moe-tif

this past…couple of months…i’ve seen, read, heard things that have really brought my spirit down…bad shit’s been around for ages, lately however, it seems to hit closer to home…or maybe i just can’t turn away from it anymore…whatever the case, tonite i’m taking a moment to put my soul at ease…just for a moment…

this week, i walked out of my office and stopped cold…the air was humid, the sun shining bright but, there was a distinct smell of rain and a cool breeze caressing my face…i looked up and, while there was sun all around, there was an approaching gray off to the west…there’s a tree that sits in a courtyard directly in front of my office…looking up into this tree with all it’s green, the contrast against the gray sky was breathtaking…it struck me as if God was giving us a respite, a momentary break from the chaos…i thank God i have the spiritual wherewithal to acknowledge when nature is at Her finest…

last night i was able to go out!!!  this doesn’t happen often…it’s so hard to find someone to take care of my kids…last night i lucked out in the form of a friend’s two children who are so, so wonderful…they are great with my little ragamuffins…anyway, we found ourselves at a jazz club…tiny little place called Sh…awwwwww damn, i can’t remember the name!  once i do, i’ll post it…in the meantime, the experience!  i’m sitting there in the front row watching the performance and the people all around me…the group singing was called, Brown Skin Service…amazing performers!  from the HUGE black man at the synthesizer, to the guitar and bass players, to the hispanic dude playing the drums to……the lead singer…now folks, this woman could sing your soul to another level…her voice was rich, thick and sultry, conveying a passion you couldn’t help but be drawn into…as i sat there listening, i noticed the audience, both those sitting and those dancing…all were a mix of people you wouldn’t normally see sharing this kind of arena…from the white guy who danced like he’d left his skeleton in some closet somewhere (hehehe), to the short black guy who seemed to be a one man comedy central, with no words…to the petite little blonde cutie who could dance her sexual ass off…then the older folk, white, black….whatever, they were feelin it and enjoying the hell out of it…i took notice of one man, a very tall, smooth yet thug lookin black man who danced so….oh man, his were movements a woman would coax off the dance floor into her bed….slow, self assured and rhythmic…all this i took in and marveled that, despite the world’s sense of separateness, there are places out there where color, race, ethnicity are left behind…no, wait…let me change that because it is so incorrect….there are places out there where color, race and ethnicity are not left behind…they are welcomed in the front doors and mixed together to produce a  celebration of diversity, a coming together, if only for a moment…all to enjoy a song that we can all relate to…a song of love, loss and soul stirring emotion…yeah…i’ll be going back…this kind of place is like a sanctuary….

tonite, now that the kids are asleep, i sit here enjoying my beer, Modelo Especial….mmmm, it’s hot and a bit muggy but, it’s peaceful….i’m getting ready to settle into my bed with a book i’ve been dyin to read, “The Jesus Papers”…i dig anything that questions what has forever been touted as THE TRUTH…you know, the kind of TRUTH that, if you don’t take it on, you’ll be condemned to HELLFIRE…whatever…God is so much more…and yet, so simply accessible…so, anyway…my sense is, before i get thru the first chapter, i’m gonna be out cold…i’m beat, mentally, emotionally, spiritually…not in a bad way…i’ve just been running full speed for too long without a break…

with all that said…peace, good nite, and watch out, cuz i’ll be back tomorrow! 

i’ve been, these last few days, feeling very dismayed over the way this world seems to be…from the illegal immigration issue to the issue of gas prices to the complacency of people on this planet in terms of how we treat one another…we seem to lack any sense of responsibility for one another…i’ve begun again to take a look at myself…if i am to effect change in this world, i must do the work necessary to reach that higher self that is the potential for us all…i have so much work to do, so many layers to peel away, but, for my own contribution to the well being of this planet to be successful and authentic, i must first and foremost address what is within me…

OK…here it is…immigration is an issue that needs solving but, not with HR4437. We’ve been up in arms over this…now let’s take it a step further. I’m putting out a call…I want ideas on how we can fix our immigration problems. I’m not asking for THE solution…there’s too many intricacies involved…what I am asking is that we put our minds together towards a goal. I think we all agree there needs to be something done about our immigration issue. I don’t like that people are sneaking across like animals, risking their lives for something better. I want it to be safe for them, with reasonable methods by which they can come here legally. Give me your ideas…leave out the ones that call for a rounding up of all these people just to send them back. Sorry, that’s an asinine stand. Give me humane, well thought out ideas….don’t worry about looking naive…I look plenty naive for all of us. Maybe I’m being too idealistic but, it’s my opinion that calling each other out can only go so far…let’s work on a solution that can be presented to our senators as a way of saying, “look, here’s what we’d like in place of the “draconian” HR4437.

of the many provisions, some good, some bad, here are two that i consider to be straight up evil….i can’t find another term for it….

