A new report out by Jon Feere of the Center for Immigration Studies entitled "Birthright Citizenship in the United States: A Global Comparison" is absolutely outstanding. I have been studying it over the past few days, marking up the margins with notes, and thinking on a lot of the information in it.
It is simply a must read if you have any interest in the subject or are outraged at the continued abuse of our country by those who hold no allegiance to it.
Some of you may think that you are quite familiar with birthright citizenship and the reasons and methods that it was implemented, but I learned quite a bit that I wasn't aware of and I'm sure you will as well.
The report goes over the thoughts of those who put together the 14th amendment, how it has been distorted by the other side and does a global comparison of countries that continue to grant birthright citizenship. It also delves into scholars and judges opinions of the issues.
Exploitation of our citizenship and the methods that are used are covered, from "temporary guest workers" who have a child while here and then just overstay their visas to outright fraud in the reasoning for coming here in a ploy called "birth tourism". The ploy isn't even hidden, but openly advertised and our country does nothing to combat it. Package deals are put together including flight, hotels, birth of babies on US soil for citizenship and in some cases even shopping trips and tours - all under the guise of a tourist visa. All of this for just a few thousand dollars.
Chain migration is also examined and the gaming of our welfare, education and food stamp programs.
The best part of the report is that it provides a solution; It doesn't just point out the problem. It delves into the improbability of a constitutional amendment and points out that all can be clarified by congress itself, if the damn of the people and will is there.
I highly recommend that you download this free report or read it online. Then pass it around to all that you know, especially those who are outraged at the issue, but maybe don't have all of the facts. The report is 20+ pages, but it is well worth your time to inform yourself to the history, nature and solution to our birthright citizenship issue.
My good friend Carmen Morales of You Don't Speak For Me attended the Restoring Honor rally on August 28, 2010. She has an excellent take on what I believe many experienced at the rally. Thank you for sending this to me Carmen.
---
To all my friends out there I wanted to let you guys know a little of our great experience, we had a great time at the Glenn Beck restoring honor event.
It was a wonderful feeling standing there with respectful, honest, friendly, and very patriotic people. Joe and I talked to some of them a lady from Wisconsin who was telling us that she took her kids out of school and is now home schooling them, because of what they are being taught in the public schools.
The night before we took a cab to check out the area where we would be the next day and it was so beautiful, there were people everywhere with blankets, chairs, flags, mostly families united with their children, it was a beautiful night, and by the fence facing the reflecting pool with a big flag singing the Stars Spangled Banner and God bless America was a group of people, I got so emotional it was such a good feeling watching all these happy people, but we knew at that moment that we should've done the same thing, camp out there and wait for daylight, but we weren't prepared for our stuff was at the hotel.
Joe and I knew that by the time we return on the next morning that probably the place would be packed, because people were arriving as we spoke. We walked around a bit and returned to the hotel.
The next morning we got up at 5:00 AM, ordered breakfast for 6:00 Am, ate breakfast got ready and walked downstairs to find a cab. We had a hard time waiting for a cab they were all too busy. We finally hopped in a cab at around 7:15 we got there at around 7:30 and we had a hard time looking for a spot where we could see at least the huge screen we found a place but not too close but yet not as far as other people, who arrived much later than us, we were around halfway from the Lincoln Memorial. Some nice people moved their chairs over so that we could put our chairs next to theirs. We stood there with our white T-shirts that we bought the night before, we tried hard to find a "Restoring Honor" T-shirt but could not find one so we bought two white T-shirts with the great seal of the Nation's Capitol.
The weather was good and we sat there waiting for Glenn Beck, while they played music and we talked to the lady from Wisconsin for a while, then we ended up bumping into a nice couple from Springfield, New Jersey and the cowboy from Arizona who I took a photo with because he looked so nice and patriotic with his cowboy hat and a red, white and blue shirt, he told us he was a rancher from Arizona and we ended up talking about my favorite subject "illegal immigration" and our unsecured borders, and of course our weak government.
We had a little cooler packed with bottles of water. When at around ten minutes to 10 the music started changing and preparing us for Glenn Beck's appearance I started getting excited and getting goose bumps and I could hear people from afar yelling and applauding so I figured they must've spotted Glenn, when finally it was like counting the minutes on New Year's eve, counting the minutes until finally we heard the boy scout announce the pledge of allegiance which was wonderful, and then Glenn Beck's voice and the crowd went wild, OMG I will never forget that feeling.
After that I kept struggling to see because where we sat and all of a sudden more people came in and sat in front of us which was the walkway, then I really had a hard time trying to see, most people finally gave up from trying to see because they really had no where to go, and just listened which is what Joe and I did.
I was amazed at how good people were, no one was angry, no angry looks, people helping each other, there was a garbage can by us which was full to capacity and every time someone passed by they would pile up more and more garbage finally we stopped picking up whatever fell from the sides because for some reason people though that it would stay on the pile of garbage but stuff kept falling out so we made a little pile by the side, of the garbage can.
People were wonderful. We sang, and there were tears, and some laughter. I will never forget where I was on August 28, 2010. Something I wished my children and grand children would've seen. Lots of families with their kids which I thought was a great thing to have these kids learning history.
When it was finished people walked out of the area everyone looking for cabs and no one could find one they were all busy. Joe and I ended up walking towards the hotel just one block at a time, I did not see not one person complaining or upset, even though they were tired and sweating from the heat.
