I received two E-mails today from a friend. This is the second one. After the E-mail is my Reply. *****************************************************

TOM:

This might even be true

This is TOO good!

5 million of our older Americans have not signed up yet for their

Medicare, Part D, drug plan------they are old and confused.

We are NOT going to grant them an extension.

However, 12 million illegal aliens are in our country and we are

going to allow them to stay, protest, procreate, receive support

monies, attend schools, avoid paying income taxes, have our

teachers take 300 hours of ESL(English as a Second Language)

training at our expense, etc.

WE MUST REALLY DISLIKE OUR OLD PEOPLE......

OR WE MUST REALLY LOVE TACOS!!!

If it ticks you off, pass it on!!

Don't forget to pay your taxes......

12 million illegal aliens are depending on you!

Dwain

*******************************************************

My Reply:

Dwain:

You sent me 2 E-mails this morning. One was about Jesus and started with the message: "When Jesus died on the cross, he was thinking of you! If you are one of the 7% who will stand up for him, forward this with the Title 7%."

The second one was this cute comparison of elderly people who are being abused by the Republican Medicare Rx program and Illegal Aliens. Read your Bible and you will find that Jesus talked about nothing more often than helping the poor. Yes, many of the elderly people (being abused by the Republican Medicare Rx program) are poor, but so are the "Illegal Aliens". Are they "Illegal" because they have broken laws other than trying to better their life and their family's life?

Would Jesus condemn a man for crossing a border to feed his family?

Wasn't Jesus an "Illegal Alien" as he crossed borders to teach his life's mission of forgiveness and COMPASSION?

Yes, Jesus taught about COMPASSION. COMPASSION for the sick, COMPASSION for the elderly and mostly, COMPASSION for the poor.

This e-mail does a great disservice to all that honer Jesus, especially those who use the name of Jesus at this time of year to Celebrate Christmas. What better gift could any of us give to Jesus than to share some COMPASSION with an Alien? They are aliens, yes, but they are only "Illegal Aliens" because they have walked across the borders established by man; not by Jesus, not by God. Show me where in the Bible that Jesus separated people by borders. Show me in the Bible where Jesus refused to heal or feed a sick or poor person because of borders.

Yes, my tax money is helping aliens, but I do not have the powers of Jesus to heal and feed the sick and poor, except by my tax dollars and my COMPASSION for all of God's children. Just about all of these so-called Illegals are Christians. Let us as Christians, try to act as Christians toward our fellow Christian brothers. Let us refer to them as "Christian Aliens" or better yet, "Our Poor Christian Brothers and Sisters" and let us give them what Jesus would have given them: COMPASSION.

It is easy to fall for these cutesy E-mails. We have to stop, think and realize that we are talking about people. I forgive all those who fall for these E-mails and I am sure that Jesus would also forgive anyone who falls for these E-mails. Our hearts must go out to the poor as we celebrate Christmas in the richest nation in the world. On Christmas day, 35,000 people will die world-wide of starvation. Very few will die of starvation in the USA. Isn't that a Christmas gift that you can be proud of sharing?

TOM

Yippee! :clap2: TOM, you are back :faint: and it is so nice to hear/read your voice again! It has been awhile and a number of us had grown concerned by your continued absence.... Welcome home, eh.

That's all I have to say. I wonder sometimes why "Christians" don't follow the word of Jesus. Sometimes, it takes us pagans to follow Jesus.

Thank you for this post Tom helped me to remember whats important again.

And tell your little pointy-headed friend that teachers don't take 300 hours of ESL. I teach in Texas for goodness sake and have never had to have an ESL class or workshop. Ever.

T_O_M: Do you have a proposal of how to resolve the issue of "illegal" aliens?

Do you think something should be done? Do you believe it is in the best interests of the United States and Mexico for the U.S. to have laws on the books that are not enforced? Do you believe that the laws as they now stand should be enforced on some kind of piece-meal basis?

Do you think that the laws should be changed or amended with regard to illegal aliens?

If not, do you believe that we should behave in a Christian manner by assuming that these "illegal" aliens are just coming to the U.S. because they are starving and automatically forgive the fact that they have broken the law?

Do you even think that we have a problem with the numbers of illegal aliens entering the U.S. every day? Should we open our borders to whoever wants to live in the U.S.?

Just saying that we should be compassionate, as Jesus was compassionate, doesn't solve anything. Compassion is important, but compassion is easy, if you are a decent human being. Resolving a legal issue that is causing people to feel hostile toward an entire class of people in this country, is important as well. We are a society of laws. Laws are necessary for the millions of people inhabiting our country to be able to live in peace. If the laws aren't working, don't you think they should be changed, before something erupts that would not be in the best interests of either Americans or illegal aliens?