-All illegals before deported must pay a fine of $15,000 to the state in which they were apprehended.

-All children born in America from illegal immigrants will become wards of the state.

so, after an individual has worked his ass off for however long…he works 2 or more jobs with no time off…he pays his rent, he buys his groceries, buys his gas, has monies taken from his checks that he will never see, does not hurt anyone…you mean to tell me that now, he’s got to pay $15,000?  oh…so this isn’t just about securing our borders…it’s about raping the poor who come over here so that they may feed their families and in the process have contributed to our economic growth…typical…

and then, you mean that we’re going to rip their children from them and make them wards of the state?  we don’t have enough children growing up without their families, we have to create more?  and what will we do with these children?  place them in families when they’ve got perfectly good families of their own?  well, now, except for families that have same sex parents…it’s been decided by our homophobic government that this doesn’t promote a healthy atmosphere for children…sorry, off the topic i’m starting but, it does point out hypocrisy at it’s finest…we’re so concerned that a child raised in a homosexual parent household will be somehow damaged but, who gives a rat’s ass if the children of illegal immigrants are scarred for life knowing that Mami and Papi are across the border while they’re being brought up by strangers.  please, somebody tell me this is just a helluva typo, that these provisions are not really included in this bill.     

tonite i broke down.  it’s so late, i should be asleep but, i can’t.  i realize, or perhaps i’ve always known but didn’t want to face, that for all my arguments, there are other sides that must be considered too.  know thy enemy, so to speak…bear with me, it’s almost 1 in the morning.  my point is, my passion remains, i am so against this ridiculous law that they are trying to pass…but, something’s got to be done!  my last post quoted statistics…how do we know if those statistics are legit?  as a friend remarked, “numbers are easily skewed in anyone’s favor”.  how do we know really if the good our illegals have brought us, the wealth their presence has lent to this economy…how do we know if it truly does outweight the expense?  who’s holding on to this information and how do they accumulate it so that it is the real deal?  for me, ultimately, it comes down to human rights…that’s my angle…i use statistics because in the face of all the anger against illegals, it feels like i need to have more weight than simple mere emotion…but tonite, i feel like saying screw that.  i am a human being first, a child of God and the rights i have as a human being come from Him, not from another human being.  unfortunately, we live in a world that must be governed by laws, that is immersed with a species that has this intense need to dominate others, to have power and to wield it over everyone.  we live in a world where governments will turn a blind eye when the rules/laws are bent when it is convenient for them.  later, sometimes years later…all of a sudden those very rules that were bent become a platform, the consequences of being lax on the laws becomes an agenda to argue over, debate.  gawwwwwwwwd, this is such a mess! but, for as big a mess it is, it needs to be cleaned up…solutions anyone?  humane solutions?

what i heard on the radio today:

should we build a wall?  most answered yes…me?  NO…what a waste of time…those people are crafty, they’ll find another way

should we extend a worker program?  most answered no…me?  yes, this way they’re not sneaking over here…if they’re already going to come, let’s make it so they come in plain sight, so we can keep a better account of who they are, have them pay us the $1500.00 or more dollars they’d normally pay a coyote and put it towards funding our systems…this way, when someone tries to sneak across, it’s probably because they really do have something to hide.

should we send back those that have been here 10, 20 or more years…law abiding, hard working people?  most answered yes…me?  no, let’s be really careful here.  think about it…up root these people from lives they’ve built here, send them back to Mexico, we not only make ourselves look really, really evil but, we also run the risk of damaging ourselves economically.  we can’t discount the spirituality aspect…imagine the lack of humanity it would take to destroy families?  here’s where i get all karmic on ya…but, there you go…karma ignores no one…i don’t want to mess with that…

Statistics show (to name a few) (thank you Tony Snow, FOX News radio, 620 KTAR):

• Of all the illegals who come across our borders, 5% apply for welfare….that means 95% work. 
• $10 billion dollars in taxes are paid by…yup, you guessed it, monies most will never get back.
• $2.2 billion dollars is the cost of the social services they use.  hmmm, $10 billion vs 2.2 billion….
• 66% of illegals are paying into Social Security.  Do you think they’re ever going to see that money? 
• Our unemployment is at an all time low and our economy is doing well.  In fact, in the U.S. today, a million new jobs a month are created.  What’s this about the illegals taking our jobs?  Really?