After walking maybe 5 blocks we finally waved a cab down and boy did it feel good to sit in an air conditioned cab, finally making it to the hotel. What a wonderful experience, I missed some of my patriotic friends from all over the US, I was hoping to bump into some of my favorite patriots.
Finally back at the hotel, we relaxed a bit changed and back out to dinner.
The next day we got in our car and we decided to go check the same area where we were the day before because we wanted to see the Korean War Veterans Memorial, what an amazing memorial to see. It was beautiful to see a platoon of statues of soldiers from the Korean War, they look real, people taking photos there, and we also had time to see the World War II memorial.
The one thing that I noticed was that this was Sunday morning and some of the garbage cans were still full, but there was not one piece of paper on the ground anywhere throughout the whole area, it was spotless. 500,000 people and the place was spotless, that shows what type of people were there, and even though they had children with them the place was still spotless. I was telling Joe that if it would've been an illegal alien rally, we would be jumping over dirty diapers, food, beer cans and bottles, garbage galore! This is what separates true respectful Americans from people who hate our country, but love our money.
Just thought I would let my friends in on our "Restoring Honor" experience. I wonder if Al Sharpton's area where they had the rally was just as clean? Mmmmm.....Just wondering, LOL.
Check out attached photo with the Cowboy from Cochise County, Arizona.
In Christopher Hitchens's piece on the Glenn Beck Restoring Honor rally entitled "White Fright", Hitchens argues that those who attended the rally did so mainly due to a concern of what he dubs "white fright" - the fear of whites becoming the minority race in America. Now I love and admire Hitchens for his stances that, in general, are in the interests of reason, questioning and intellect, but on this latest thought process he is wrong.
Hitchens claims that this fear of becoming the minority is going to soon become volatile. His own statements in the same article fly in the face of his assertions as he points out that portions of Texas and California have already become white minority. Was there violence in those areas as whites became a minority? Was there blood in the streets? Indeed there has been some, but it was between blacks and Hispanics fighting over territory, not whites.
It is quite obvious that Hitchens holds Beck in contempt in his descriptions of the man, comparing him to the father of the Christian Coalition and referring to him as a "quasi-educated Mormon broadcaster". I have my differences of opinion with Beck and do indeed think that he is using some people for his own - and his fellow supporting and "blessed" friends - own gain, but I would not go as far as to slam him quite so hard.
The crux of Hitch's argument comes back to religion in the piece time and again, with him being a non-theist or anti-theist this is understandable. Hitchens sees organized religion as just a method of fooling the masses and controlling them for power, fame and fortune all on a fairy tale of beliefs and hand-me-down stories. In this I agree with him on the manipulation. To somehow twist this whole rally on the "white fright" issue, just to justify his position against religion, is beneath him.
He tosses in the recent immigration battle in Arizona as just another example. He ignores the fact that there might just be a majority of Americans that want the actual rule of law to be enforced so that we can have some sort of societal control and order in this country. To simply assert that it is a mass outpouring of "angry white people" afraid of the [insert color of your choice] people, does not do justice to the intellect I believe he has. Come on Mr. Hitchens you are quite better than that my friend. I expected a reasoned debate on the detriments and merits of uncontrolled illegal immigration from you, not simply the talking points of La Raza that all of those opposed to illegal immigration are simply racists and bigots. That argument is simply non-intellectual and ill-reasoned.
Hitchens recently became a United States Citizen and we are much the richer for his joining of our country of his own choice because of his belief in our principles and system of government. But now he would have us believe that the 70-80 percent of his fellow countrymen, those who want immigration laws enforced, are simply racists or the "white frightened". I simply find that hard to believe that someone would join such a country they viewed that way of their own volition.
He continues, noting that those who oppose Obama rarely make slurs against him purely on the color of his skin and also notes that he is hearing more allegations that Obama is foreign-born or a Muslim. I suggest that in the former case that is because those who oppose Obama's actions are indeed not racist and therefore the issue has nothing to do with his skin color. To suggest that omission of direct racist attacks against Obama shows that those attacking his stances are truly racist flies in the face of reason. He seems to hint that it is just well hidden. How clever of the millions to simultaneously agree to not make racist comments simply because it would be poor form. As Mr Hitchens well knows, Americans are world renowned for their lack of keeping their opinions to themselves. To suggest a vast conspiracy of such a nature is pretty laughable from such a great thinker.
As for the latter assertion that there is more chatter questioning Obama's place of birth and religion, I would dare to point Mr. Hitchens to the fact that it is more than likely because of recent polling that came out. It is also due to the actions the president and his lackeys have taken that have increased this belief. How are people to judge someone other than on their actions? Recent polls showed the numbers on both of these issues were on the increase. The news media quickly plastered them all over the place.
Polls are polls and sometimes they are wrong and sometimes those sampled are different than those sampled before - as well as the wording of the polls. The increased chatter is coming from the left of the media that has continued to latch on in any way and trumpet from the mountaintop that America - and those who oppose Obama's stances - are simply hate-filled racists. That Mr. Hitchens - a generally great skeptic - cannot see that this "increase" in chatter is purely political maneuvering from a sympathetic wing of the media boggles my mind.