Of course the immigration laws must be changed. We must allow people who have come to our country for a better life and who are working to have a chance at becoming legal citizens. When Thomas Jefferson wrote "all people are created equal", he didn't say, "all people who were lucky enough to be born in the USA are equal".

When a person breaks the law by coming to this country illegally and by using a false ID, he has broken the law, but that is different from breaking the law by stealing, raping and killing. Even in the "Old Testament", hungry people were allowed to take food without payment and it was not considered stealing.

Any illegal alien who has broken no other laws (but illegal entry and false documentation in order to work) should be allowed to stay. They should learn English, because it is the language most common in this country. They should be given a chance to get legitimate credentials and then to pay taxes. Many have SS cards that belong to someone else, so they and their employers are paying into SS system, but they will never be able to take any of that money out. That is a net plus for the SS fund.

It is estimated that it would take $100,000,000,000 (a hundred Billion) to deport all the illegal aliens. That would be a huge drain on our already bankrupt budget, plus it would mean that many businesses would lose many of their customers and many businesses would go bankrupt. In a mid-western town recently, some local town's-people got Uncle Sam to enforce the INS (or is it ICE now?) laws. That promptly caused the local poultry processing plant to close up shop, putting many legal Americans out of jobs and causing a ripple effect ruining the local town's economy as the "out of work" people stopped buying from the local stores to go along with the loss of sales caused by the newly deported people.

There is no reason why this immigration issue can not be worked out, except that many people have that “I have mine, you can't have your chance” attitude. I am Italian-American and when my ancestors came here, many were known as WOP's (With Out Papers). Doesn't “With Out Papers” mean here illegally? Yet, I see many Italian-Americans on TV shows stating their opposition to immigration from Mexico and further South. I see many Mexican-Americans on TV shows also stating their opposition to immigration from Mexico. I wonder, “did all of them come here legally”? Could there be some hypocrisy?

Many ancestors of todays Americans came here legally and then destroyed the culture that was here before them. They were guilty of murder and land theft, but they were not prosecuted, but rewarded. Let's drop this title “illegal” and get down to helping our fellow human beings.

BuSh's program is a good start. However, I would not want to see immigrants tied to one company, because that smacks of indentured servitude.

We need a plan that will work to the benefit of all Americans. Like it or not, we must think of the greater good. It won't make everyone happy, but it should be fair and equitable.

The fact that illegal aliens pay into the social security system and aren't able to use it, isn't really the point. The fact that many babies of illegal aliens are born in this country and automatically receive government benefits that the citizens of the United States pay for, isn't really the point either. The bigger picture is the point.

Massive numbers of illegal aliens entering the U.S. on a daily basis having a dramatic impact on our society is the point. Some plan that is fair to honest Americans living in this country and a plan that is as fair as can be for the millions of illegal aliens living in this country is what is needed. There has to be a compromise if we are going to be fair and if we are going to be compassionate to everyone, not just the illegal aliens.

It's unfortunate that the term "illegal aliens" has such a harsh sound to it. But it's an unfortunate fact of life and sugar-coating it won't bring about a fair and equitable settlement of this issue.

And you are right, commiting a crime by entering this country illegally is not the same as committing a murder or rape. But breaking the law is breaking the law. We can't have people going about breaking whatever laws they disagree with. Our safety and way of life is at issue.

Get a plan. Change the laws. Help people adapt to our language and way of life. Help people integrate into our society in such a way that it benefits the greater good. That would be compassionate. That would be fair.

What I stated was a plan fair to all people, both citizen and immigrant. The USA needs workers to do menial and labor intensive work. The immigrants need that work and are willing to do it. Win-win.

Help people adapt to our language and way of life.

We have no language and no way of life. This is a melting pot. I might like pizza or I might prefer knishes while others may prefer tacos. You don't have to eat Turkey on Thanksgiving to be a good American. English is not the official language of the USA. Maybe we should not have stolen so much of what has become the USA from the Spanish. Then we would not have so many cities and states with non-English names.

Massive numbers of illegal aliens entering the U.S. on a daily basis having a dramatic impact on our society is the point.

And most economists say that while short term, it may hurt the economy, long term, it benefits the economy. Win-win.

And you are right, commiting a crime by entering this country illegally is not the same as committing a murder or rape. But breaking the law is breaking the law.

No! Breaking the law is not breaking the law. If it was, the penalty for speeding would be the same as the penalty for murder.

The fact that many babies of illegal aliens are born in this country and automatically receive government benefits that the citizens of the United States pay for, isn't really the point either.

Those babies are American citizens. They have the same rights as you or I. Maybe if we let their parents legally work, their taxes would eventually cover the costs.