Now a bit about my experience:

My father’s father came in on a boat from Hungary, through Ellis Island.  He went through legally and abiding by the rules as they were set forth.  My dad was born on a farm in Ohio.  He is a hard working man, a Vietnam vet, one of the most intelligent people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing and someone I’m very proud of.  My mother is from Spain.  She married my father while he was stationed in Spain and a few years later came across with her family to start a whole new life here.  She spoke no English, she really had no friends…her world was my dad and us.  Over the years, she learned the language and did the work to become a citizen of the United States.  I admire her courage and determination, her spitfire personality, her mind and her strength of principle.  I know the pride of being an American citizen, I grew up with it.  I also served in the military and I am very proud to say that.  However…

I have had the privilege of exposure to another world that lived right alongside my own.  I grew up in Arizona with kids whose parents were illegal.  I’ve worked in restaurants right next to illegal immigrants and marveled at their tenacity and ethic…to do a job was great but, to do a job well…that was paramount.  I’ve befriended illegal immigrants and had a relationship with one, a relationship that bore treasures in the form of two little girls.  I’ve been privy to a perspective I doubt many of those against illegal immigration have the foggiest idea exists.  And, guess what…I too am against illegal immigration. 

I think this is a distinction screaming to be made.  Who is for illegal immigration?  Who wants that?  Who supports the crossing of human beings by means of trains that leave many dead or maimed?  Who thinks it’s great to witness people crossing the desert like animals, risking their lives to the elements?  Who is behind the “coyote” who reduces the sacred existence of a human being to nothing more than a barter for passage into a country that doesn’t bear welcome?  Who…tell me, who would back that?  Not I…

No, I do not support illegal immigration, but, neither do I support the criminalization of these people who are bearing the brunt of a corrupt government that cares nothing for them and another that chooses to ignore the very real “good” they’ve given us!  Seems to me, the issue is not that we are “suffering” due to the presence of illegals in our country, the evidence would suggest quite the contrary.  We have lost our focus.  Yes, securing our borders is by far a problem that must be addressed if we are to keep ourselves “safe” (are we really safe?  will we ever be ”safe” again?) from the very real threat of terrorism in the world.  But, we’re going at this issue all wrong.  We aren’t going to solve anything by criminalizing our illegals (is that redundant?), in fact, I believe this “brilliant plan” will only serve to cause enormous strife.  The focus must be brought back to securing the borders and creating a safe, legal means by which these people may enter our country.  They are not the enemy…in fact, if anything, they are a lost people whose government is as corrupt as the day is long.  These people are the by product of a country that is made up of the haves and have-nots.  What’s a have-not to do when there’s a family to support?  GO NORTH!  We must stop trying to dehumanize these people, especially since it’s their sweat and money that apparently has contributed greatly to our economy and well being.  Please, stop turning a blind eye to this truth.  Patriotism is wonderful, but, let’s be authentic here…our great country (yes, the best in the world) is great not just because of the hard working American (of which there are many) but also due to the hard work of the undocumented shadows we can no longer ignore as they bus our tables and fluff our pillows.  

A friend of mine made the statement that this issue of illegal immigration reform is an issue of many layers.  I agree.  Two decades of illegal immigration is no simple walk in the park and the idea that we can simply lay out a blanket law that criminalizes all illegals and those in this country that help them, well….what a lazy way out.  Fact is, above all rules set by man, above all laws put forth…we are all human beings with basic, inaleable rights.  There but for the grace of God go I, so…with this sobering thought in mind, how can I fault a man who crosses over with the dream of something better?  How can I fault a woman who would leave her children behind in the hopes of one day bringing them over for…something better?  How can I judge harshly the woman who sneaks all 6 of her children acrossed with the promise of offering them…something better?  Would I be so different in their shoes?  Were our forefathers?  Oppression is oppression is oppression, whatever the form it takes.  Fundamentally, we are not so different from one another.  HR4437 seeks to separate…and ruin the reputations of an already long suffering group of people.  I agree, something must be done but, without taking the time and putting in the work to peel away the layers, we are doing nothing but sealing the fate of a mass of peoples…the fate being that of an oppressive existence infinitely weighing them down.  There but for the grace of God go I…. 