Hitch also takes a slap at Sarah Palin, and rightly so. Her lackluster speech was a rehash of every other speech she has given, and without any seeming passion. He blasts her for having to point out that she stands for our soldiers who have sacrificed, as if the rest of us need to be reminded, or somehow do not care. I am a vet myself, but many times I see people use the military and veterans for their own gain when they themselves have never sacrificed one thing. They go from mommy and daddy paying for all their food, clothes and shelter to mommy and daddy paying for their college to finally - after 25 years or so - actually earning a paycheck for themselves. Then a year or two later they come around to tell the rest of us how much our vets have sacrificed for us and how hard life is. Well that is very nice of you to state having never really sacrificed or suffered yourself. Hitchens is right to call them out on this.
The real crux though is when he states the following:
More recently, almost every European country has seen the emergence of populist parties that call upon nativism and give vent to the idea that the majority population now feels itself unwelcome in its own country.
Since when is it okay that citizens of a country feel unwelcome in their own country? When is it okay for their government to give benefits to others over the citizens of the country they are sworn to defend and serve. On this note I vehemently disagree with Mr. Hitchens. What is the point of becoming a citizen of any country if that country seems to treat citizens as the plague of the country's existence? When is it okay for a country to treat immigrants or visitors to a country better than its citizens? What is the point of having a country with laws, safety and security if it can just be walked into by masses of people - who do not hold the same principles to government and the rule of law or value of the constitution - and just take over portions of that country?
You cannot have equality for all, the continued existence of infrastructure and an ordered society if it is overwhelmed. This is the true heart of the immigration issue and it has nothing to do with any sort of "white fright" as Hitch puts it. The citizens of a country have a right to limit the number and skill-level of people that come to their country, so that proper planning can occur. They have a right to demand that they properly assimilate into the culture of the nation. They have a right to ensure that this action does not adversely affect citizens who are already here. To do it any other way is suicidal for that nation. Those who argue against this logic are doing so for some other purpose than the principles of our constitution and your rights as a citizen of the nation of the United States.
A new documentary entitled Southern Exposure is set to be released on September 15, 2010. Three years in the making, the documentary delves into uncensored violent images, the corruption in Mexico and the United States and the ties between illegal immigration and Islamic terrorists. You can find out more information at the Southern Exposure website.
The producers, Stan Wald and Jerry Misner of Eyefull Productions said that during the making of the documentary they found that the corruption is not limited to just Mexico. In an interview with WND they said that word from top down has been put to those filling out reports that they must lie and cover up apprehension data along the border.
Wald said, "I think that the Department of Homeland Security is deceiving Americans. We've interviewed several retired Border Patrol supervisors. One told us off-camera he was being asked to cook the books."
Misner further explained that in one particular report to the DHS, this former supervisor's agents declared they had spotted 900 illegal but un-apprehended migrants. A DHS manager returned the report to him with the number "900" scratched out and changed to "0" (zero).
The true nature of the illegal alien invasion is even greater than anyone could imagine if such corruption is wide-spread - which I believe it is. There is a concerted effort in our government to keep the American people from knowing the true data. This is evident in the many laws that prevent noting the immigration status of those applying for and receiving benefits and those being arrested by law enforcement. You can be sure when you hear a number that it is more likely quite higher than they actually are showing.
The disturbing part of the documentary is the continued infiltration of terrorists and their supporters into our country. I include the masses of gang members in these numbers as they do nothing but terrorize communities. WND put it this way regarding how many of the "dangerous individuals" make it in:
Considering the Border Patrol's conservative estimate, if one third of the Tucson trespassers were apprehended last year, another 756,000 entered through that sector and are dispersed throughout the U.S. Likewise, if 15 percent are convicts, approximately 113,400 dangerous individuals entered the U.S. through that one sector in just one year.
Among these are murderers and sex offenders along with the gang members and terrorists. US Border Patrol Agent Michael Scioli, interviewed for the documentary, says that sex offenders are "hugely" a part of these numbers. We are allowing sex offenders to sneak in (it's not even really sneaking is it, but walking across openly?) along with the drug runners and others. With this ineffective border security, the burden for open borders is placed on those living lawfully in our country, both citizens and legal residents. This burden includes the people of this country having to become the victim of the vicious violence that streams across the borders with the "hard working illegal aliens".
Below is a trailer for Southern Exposure. It looks like it will get at the heart of the issue and expose the truth to the people.
(Grand Rapids, Michigan) Last month, Leonel Franco-Avina, a 39-year-old Mexican illegally in the United States, was found guilty by a Kent County jury on charges of second-degree murder and drunken driving causing death.
The conviction stemmed from a November 2009 incident when Franco-Avina was driving while extremely drunk, blood alcohol level measured at 0.425 percent.
While heading south in a northbound lane, Franco-Avina's pickup truck collided with a vehicle driven by 30-year-old elementary school teacher Aaron Haynes. It happened at 7:15 AM and Haynes died on impact.
Yesterday, Leonel Franco-Avina was sentenced to life in prison by Kent County Circuit Court Judge George Buth. Through an interpreter, Franco-Avina expressed remorse.
"I apologize to the family, and I feel bad," Franco-Avina said. "Believe it or not, I lost my family, too. Because of this, I'm here alone, and my family is in Mexico."
Franco-Avina wept as he talked about his ailing mother and the children he will never see again.
Meanwhile, the Haynes family is devastated by the loss of Aaron Haynes, first-grade teacher, husband and father. Sadly, his 10-month-old son is destined to grow up without ever knowing his daddy.