We stop them from paying taxes and then we call them law-breakers for not paying taxes. Lose-Lose ideas.

Sorry dude, English IS the language of the U.S., official or not. Read the street signs, read government documents, attend public schools. For people who do not accept English as the language of the land, make it official!

I've lived in a country (legally) where a person who did not speak the local language was discriminated against in every venue. It's a disservice to all concerned for us to not agree on a common language that is used in the schools and on official documents, signs, etc.

Breaking the law is breaking the law. Period. There are definitely different penalties, of course, but it is wrong to have laws on the books that are not enforced. Change the law!

I'm not arguing that we should deport everybody. I'm not arguing that the country doesn't need Mexican labor. I'm not arguing that babies born in the U.S. shouldn't receive medical and other government support. I'm just saying that you can't have it both ways. I know that's what you think you're saying too, but the main thing is breaking the law is breaking the law.

We are a nation that functions as well as it does because we have laws that the majority of the population respect. Without laws, there would be chaos. Wrecks. Disrespect. The strong taking advantage of the weak. We need laws. We don't need laws that we don't enforce. The fairness and win-win that you are talking about needs to begin with a change in the law.

Sorry dude, English IS the language of the U.S., official or not. Read the street signs, read government documents, attend public schools.

Funny....I read the street signs where my friend lives in El Paso, TX....a part of the US, and the streets signs are in Spanish.

I went to my local Chinatown and the street signs were in Chinese.

There is a large part of Kansas City where the signs are in Vietnamese.

So that's that for reading street signs.

Now...

Last time I voted (a government document), it was presented in english, spanish, Mandarin, Vietnamese and Korean.

I can take my driver's license test in the same languages.

And....

Public schools? In my own elementary school in the early 70's I was taught Spanish. Every high school and most colleges have a foreign language requirement. Many teachers are multilingual (including my best friend who teaches high school) because to them where the student came from doesn't matter, what matters to her is teaching young minds.

I understand where you are coming from (whether or not I choose to agree). Just think we need to discuss facts.

I am originally from Oklahoma and the street signs in Tehlequah, OK are in Cherokee. But I also agree with BJean about other countries. I grew up overseas (including Spain, Holland, and Libya). While we did have an English speaking school in Lybia (financed by all the oil companies), when I attended school in Holland and Spain, I was in classes that made no attempt to accomidate my needs (and those of the several other American kids) Classes were taught in Dutch and Spanish respectively. I think not having an official language is bad for this country, not devistating or anything, but just bad policy. I am not offended by others speaking their native language and keeping their culture alive. I think thats a great thing. But I feel that for official documents, etc., One language would be the proper thing to do.

I am originally from Oklahoma and the street signs in Tehlequah, OK are in Cherokee. But I also agree with BJean about other countries. I grew up overseas (including Spain, Holland, and Libya). While we did have an English speaking school in Lybia (financed by all the oil companies), when I attended school in Holland and Spain, I was in classes that made no attempt to accomidate my needs (and those of the several other American kids) Classes were taught in Dutch and Spanish respectively. I think not having an official language is bad for this country, not devistating or anything, but just bad policy. I am not offended by others speaking their native language and keeping their culture alive. I think thats a great thing. But I feel that for official documents, etc., One language would be the proper thing to do.

None of those countries were melting pots as the USA is supposed to be.

None of those countries have a sign that says,

"Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breath free.

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me.

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

And that sign sits under a statue giving to us by the country that did more to help us win our revolution than any other country in the world: FRANCE!!

None of those countries know the pride of being an American when a Chinese-American man wins the Olympic Gold Medal in tennis or a Japanese-American wins an international gold medal in Ice skating, nor knows the glory that it brings to the USA.

We are not like any other country. We are the USA and we are the people of the world all rolled up in one big happy family. How did your ancestors get here?

If people move here from all the other countries in the world (which they do) and there is no requirement that one particular language is the law of the land, are we then discriminating if we don't offer all government documents in every language that every U.S. citizen wants to use? Do you require that schools teach in the languages and use books translated into the languages of wherever the children are originally from that are enrolled in those schools? Explain to me exactly how this would work. What exactly is your proposal to be fair to all foreign speaking people who move here?

Or does melting pot mean that foreigners who adopt this as their country and who become American citizens should melt into the bigger pot by giving up some of their own country's peculiarities and adopting the standards of the United States?

In a perfect world in the United States, would we be required to have street signs the size of billboards so we could make sure no one is offended or inconvenienced if they move here? What's wrong with adopting a language in this country? How does that threaten the well being of any person who chooses to become a citizen of the U.S.? How does it insult or how is it politically incorrect to anyone who wants to come here and become an American? Because it is difficult to learn English?

