

Let me expand on this old soldier’s excellent model of the sheep, wolves, and sheepdogs. We know that the sheep live in denial, that is what makes them sheep. They do not want to believe that there is evil in the world. They can accept the fact that fires can happen, which is why they want fire extinguishers, fire sprinklers, fire alarms and fire exits throughout their kids’ schools.

But many of them are outraged at the idea of putting an armed police officer in their kid’s school. Our children are thousands of times more likely to be killed or seriously injured by school violence than fire, but the sheep’s only response to the possibility of violence is denial. The idea of someone coming to kill or harm their child is just too hard, and so they chose the  path of denial.

The sheep generally do not like the sheepdog. He looks a lot like the wolf. He has fangs and the capacity for violence. The difference, though, is that the sheepdog must not, can not and will not ever harm the sheep. Any sheep dog who intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be punished and removed. The world cannot work any other way, at least not in a representative democracy or a republic such as ours.

Still, the sheepdog disturbs the sheep. He is a constant reminder that there are wolves in the land. They would prefer that he didn’t tell them where to go, or give them traffic tickets, or stand at the ready in our airports in camouflage fatigues holding an M-16. The sheep would much rather have the sheepdog cash in his fangs, spray paint himself white, and go, “Baa.”

Until the wolf shows up. Then the entire flock tries desperately to hide behind one lonely sheepdog.

The students, the victims, at Columbine High School were big, tough high school students, and under ordinary circumstances they would not have had the time of day for a police officer. They were not bad kids; they just had nothing to say to a cop. When the school was under attack, however, and SWAT teams were clearing the rooms and hallways, the officers had to physically peel those clinging, sobbing kids off of them. This is how the little lambs feel about their sheepdog when the wolf is at the door.

Look at what happened after September 11, 2001 when the wolf pounded hard on the door. Remember how America, more than ever before, felt differently about their law enforcement officers and military personnel? Remember how many times you heard the word ’hero’?

Understand that there is nothing morally superior about being a sheepdog; it is just what you choose to be. Also understand that a sheepdog is a funny critter: He is always sniffing around out on the perimeter, checking the breeze, barking at things that go bump in the night, and yearning for a righteous battle. That is, the young sheepdogs yearn for a righteous battle. The old sheepdogs are a little older and wiser, but they move to the sound of the guns when needed right along with the young ones.

Here is how the sheep and the sheepdog think differently. The sheep pretend the wolf will never come, but the sheepdog lives for that day. After the attacks on September 11, 2001, most of the sheep, that is, most citizens in America said, “Thank God I wasn’t on one of those planes.” The sheepdogs, the warriors, said, “Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference.” When you are truly transformed into a warrior and have truly invested yourself into warriorhood, you want to be there. You want to be able to make a difference.

There is nothing morally superior about the sheepdog–the warrior–but he does have one real advantage. Only one. And that is that he is able to survive and thrive in an environment that destroys 98 percent of the population.

There was research conducted a few years ago with individuals convicted of violent crimes. These cons were in prison for serious, predatory crimes of violence: assaults, murders and killing law enforcement officers. The vast majority said that they specifically targeted victims by body language: slumped walk, passive behavior and lack of awareness. They chose their victims like
big cats do in Africa, when they select one out of the herd that is least able to protect itself.

Some people may be destined to be sheep and others might be genetically primed to be wolves or sheepdogs. But I believe that most people can choose which one they want to be, and I’m proud to say that more and more Americans are choosing to become sheepdogs.

Seven months after the attack on September 11, 2001, Todd Beamer was honored in his hometown of Cranbury, New Jersey. Todd, as you recall, was the man on Flight 93 over Pennsylvania who called on his cell phone to alert an operator from United Airlines about the hijacking. When he learned of the other three passenger planes that had been used as weapons, Todd dropped his phone and uttered the words, “Let’s roll,” which authorities believe was a signal to the other passengers to confront the terrorist hijackers. In one hour, a transformation occurred among the passengers – athletes, business people and parents. — from sheep to sheepdogs and together they fought the wolves, ultimately saving an unknown number of lives on the ground.