Reverend Wayne Perryman, Ted Hayes, C. Mason Weaver and others address the impact of illegal immigration on the black community in the video below. Unemployment is higher in the black community than in the hispanic community, yet there are those urging an amnesty for illegal aliens. As Ted Hayes points out, some so-called "black leaders" in congress and members of the Congressional Black Caucus do indeed see the devastation of illegal immigration, yet they are afraid to speak out. They don't want to lose votes, they fear violent retaliation in the streets against blacks by hispanics and "they don't want to be called racists".
Enough is enough though! Why would you sit by and watch your communities be destroyed? What kind of leader would do such a thing? It doesn't matter if the community is black, white, hispanic, asian or any other ethnicity, these are Americans we are talking about and they should be defended against this influx of law breakers who are making the lives of the poorest among us a living hell.
Not long after rancher Rob Krentz was murdered, Cherlyn Gardner Strong moved to the Arizona-Mexico border. In the continuing struggle with the issues of illegal aliens and drugs - and the cartels that service both - many have said that those who live along the border should just buck up and accept the border for what it is. After all, they argue, you choose to live there, you could just move away.
Really? Is this the country that we live in, where people are expected to just sell their properties - some of which have been in the family for generations - and just retreat? If that is your argument, how much of our land are we supposed to give away? Isn't there an obligation that the federal government should do its job and ensure that the border is secure? Don't citizens have a right to live on property that is a part of the United States and that they own without being victimized?
Cherlyn gave me permission to post, in full, her recent article of what life is truly like living along the border, the beauty, the inconvenience and the reality.
My topic is usually the paranormal here on the Tucson Citizen website. However, we bloggers are granted the freedom to write off-topic. Today, my topic is my life on the Arizona-Mexico border.
It is my hope to provide a different perspective of life on the border for anyone interested in considering a different perspective. I do have a lot to say about it.
I live in Santa Cruz County, but not in a city. I am in the forest east of Nogales, along the border. My experiences on the border likely don’t match those living on the border in Cochise or Yuma counties. Although I did live for one year in Three Points (Pima County) and can certainly speak for those folks. I can honestly say that life there is impacted to some degree by illegal crossers, especially those who live further to the south, around the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge.
Yet, life where I live in the rugged mountains, surrounded by the Coronado National Forest, it is much different than it was for me in Three Points.
Life on the rural border is different for everyone, all along the Arizona border. One cannot state that the problems that they face on a daily basis are exactly the same for someone else who may live just 5 miles away from them along the border. That is a fact. This is the main reason that there is no simple solution to the very complex border issue. It depends somewhat on where you live along the border. You can’t count on location to determine what those issues might be either. The traffic from Mexico does tend to shift occasionally all along the border to prevent smugglers and illegal crossers from getting caught. At the moment, I live along one of those well traveled routes.
How I ended up here
When I found a remote rental home advertised in the forest on the border, I jumped on the opportunity for a couple of reasons. First, it allowed me the solitude to write in one of the most beautiful areas in Arizona. Secondly, my great great grandfather, Thomas Gardner, was an Arizona pioneer. He was one of the first white settlers in Santa Cruz County, initially settling not very far from where I live.
My great great grandfather immigrated, legally, from Scotland. He married Gertrudis Apodaca, from Mexico. Their son married a woman from Mexico. Their son’s son married a woman from Mexico. Coupled with my Mexican lineage on the maternal side of my family, my lineage is clearly Mexican.
I suppose my moving to the area provided me with a chance to live like my great great grandfather. There are differences, of course. I have modern day conveniences, like electricity, running water, Internet, phone and a motorized vehicle. These things were not available to him back in the mid-1800s. He dealt with frequent attacks by the Apache. I don’t need to worry about that today. My situation is different.
Not long after I gave my deposit on the house, rancher Rob Krentz was murdered in Cochise County, near Douglas. After reasoning with my husband, I insisted that my dad was born in and grew up in this area, and I felt it was still safe. I’ve camped in the area since I was a small child. Douglas is some 100 miles away, depending on which route is taken. Cochise County does have different border related issues than Santa Cruz County.
Additionally, the home is safe with security doors and windows. There is a high level of Border Patrol presence. We also own firearms.
I was very comfortable with the decision, so we proceeded with the move. The first trip we made with our possessions to the home, we found ourselves pulled over by the Border Patrol on the way back, just a couple miles into our return journey to Tucson. Our vehicle was checked for illegals and for drugs. The agent addressed my husband by name, without my husband offering it, since our plate was run by the agent prior to being pulled over. We informed the agent that we were moving to the area and he said that it would take a while for the agents in the area to recognize us as residents.
After a friendly chat with the agent, we stopped in Sonoita to grab a bite to eat. After dinner, we drove through the Border Patrol checkpoint north of Sonoita. A commander approached the vehicle and asked what we ate for dinner. Based on that question and the conversation that followed, the agents had been watching us, and they had done some homework on us. Although the experience was initially unsettling, we did realize that they were just doing their jobs. Then, we were further enlightened by the Border Patrol.
We were told two things during that checkpoint stop. First, we should expect to be approached by a representative of a drug cartel. To handle this visit properly, we are not to show fear, nor are we to assist them in any way. Second, we should expect one or more late night visits from an illegal or illegals. We are not to assist them either. We were assured that the Border Patrol agents are always 30 seconds away by phone if we need them, for which I am thankful.
