Straight Talk
In these recent Straight Talks, I have commenced an ambitious project which will be composed of several Parts appearing every two or three weeks in this space. Whereas I am the eternal optimist when it comes to my country and its "exceptionalism," I nevertheless acknowledge and accept that we are becoming a "broken country" in several critical aspects. Things are not working well, and we'd best get about the business of recognizing the problems and fixing them. With that as the goal, I will be writing about "What's not working in America." What's not working in America, you ask? Well, besides what we've already described in these last many weeks, I'm going to write about TWO more breakdowns today; namely, a badly broken immigration policy, and the lack of bold, challenging aspirations for the American people.
Frankly, America has no coherent or rational immigration policy, so that leaves whatever passes for an immigration policy badly broken. As a result, we run off the best and brightest, and we coddle and support the least desireable of peoples [remember, this is Straight Talk where PC plays no role and we just "tell it like it is."] Many of the Asians, Indians, and others who come here to earn their advanced degrees in physics, medicine, science, engineering, etc. want to stay in America to pursue the promise of American opportunity. We make them leave; we tell them that they must go home. Then we turn around and strangle state and local governments with the education, welfare, and health care costs of all the uneducated and unskilled who spill across our borders because we let them. But, you already know all about that. So, what to do to fix the immigration mess?
The first part--i.e. the scientists and engineers who want to stay and contribute--is easy. We let them stay and become citizens here in the U.S. if they choose. Just a simple tweek of the visa and work permit laws will accomplish our purpose. The second part--i.e. what to do with 11 or 12 million illegals who've dropped babies or established roots in American soil--is the hard part. And you know what, I've heard NONE of the GOP candidates, nor the Obama administration, make any sense of this. They're all so busy covering their asses, taking the PC-road, and worrying about Hispanic votes, that they come up with nothing that will work.
Let's just take the latest example, candidate Romney's so-called "solution." "Self-deportation," he calls it, where grandmas and grandpas, and moms and dads just up and leave their American-citizen children and "go back home to apply and get in back of the line." Say, what? What've you been smokin', Mitt? That "solution" not only tops the nonsense list, but it also shows incredible naivete' on your part, Mitt. Are you sure you want to parade that one around for us all to laugh at?? So...what to do with these people (appox. 11 million of them). The professor, as always, has the solution.
Well, no, the professer really doesn't have the answer. It's been there all along., since Bush II was President and since McCain was the GOP standard-bearer. Yep, its the Bush-McCain solution which made sense then and makes sense now. Why? Because its practical; it'll work. Let's review the plan that ultra-conservative Republicans joined with ultra-liberal Democrats to scuttle.
1. First of all, secure the border and STOP all future leaks and illegal crossings. America has the technology to do this in varied ways (electronics, drones, etc.). It's first on the list.
2. Require all illegals that are here to come forward and identify themselves, OR be deported when discovered. Require all these people to carry identification papers or cards to let law enforcement and employers know that they have the cover of law to be here.
3. Require all illegals to pay any back taxes, any fines, and learn the English language as a condition of making application for citizenship.
4. No Amnesty (despite all the vacant Republican rhetoric to the contrary) is involved in the Bush-McCain plan. Illegals who self-identify (step #2 above) and meet the pre-requisite conditions( step #3 above) may then apply to become citizens, but must step to the back of the line behind those who have been waiting to legally emigrate from their native country(ies).
5. Allow employers to hire these illegals when there is a demonstrated need and no American citizens to do the work. Collect social security and all other employment related deductions. Prospective employers are required to check ID papers and the national E-Verify list.
6. [Prof. Marvin's addition to Bush-McCain]: Tough, tough, tough, new deportaion laws requiring immediate deportation for breaking foregoing steps 2, 3, and 4, or for criminal activity, or for breaking any of our other U.S. laws.
If ultra-conservative Republicans will just admit it, their primary objection to the Bush-McCain plan is patently racist. They don't want America to be overrun with those damn Hispanics! Hey, wake up boys, it already is and you ain't gonna git 'em to go home! Better to make the best of a situation that has already happened, you know, spilt milk. If the liberal loonies would only admit it, their main objection to Bush-McCain is securing the border and forcing those "poor profiled illegals" to carry papers and ID. The Libs are home to the "one-worlders" who advocate for no borders and to the Jane Fondas who wouldn't ask a bank robber to see his gun. Whada bunch of losers!!!
Now then, to aspirations! The American people are an aspirational people. It's in our DNA, in the water, in our national heritage. Americans seek to forge ahead with bold, bold, ideas; ideas where mankind has never been before. It's replete in our history and development as a people and as a superpower. Eighteenth-century Americans changed the world by inventing a new way to govern; incorporating liberal philosophies into practical government. Nineteenth-century Americans conquered a continent and subjected its bounty to their will. Twentieth-century Americans dominated the world of economics, medicine, science, physics, engineering, warfare, and all else.
So...what are we twenty-first century Americans doing to earn our place in the country's destiny? Not much of anything--not yet--unless you want to brag about carping, and divisiveness, and entitlement, and selfishness, and the wasting of opportunity and resources. We Americans need to build the trans-continental railroad again, to split the atom again, to go to the moon again, to invent the Salk vaccine again, to make American economically powerful again!!
We desperately need aspirational leadership again, per President John F. Kennedy. On May 25, 1961, Kennedy announced his support for the Apollo program during a special address to a joint session of Congress: "I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important in the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard."
I don't know about you, but those words of President Kennedy still put goosepimples on my flesh. The President emphasized that it would be "impressive to mankind" and "difficult." He said we would choose to do these things "not because they are easy, but because they are hard." And that's what made it worthwhile in Kennedy's mind--that the space aspiration would be "difficult and hard." That speech, and the voyage to the moon later in the decade, is what America is all about. That's the America I grew up in as a young boy, a young man, and as a proud American. I miss that America of my previous years very much. I miss the vision, the quest, the challenge that America embraced like no other nation in the history of mankind!
American aspirations and breakthrough leadership in today's world is broken, because it doesn't exist. The President scuttled the new moon rockets and the planned voyage to Mars, electing to "ride with the Russians." American economic leadership in adapting capitalism to a changing world order is apparently left to the Chinese and the Asia-Pacific. Some of the more advanced medical breakthroughs are happening in Asia and in Britain/Europe. Meanwhile our culture rots while others move ahead. Watch the week-night sitcoms on ABC and CBS and identify what is aspirational in that cesspool of filth and tasteless garbage that passes for "entertainment."
My hope is that one of the Republican candidates will challenge us all to some new horizon in the coming campaign. It can't be all about "balancing the budget" and "cutting spending." How can we move ahead, fix our broken infrastructure, and do big, big things if we're just going to count money? We can't. Sure, we must get our financial house in order--no question there. But, America is a big, big place looking for big, big ideas, and hungry for new frontiers to conquer. We can do both, i.e. get the deficits under control and be world leader. We've done it before, we can do it again! Surely there is somebody out there that can pick up the mantle from Kennedy and Reagan. Surely!
P.S. I was sad when Republicans like Romney ganged up with liberals and the media to make fun of Newt's aspirational example of a "colony on the moon." Mitt shot it down as an absurd idea. Well, Mr. Wall Streeter, its NOT an absurd idea. In fact, among other possible aspirations--like conquering alzheimers and/or cancer in our generation--its probably a GREAT IDEA. Too bad we can't afford it any longer, but that does not condemn it to the scrap pile of ideas. I'm just waiting to hear something vaguely aspirational out of you, Mr. Mitt Romney!
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