There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men. - Edmund Burke

Here is the point I like to emphasize, especially to the thousands of police officers and soldiers I speak to each year. In nature the sheep, real sheep, are born as sheep. Sheepdogs are born that way, and so are wolves.  They didn’t have a choice. But you are not a critter. As a human being, you can be whatever you want to be. It is a conscious, moral decision.

If you want to be a sheep, then you can be a sheep and that is okay, but you must understand the price you pay. When the wolf comes, you and your loved ones are going to die if there is not a sheepdog there to protect you. If you want to be a wolf, you can be one, but the sheepdogs are going to hunt you down and you will never have rest, safety, trust or love. But if you want to be a sheepdog and walk the warrior’s path, then you must make a conscious and moral decision every day to dedicate, equip and prepare yourself to thrive in that toxic, corrosive moment when the wolf comes knocking at the door.

For example, many officers carry their weapons in church. They are well concealed in ankle holsters, shoulder holsters or inside-the-belt holsters tucked into the small of their backs. Anytime you go to some form of religious service, there is a very good chance that a police officer in your congregation is carrying. You will never know if there is such an individual in your place of worship, until the wolf appears to massacre you and your loved ones.

I was training a group of police officers in Texas, and during the break, one officer asked his friend if he carried his weapon in church. The other cop replied, “I will never be caught without my gun in church.” I asked why he felt so strongly about this, and he told me about a cop he knew who was at a church massacre in Ft. Worth, Texas in 1999. In that incident, a mentally deranged individual came into the church and opened fire, gunning down fourteen people. He said that officer believed he could have saved every life that day if he had been carrying his gun. His own son was shot, and all he could do was throw himself on the boy’s body and wait to die. That cop looked me in the eye and said, “Do you have any idea how hard it would be to live with yourself after that?”

Some individuals would be horrified if they knew this police officer was carrying a weapon in church. They might call him paranoid and would probably scorn him. Yet these same individuals would be enraged and would call for “heads to roll” if they found out that the airbags in their cars were defective, or that the fire extinguisher and fire sprinklers in their kids’ school did not work. They can accept the fact that fires and traffic accidents can happen and that there must be safeguards against them.

Their only response to the wolf, though, is denial, and all too often their response to the sheepdog is scorn and disdain. But the sheepdog quietly asks himself, “Do you have and idea how hard it would be to live with yourself if your loved ones were attacked and killed, and you had to stand there helplessly because you were unprepared for that day?”

It is denial that turns people into sheep. Sheep are psychologically destroyed by combat because their only defense is denial, which is counterproductive and destructive, resulting in fear, helplessness and horror when the wolf shows up.

Denial kills you twice. It kills you once, at your moment of truth when you are not physically prepared: you didn’t bring your gun, you didn’t train. Your only defense was wishful thinking. Hope is not a strategy. Denial kills you a second time because even if you do physically survive, you
are psychologically shattered by your fear helplessness and horror at your moment of truth.

Gavin de Becker puts it like this in ’Fear Less’, his superb post-9/11 book, which should be required reading for anyone trying to come to terms with our current world situation: “…denial can be seductive, but it has an insidious side effect. For all the peace of mind deniers think they get by saying it isn’t so, the fall they take when faced with new violence is all the more unsettling.”

Denial is a save-now-pay-later scheme, a contract written entirely in small print, for in the long run, the denying person knows the truth on some level.

And so the warrior must strive to confront denial in all aspects of  his life, and prepare himself for the day when evil comes.

If you are warrior who is legally authorized to carry a weapon and you step outside without that weapon, then you become a sheep, pretending that the bad man will not come today. No one can be “on” 24/7, for a lifetime. Everyone needs down time. But if you are authorized to carry a weapon, and you walk outside without it, just take a deep breath, and say this to yourself…”Baa.”

This business of being a sheep or a sheep dog is not a yes-no dichotomy. It is not an all-or nothing, either-or choice. It is a matter of degrees,  a continuum. On one end is an abject, head-in-the-sand-sheep and on the other end is the ultimate warrior. Few people exist completely on one end or the other.

Most of us live somewhere in between. Since 9-11 almost everyone in America took a step up that continuum, away from denial. The sheep took a few steps toward accepting and appreciating their warriors, and the warriors started taking their job more seriously. The degree to which you move up that continuum, away from sheephood and denial, is the degree to which you and your loved ones will survive, physically and psychologically, at your moment of truth.