Despite the warning, neither scenario we were warned about has happened. However, it has happened to each and every one of our handful of neighbors who are spread out in this remote wilderness. We are told that it is only a matter of time. It could happen while we are out gathering firewood, away from the house and far from any phone. There is no cell phone service available in the area.
Living in the forest is quite a unique experience. It also requires putting up with some inconveniences.
Inconveniences
We live miles south of the warning signs, so the forest is not the most popular tourist area. Additionally, the United States Postal Service recently halted mail delivery to the homes. The mail carrier had a scary experience involving an illegal border crosser. So, mail is sent to a group of lock boxes in the forest. I was informed by the post office that the lock boxes do get broken into. Therefore, I have my mail sent to town, about 20 miles away.
Warning sign
It is certainly baffling that the government acknowledges a problem with the warning signs and also refuse to deliver mail to the homes, due to dangers faced by mail carriers. Yet, according to what is presented by the media, the border is safe as it has ever been. Well, the mail used to be delivered to the houses, so the fact that the mail carriers won’t deliver mail to the homes tells me that this statement is not entirely true.
A UPS driver also had a scary experience here. Due to that, there is some talk of UPS also halting service to the area. UPS still delivers at the moment. Their brown truck resembles a brown streak these days. It roars through this area like a Pony Express rider with a band of Apache in pursuit. UPS driving at high speeds through the area must minimize their chances of a dangerous encounter with an illegal.
There aren’t very many visitors around here otherwise. Occasionally, rockhounds, birdwatchers, hunters and campers do visit, generally without incident. We generally don’t get much other daily traffic around these parts, except for the few local residents and the Border Patrol. The Border Patrol drives by countless times a day. They also drag the road every day to clear any footprints on the dirt road from the night before, so they can better track illegals. The perimeter of our property has had many footprints cleared away. The footprints that have appeared overnight weren’t ours. None of these feet have found their way in the darkness to our front door.
The agents still don’t know us, due to some turnover and shift changes. A routine trip to the grocery store is nearly always interrupted by the Border Patrol pulling us over. They run our license plate, but our address does not show up where we live. The MVD mailing address does not match our home address, since we can’t get mail delivered to the house, which does add to the inconveniences.
We put up with being pulled over, and sometimes searched, because the agents are just doing their jobs.
The trip to Nogales is rather interesting, since much of the activity occurs between here and there. This is the same stretch where two off duty Nogales police officers were threatened by the drug cartels. The officers were told to not interfere with drug smuggling operations while off-duty.
One trip to the grocery store made me nervous. My husband and I spotted a vehicle that had backed far off the road. It didn’t look like the vehicle owner was camping. At the same time, we saw a Border Patrol agent on an ATV quickly approaching behind us. He pulled off the road near the vehicle. We assumed that he was preparing to question the vehicle owner. As we proceeded a couple miles ahead, two Border Patrol trucks appeared from nowhere with their sirens blaring. We pulled over, and four agents rushed our vehicle with their hands ready to pull their guns from their holsters. All they found were me and my husband with our three Chihuahuas. We, and our dogs, all have the proper identification, should we be asked for it.
They said that we were pulled over because another agent radioed in that a vehicle, like the color of ours, was spotted “loading up”. We informed them that they were probably looking for the vehicle a couple miles back. Later, on the way back from the store, we pulled over a Border Patrol truck with a couple agents inside of it. We asked them if the person in the vehicle that matched ours was apprehended. They had no idea what we were talking about, they said.
I do feel strangely safe with the Border Patrol all around us, despite the dangerous activity. Also, despite agents surrounding our vehicle in an apparent case of mistaken identity. As long as they aren’t trigger happy, it’s tolerable.
While I feel relatively safe, I do fear for the safety of the illegals who are funneled through here.
Dead Bodies
The rugged terrain of the mountains and the lush trees do tend to keep crossers well hidden on their journey north. It also keeps the dead bodies hidden. Two bodies were recently found near my home in relatively advanced stages of decomposition. Not all bodies that are found will be found in the open, if they are ever found. There are abandoned mine shafts, as well as very deep open pit mines scattered throughout the forest. You can’t see the bottom standing on the outside of some of them.
I also cringe every time I see the vultures circling. I am never sure if breakfast or lunch for the vultures is animal or human.
With very few people in the area and few tourists, many of the bodies of illegal crossers will never be found. Yes, they do die so close to the border.
My dad came across a group of illegals a couple of weeks ago by the side of the road. They were tired, hungry, thirsty and sore. They had wandered through the forest in circles for days because they didn’t know which way was north. They gave up and wanted to be turned in to the Border Patrol. Had my dad not found them, the chances are high that they would have added to the unknown body count in the area.
Snipers / lookouts on the mountain tops
Even with the heavily concentrated Border Patrol presence in the area, the smugglers have a huge advantage. Their vantage point from various hilltops and peaks allow them to direct traffic through the area, without Border Patrol even knowing that anything is amiss. Apprehensions may be down, but that could be because the smugglers have an outstanding system in place, keeping the people and drugs out of the path of the agents, preventing apprehensions.
Additional technology in the area would help the Border Patrol immensely, as well as a better ability to communicate with each other. An agent recently revealed in a casual conversation that sometimes their radios don’t work in the area.