Or is it because you just don't think that we need a common language in the United States? You don't think that having a common language would be a unifying step in the process of people feeling and being accepted when they move here? Do you think that we should all live in sectors, like China Town or Little Italy or Vietnamese City, depending upon our nation of origin? We American Indians were certainly expected to dwell in such a place. So we could have "reservations" for everyone? How is this fair? Or politically correct? What exactly do you propose that is better for this country than having a common language? How exactly do we become "one big happy family" if we can't even communicate or begin to understand each other?

Canada is also a country made up of immigrants. Our two official languages are English and French but the city where I live, which is the 6th largest in North America, is largely comprised of immigrants. (My own parents were immigrants in fact.)

Toronto is a city which is comprised of neighbourhoods where you will find conglomerations from the same parts of the world tend to live. These are the newcomers and more often than not their English skills are poor to nonexistant. Living in the same neighbourhood with folks who come from the same neighbourhood allows these immigrants to achieve a degree of social and psychological comfort while they ease their way into this society.

These folks do, however, come in contact with mainstream Canadian society for they become the folks who operate the corner stores, drive taxis, nanny children, work behind donut store counters, and work in the ethnic stores and restaurants that serve their own community. Of course we Canadians also like to go to the ethnic stores and restaurants and so the cultures will meet.

When the newcomers land in trouble with the law the taxpayer is on the hook for a translator. When material concerning property taxes or other city matters is sent out it is sent in all the languages of the neighbourhood as well as in English. Politicians who are running for office do the same with their printed materials.

It is their children who integrate of course. They are the ones who learn to speak and act Canadian. This is how immigration works.

I should mention that Canada also has immigration problems. We have illegal immigrants. There is one elderly illegal immigrant from St. Lucia who needs heart surgery. Should the Canadian taxpayer fund this? This is currently under debate.

Canada has also made the rules for legal immigration so stringent that we are siphoning off the educated elite of third world countries only to inform them once that they are here that our professional institutions don't recognise their qualifications; they then are forced into taking all those jobs that Canadians don't want.

At the same time our new government recently deported a huge number of Portuguese construction workers who had been living and working here for ten to fifteen years. These men were skilled labourers and the backbone of this industry.

I guess I mention all of this because I feel that a nation can accomodate the special language needs of newcomers without the loss of the dominant language. Moreover, this is particulary true of English; English has become the true international language, the language of dominance, of power, and of diplomacy.

Adult immigrants may or may not be able to acquire skill in English. Some people are better at learning foreign languages than others. But they certainly will demand that their children speak English like Americans.

Actually I do think that we should all have a common language in the USA and even though I am a liberal and liberals generally don't support English as a common language, I do. But, not because English is superior (as some people like to think), but because since more people in the USA speak English than any other language, it would be the easiest transition.

My objection is to people who want to use the inability to speak English as a way to discriminate. Pat Buchanan who ran for president in the Republican Primaries in 1996 and 2000, wants to only let people who are white and come from English speaking countries to be able to legally migrate to the USA. But he is not prejudice, they say.

If you go to Europe or many other places, or even airports and bus terminals in the USA, you will see signs in a universal language; pictures.

When I first got into computers (early 1960's), it was required that people learn very intricate languages like Cobol and Fortran. Very few people became fluent, most people were not able to have the benefit of a computer and computers cost in the millions of dollars. Then someone at Stanford University and at the Palo Alto Research Center, got the idea of using pictures instead of words. People, then found it easier to use computers (because they did not have to learn the languages) and now most people own computers and are able to do things they never dreamed of doing, like writing this reply to your post, and PC's which have the power of computers that used to cost $5,000,000 can be bought for less than $500. All because we didn't get hung up on language.

This country needs immigrants as workers and as consumers. We can help them learn English. They will melt in if they are not isolated into pockets by language or by fear of deportation. In the late 1950's, Brooklyn had a huge influx of Puerto Ricans. One of 5 people in my 6th grade class could not speak English. Today, many of the grand-children of my classmates can not speak Spanish. Many of them eat as much American food as traditional Puerto Rican food. I learned that I love Puerto Rican food. I benefited and they benefited.

If immigrants are given a chance to become citizens, by first allowing them to get green cards and go through a citizenship process, they will gradually blend in. Here in Florida, about half the people I see on local TV shows (news for example) have Spanish surnames and they speak perfect English and would not be singled out as Spanish-Americans except by their name.

I am Italian-American and when I go to many places to register for something, people start speaking to me in Spanish because my last name is spelled like it could be Spanish.

There will always be flux. Whatever is changing always annoys some people who would like to keep the status quo. Sorry, but life moves on. Read the papers from the 1800's or 1900's. We have been here before, and we survived and thrived.