Here’s another fantasy of mine…how I wish things were…idealistic and fanciful though it may be…I wish Mexico’s economy was such that the people  there could stay and make their dreams reality, such as the way we can here in the United States.  I wish they had a handle on things and were able to maintain their own country so that when they talked of going North, they were simply discussing vacation plans.  I wish that U.S. citizens didn’t have this issue of what to do with illegals on the brain because the concept of illegal immigration wasn’t a paradigm to entertain.  I wish this world was the kind of place where borders were just borders and not a hotbed for anger, discrimination, power plays and broken hearts.  I wish people from other countries could co-exist anywhere without the hostility we’re muddling through now.  I wish laws were easily followed, that the need to leave a place you know and love didn’t exist, that a person could stay home and support their families just fine.  I wish governments had their people’s best interests at heart and that people were open and willing to find a middle ground.  This new law…there’s no middle ground and people are going to find their lives and families torn apart. I wish that before this crazy ass shit became the mess it is today…the mess it’s been for sooooooooo long, I wish a solution was found then.  Right now, our  population is so immersed with illegals living and working right along side us, how can we find a happy medium that doesn’t destroy them and us?  how?

Well, guess what.  Your way of life was made possible by an illegal doing the tasks you don’t want to do.  I know this first hand.  Your way of life was made possible because they do the “unimportant’ work, work that quite honestly is not unimportant but rather very important for the country to run smoothly and for our economy to continue to be strong.  Think about it…really examine what will happen if we take the stance so many of these right wing conservatives are taking.  There’s got to be another way.  I agree, we need a better, organized and regulated manner by which to account for these people.  But, this new law is not it! 

So, the other day, as I was driving to work, I happened upon a group of protesters rallying against illegal immigrants.  They were standing on a corner commonly used by day laborers who wait for pickup and the promise of work.  I counted about 7-8 people protesting.  Across the street was another corner filled with illegals.  As I saw the protestors eyeballing them, an idea crossed my mind.  I respect the rights of all Americans to stand up for their opinions, whether I agree with those opinions or not.  But, why not go farther than just a picket sign and a loud voice?  Take it further I tell ya!  Back up your protests with boycotts of your own, like that which is being planned for April 10th by our illegal immigrants.  Here’s my idea…if you don’t want employers to hire illegals, don’t frequent their businesses.  For example, don’t go out to eat.  You might like that lobster tail or that fettuccini alfredo, but, what’s more important, kicking those doggone illegals out or filling your belly with that richly decadent, juicy and made just right top sirloin with a side of garlic mashed potatoes…mmmmm!  By the way, chances are good an illegal (or two, or three or four) stood in that hot kitchen making it for you.  Why don’t you apply for his job?  Or the job as busboy cleaning up after all the customers have left, or as silverware roller or prep cook or salad maker, etc, etc.?  You can do it…your pride won’t mind wiping down a table or sitting for hours on end at a table of never-ending eating utensils!  Before you buy that beautiful two story, four bedroom with a loft, find out if the company who built it counts illegals as employees.  If you really, really want to stand up for your rights, don’t buy that house because, chances are illegals built it or had a big part in building it.  Why don’t you apply for his job?  When you go to the grocery store, ah, hell….forget it, don’t even go to the grocery store.  Too much of what’s on those shelves and stocked in that store was picked, packaged and placed there by an illegal.  Just buy your own damn cow, chicken and butter churner.  Learn to grow your own veggies and fruit and thereby stop the need for those irritating illegals to pick in those fields and slaughter for those meat packers…could be an illegal who packed that meat too…there’s something else you might want to learn to do.  Or better yet, why don’t you apply for that job?  You might not want to step out of your house either…you may find yourself driving on a road that was put there by, dear God forbid…an illegal.  You may drive by trees and flowers that were planted by an illegal.  No, stay home, that is if you haven’t moved out of your home which was quite possibly built by an illegal.  I know, this will be difficult but, if you truly believe in your cause and you truly feel that these people are a danger to you, your way of life, then you should really consider backing up your protests.  Why don’t you go apply for that job?  Don’t buy clothes, make them!  Much of what is on the racks was made by an illegal for next to nothing…thereby giving you the opportunity to spend less money on that really cute skirt that would go so well with that blouse.  Why don’t you apply for that job?  Just don’t ask for higher wages…this way you can keep things affordable for the rest of us.  Are you planning a trip?  Forget staying in a hotel…an illegal more than likely, made that bed, cleaned that bathroom and tidied up for the next patron.  C’mon, camping’s not so bad!  And if you’re on a business trip, I’m sure your boss will understand why you smelled bad at that meeting!  You are fighting for your cause!!!  Besides, you don’t need his daggone job anyway, you’ve got so many others you are just chomping at the bit to apply for.  Right?    

Dedicated to those who say the illegals are “stealing our jobs”.