The snipers and lookouts don’t scare me. If I don’t mess with them, they won’t mess with me. If I come across any bundles of anything, I am not going to bother it. That’s not my job as a resident. That’s for our fine government to figure out. If the police stay safe by complying with orders from the cartels to look the other way, then what’s good for the goose…
The only other thing that I won’t do is travel through the forest alone at night. The forest is a much different place at night. If I discover that I’ve run out of milk in the evening, it isn’t wise to hop in the car and drive 20 miles on a dirt road through the forest to the store. If I must travel in an emergency, then I will ask the Border Patrol to make sure I get to town safely. Whether I ask them or not, they do maintain a presence between here and town at all times.
A common comment that I receive from well meaning friends and acquaintances is that civilians should not be living here along the border. My viewpoint is that I live in the United States. Clearing out the residents just gives the cartels a larger area to control. How far into the United States are we going to allow for illegal activity?
Another thing that has bothered me is the constant attention on the crime numbers in Phoenix. Phoenix is 180 miles north of the border, yet the talking heads imply that it is a border city. If nothing is done to control the activity of the cartels, then Phoenix may actually become a border city someday.
Personally, I am tired of the many misconceptions related to the border. Particularly the tendency of the media to group all the issues into one unclear issue that doesn’t apply to every area along the border.
Maddow’s Misconceptions
One of the reasons I am writing this post, is due to a recent airing of The Rachel Maddow Show. I am rather disappointed with Maddow’s condescending and incomplete coverage of the very real concerns faced in certain sections of the border. The boundary that divides us from Mexico is visually apparent on a map. However, life along border is not as apparent and constant as that dividing line seen on a map.
Maddow recently sent her staff to Nogales to see the border fence. To demonstrate a point, Maddow showed a picture of her staff member walking mockingly along the fence. The entire event was handled by Maddow and her staff like it was a joke. The problem is, this particular stretch of fence is not what concerns us. It’s the fence where I live in the mountains that deserves a good deal of attention. It’s the fence where much of the traffic actually passes through. There are many other stretches like ours, all over entire length of the border. In some places, there is no fence, only a marker to indicate the border.
Maddow is welcome to send her staffers to our stretch of fence in the mountains and see just how cocky they look strutting by that one. I’m sure that she won’t. There are many holes in the fence due to wildlife needing to cross back and forth from Arizona and Mexico. If you think that only animals take advantage of the holes in the fence, you are quite mistaken.
"Secure" border fence near Lochiel
Adding to my frustration is Maddow’s avoidance of a particular fact that has been presented to her at least twice by local law enforcement.
I’ve seen two interviews with Maddow and Santa Cruz County’s Sheriff Antonio Estrada. In both of those interviews, Estrada said that there is really not much of a problem in Nogales, but most the illegal activity actually occurs in the mountains and canyons outside of town. Estrada hasn’t elaborated on that tidbit of information he’s disclosed and Maddow has never questioned it. By questioning it, I mean asking simple questions like: Do people live in the canyons and mountains? What types of things happen in the canyons and mountains? Should we talk to a Border Patrol agent in the heavily traveled areas to get the real scoop?
Nope, it will never happen. Maddow would have to admit that she doesn’t know all the facts.
Another fence section in Lochiel
Instead, Maddow has responded to Estrada’s tidbit of exposing where the action is, by putting on the baffled face, holding up her hands, and shaking her head in disbelief that anything could be amiss on the border, since the City of Nogales is so safe. Her avoidance of where most illegals actually cross is baffling. Her reaction is an insult to those of us on the rural border who actually see the illegal activity and live with it going on around us. Her reaction to what she perceives to be a non-issue, is much like the faux pas made by Wisconsin’s Peggy West, talking so confidently about an issue that she knows very little about.
It’s not only Maddow who doesn’t clearly see border issues. It’s pretty constant among all members of the media.
I’ve seen accurate blogger reporting, from bloggers who actually live along the border. I trust a border blogger’s word more than I trust anything from the media.
When my dad was a child in the area, sure there were plenty of illegals who passed through. That’s nothing new. It was a different era, though. My grandparents provided food and water to those travelers on foot who needed it. They were never hurt by an illegal.
The drug cartels, however, didn’t direct human traffic through here, sitting on hilltops and peaks with their automatic weapons.
Funneled traffic
In a recent Tucson Weekly article, the Border Patrol spoke of their strategy to funnel illegal activity to this and other remote areas. This strategy keeps the activity away from populated areas. So, in Rio Rico, Tubac and other formerly high activity locations, the people who live there have noticed that there has been a significant decrease in traffic near their homes. They attribute it to less illegals entering the U.S.
I see things differently in my neck of the woods.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the traffic is still coming through. It’s coming through somewhere else where the masses don’t see it. Again, I’ll emphasize that the mountain terrain does put the smugglers at a huge advantage from their vantage points on the hilltops and peaks.
Another section of the fence in Lochiel
Despite the dangers that exist in the area should I cross paths with the wrong people, I do love it here. It is quiet and beautiful. I might feel differently if I were the victim of a crime. If the Border Patrol pulls out from the area, or if they significantly decrease the agents covering the area, I might consider moving.
During my great great grandfather’s time in this area, he faced a different problem, in the form of frequent attacks by the Apache. While on a trip to Tucson for supplies, he was shot through the lungs by Cochise, Chief of the Apache. My great great grandfather survived the attack. Not all their problems involved violent attacks. Sometimes those quiet feet in the darkness of the night would come to steal cattle and horses from the settlers.
So, my great great grandfather decided to move his family north of here to Sonoita, near Fort Crittenden. Living near the fort wasn’t any safer. Up to 8 soldiers at a time were stationed at the Gardner ranch for two-week periods to provide additional protection. Some may argue that white man invaded the home of the Apache, so it was their own fault for moving here.
Things haven’t changed that much. Residents here are protected by the Border Patrol. Perhaps the military might also be dispatched to the area to provide additional protection.
That would bring things full circle, back to life as it was in Southern Arizona in the 1800′s.
My life here is significantly less dangerous than it was for my great great grandfather. The activists would like to argue that the land once belonged to Mexico. While this is true, it no longer does. Additionally, the laws related to the border with Mexico were established since then. The activists cite the law to make sure that racial profiling doesn’t happen, due to ethnicity. Yet, they disregard the border laws in place, in defense of people here illegally, due to the ethnicity of the illegals. This ability to twist the law to one’s liking tells me that we need to improve the laws.
I have “invaded” privately owned land in the United States, surrounded by forest land that presently belongs to the United States. Land that is controlled more and more by the Mexican drug cartels. It makes no sense that the government allows this.
If something were to happen to me, I can count on some arguing that it was my own fault for moving here. I can’t argue with that. I wanted to experience life on the frontier like my ancestor. I didn’t expect to be able to draw these particular similarities between life a century-and-a-half ago and the times of the present when I made that choice.
This is how I choose to live, within the boundaries of the United States.
I wanted to present a different view of the border than the media has presented. My view of it. A true view of life where I live along the border. A view that may differ from the view of other border residents. Some face extreme danger. Some don’t. Some experience something in between, which is where I gauge my present situation. It really depends on where the agents funnel the traffic.
It’s certainly a different way of life with some inconveniences. Horrible things do happen around me, which I hope I never witness up close and personal.
I also hope that I don’t ever run into that Mexican drug cartel neighborhood welcoming committee.
The GOP has finally gone beyond the reach of me ever supporting it again in my lifetime. With them backing the non-conservative, traitorous John McCain to another potential 6 years of abusing our country and leaving it vulnerable to a continued invasion, I can no longer support anything that the GOP does. I already voiced my many, many reasons why McCain is a putrid liar. If that is the kind of "leader" the RNC and GOP supports then there is no reason to support them.
To all of you ignorant Tea Party people out there who are continuing to think that you can somehow co-opt the GOP and turn it in the right direction, John McCain is your answer from the Republican National Committee and the top echelons of this corrupt and unfixable party. Their continued support of candidates like John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins is an abomination.
As for the Tea Party movement, it has been wholly co-opted by the likes of Dick Armey, a fiercely pro-amnesty for illegal aliens proponent who will never change his ways. And the Tea Partiers stand at the sidelines as he speaks for them. They are the equivalent of the "moderate Muslims" who stand by and do nothing while the extremists take over their "religion". Let Armey lead you down into the doldrums of the continued bottomless cesspool that is our political system - for it will never right itself. You sheep out there who are supporting the parties and the Armey backed Tea Party - being steered by FreedomWorks - should be disgusted with yourselves. You should have denounced Armey from day one, yet you did nothing as those of us who see what he truly is have been shouting it for more than a year. I see no action from any of you as he gallivants around the country talking for you. Silence is acceptance.
At one point I thought I would go independent for years and maybe the Republicans would turn themselves around and see the light, but that is not happening and it is not going to happen. There is no going back and I will never support the Republicans or the GOP again. The shortest straw has been pulled and placed on the camel's back that is our country. I urge you to permanently declare your separation from the GOP - for life.
For those who admit that there is no difference between the two, but supporting a third party is "a wasted vote", you have no integrity or character in my eyes. To continue supporting something that you say is broken is appalling and you should really rethink this "strategy" of yours. John McCain is what you get and what you deserve. He is your just reward for your stance.
I will now actively work against the GOP in any manner that I can. I will actively work against the Democrats in any way that I can. As a matter of fact at this point I am seriously thinking of supporting Democrats. I will scream from the mountaintops the pure disgust that both parties have become and convince anyone I can to turn against them. I am of the mind that we need more Democrats in power, more progressives, more John McCains to leave our borders wide open and to allow our citizens to continue to be abused. For what else will wake them up but mass raping, pillaging and murderous attacks?
Let us drive this country into the sewer so that the coming revolution will hasten to our doorstep. Let our financial systems, capitalism, agriculture and industry fall off the cliff of production and into the gully of destruction. I await its coming with a controlled glee because it now reveals itself as the only potential chance for "We The People" to ever truly have our country back.
I'll put it quite blunt as to why you should vote for JD Hayworth tomorrow in the Republican primary in Arizona. John McCain is a liar. He voted for the bailout, he was the sponsor of the illegal alien amnesty bill with Ted Kennedy and he did the deal with Feingold for campaign finance reform that was a move to ensure incumbents had an unfair advantage in elections. His name is all over these bills. McCain-Kennedy. McCain-Feingold. McCain voted against the Bush Tax Cuts. McCain has supported anti-gun legislation. Mccain is a "global warming" guy. McCain called the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth “dishonest and dishonorable”. Now McCain is going around saying that he didn't stand for any of this. Thus he isn't speaking "mistruths" or "clarifying himself" he is outright lying to get re-elected. McCain's best friend in the senate and working partner is Lindsey Graham - does anything more need to be said? Well yes, yes there is one other thing...
Let us not forget that John McCain appointed Juan Hernandez as his "Hispanic Outreach Director" during his presidential campaign. Hernandez is the former Mexican Secretary For Immigration Affairs (he actually helped found the department during the Vicente Fox Administration to push illegal aliens here); a dual citizen of the US and Mexico; a man who once said that generation after generation of Mexicans that come to America should always think "Mexico First".
Who is Juan Hernandez?
Vote for JD Hayworth
Some have said that Hayworth is nothing but a smarmy, used car salesman type. I will not defend his methods. He surely doesn't come across as all warm and fuzzy, but look at McCain! 28 years in "public service" and nothing but the same thing over and over. The votes and sponsorship of bills that are anti-conservative on their face and then outright lies to voters come election time.
McCain is the poster child of what a RINO is
In the presidential election John McCain said to judge him by the company he keeps. Below is a video showing the company that John McCain keeps. Click through to that link to see more of "his company". It includes a who's who of everything that is wrong with long term politicians and congress. The video below shows his "bestest friends".
John McCain: The Company I Keep
McCain is also to have called those who opposed amnesty a "Party Of Assholes". He said he wouldn't want to lead this "Party of Assholes". You vote for McCain and that is who you are voting for.
Some don't feel Hayworth is up to the task. Well let me put it this way, you have a choice in this election. Someone who will stand against amnesty for illegal aliens and one who has already stood for it. A senate term is 6 years. I say that Hayworth should be given the chance. He certainly cannot be worse than McCain, but can be much better. If Hayworth sucks after 6 years, kick him to the curb. You'll do a lot better with Hayworth in there for 6 years - and you'll be sending America a gift since his votes affect those who live outside the state of Arizona.
It saddens me that I actually have to write about this as there are still those of you out there who are being fooled once again by John McCain and his continued lying.
John MCCain Is Pro Amnesty
He always has been and always will be. No matter what is coming out of his mouth at this time, his actions over the past decades speak volumes.
And the guy voted for the bailout! what more do you need to know?
Angry Right Wing Housewife has put together this creative video below that will give you chuckle. Check it out and then go vote Hayworth!
With no incentive other than to demand that the borders be secured, thousands of patriotic Americans swarmed to a border fence in Hereford, AZ for a rally on August 15. Glenn Spencer of American Patrol is reporting that the number came close to 2,000 attendees for a rally that included Sheriff Joe Arpaio, State Senator Russell Pearce and JD Hayworth. This part of the border fence was 3 hours from Phoenix out in the middle of nowhere and people showing up there to rally is a testament to the passion, anger and disgust that the American people have with their government ignoring their security. The media, off course, downgraded the numbers into "hundreds".
Attendees put American flags on the 15 foot border fence with notes addressed to congressional leaders and president Obama to secure the border and appropriate more money for completion of the border fence.
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio ... said immigration enforcement goes far beyond the nation's border and the Mexican Government should welcome U.S. border patrol or military forces to go after drug cartels south of the border.
"Don't just say border enforcement, that's a cop out," he said. "Let's say lock them up in the interior."
"My government should protect me so I can feel safe on my own property ... That's my right as an American. I should feel safe on my own property." - Betsy Bailey
Saying he is tired of Mexico leaders putting the onus on the United States for that nation’s problems, Sheriff Joe Arpaio, defended Arizona’s Senate Bill 1070, which he said has been emasculated by a federal judge.
Mexico’s president and other leaders of that nation always point to the United States as the culprit, Arpaio said.
They tell us, “if you don’t have (drug) users, we would not have the problems,” the sheriff noted.
And the accusations continue blaming the United States for the entrance of weapons into Mexico, when they come from a number of other nations as well, he said.
What it comes down to is America is Mexico’s scapegoat, the sheriff said.
Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce spoke out...
... the issue continues and without action it will become worse, Pearce said.
“Folks, I don’t hate anybody. But enough is enough is enough,” the senator declared.
If the border issue is not addressed by the federal government, as well as state governments along the international boundary, the United States could be on its last legs as a country because it’s “going to destroy the republic,” Pearce said.
Of course there were "counter-protesters" and the AP relished in their attendance. A whole three people turned their back while Arpaio was speaking - they were escorted off the private ranch. AP made sure to get their voices into their piece though giving them three paragraphs explaining that those for enforcing immigration laws are "scapegoating" illegals, that a fence won't work and that we need even more guest worker programs (we have a ton already). This is their "solution" to end illegal immigration - wide open borders and allowing millions more to come here (who they then claim will voluntarily simply go home after their "temporary work" is done). Yeah, umm that's how we do it now and it obviously doesn't work.
Betsy Bayley, 55, a stay-at-home grandmother in Hereford, said drug smuggling has left her feeling less safe in her home in recent years.
"My government should protect me so I can feel safe on my own property," said Bayley, with red, white and blue beads strung around her neck as she found a small patch of shade against the steel border fence. "That's my right as an American. I should feel safe on my own property."
JD Hayworth blasted McCain's flip flopping on amnesty. He called on voters to "don't be fooled again". JD Hayworth for Senate
(Grand Rapids, Michigan) Last month, Leonel Franco-Avina, a 39-year-old Mexican illegally in the United States, was found guilty by a Kent County jury on charges of second-degree murder and drunken driving causing death.
