There
are a few foundation stones that keep any country viable, unified and strong.
History teaches that when those stones are weakened, the country
crumbles. America now faces just
that situation at a time when our national priorities in Washington seem to be
dangerously upside down.
The key
foundation stones as I see them are secure borders, controlled immigration, a
common culture and a common language.
Illegal
immigration is an invasion of America by a non-military force that is estimated
to be approximately 12-20 million strong—and growing. These people invade the United States daily by the thousands,
damaging public and private property, particularly along our southern border,
and threatening the lives and welfare of the good Americans living there.
They then place a significant burden on our infrastructure as they become
recipients of America’s bounty in competition with our own citizens while
we’re told to be compassionate to these unfortunate folks.
As their numbers grow, the pleas for compassion turn into demands and our
politicians invariably give in.
Regardless
of what you hear about illegal immigrants doing jobs Americans don’t want,
paying taxes and contributing to America’s prosperity, illegals obviously
don’t pay or contribute the same as legitimate Americans. Tell me how they pay
their fair share of income taxes when they have no social security number, how
they pay their share of property taxes when they own no property and let’s be
frank, how much sales tax can they pay with the little money they make?
Does this sound like they’re paying their fair share relative to
legitimate Americans? Yet often,
they’re given benefits such as schooling, medical care and welfare all paid
for by real Americans, like you, who do pay their fair share.
In short, illegals are simply illegal period, yet they are enjoying the
fruits of America’s bounty at the expense of those tending the ranch and
paying all the bills. This can’t
continue!
While
illegal immigration must be stopped in its tracks, legal immigration must be
strictly controlled, reduced to a trickle or stopped altogether for a period of
time. Whereas most immigrants from
previous generations came to America eager to become Americans, many, certainly
not all, but many, today come in search of money and entitlements while
remaining culturally loyal to their homelands.
Any
country, regardless of how robust and prosperous, cannot sustain infinite
numbers of people. There are
approximately 6.5 billion people in the world.
If we were to buy the arguments posed by some that our borders should be
open without restriction and that we should welcome all comers regardless of
status or numbers, the world would be at our door step demanding a piece of the
American dream and that dream would soon turn into a nightmare.
If you don’t believe it can happen, ask a Native American about the
consequences of uncontrolled immigration.
No
matter the ills, America remains the richest nation on earth with a high
standard of living. It’s to
America that most people come when they choose to leave their homeland. What other country has folks waiting to migrate in such
numbers and to what other country are people coming illegally in the middle of
the night? They sure aren’t
lining up to get into Africa, China, Afghanistan or Central and South America!
Continually bowing to political pressures however,
government has shown more regulatory concern (i.e. 20,000+ gun laws) over lawful
citizens buying a firearm than they do about unknown foreigners entering the
country from God knows where bringing with them God knows what!
While we continually hear proposals to register and track
American gun owners by name, number, permit and finger prints, we also hear
demands for social benefits, driver’s licenses, no profiling, and amnesty for
illegals—and most recently under the ruse of “guest worker programs.”
While the Legislative and Executive branches talk about
their top priorities over the next four years being the war on terror, a secure
Iraq, health care, reforming social security and the tax code, they’re leaving
America vulnerable to real terror along our borders. And when they authorize an increase in border agents in one
bill then refuse to fund that increase in a subsequent bill, the phrase “lip
service” comes to mind. Could it
be any clearer how upside down American political priorities are becoming?
I applaud the President’s stated goals for social
security and tax reform but if we fail to secure the borders, we’ll lose the
country and none of those other political plums now being proposed will matter
one wit.
A secure America is the foundation upon which all else
depends—period. Securing the
country MUST be our primary focus—all else comes later. This insane attitude that appears more concerned over the
welfare benefits and sensitivities of foreigners than the future and security of
America has created an environment of authentic anger among growing millions of
Americans and has left us extremely vulnerable in its wake.
Regarding
our endangered culture, America’s motto E Pluribus Unum means, “Out
of Many, One” it is not E Pluribus, Pluribus—“Out of Many, Many.”
America’s motto is clear to me; the many cultures that come here should
merge into one common American culture—that “melting pot” we’ve heard so
much about.
A
nation’s culture is the unifying glue that holds a people together and gives
them a common sense of unity—a way of life they believe in, sharing the
traditions and customs of their new homeland and proudly passing it along to
their children.
Sadly,
what we’re now seeing is not a melting pot but a mosaic of distinct and
separate sub-cultures. For example,
how many foreign flags do you see flying from people’s houses, cars and
displayed on clothing? How many are
self-described as some flavor of hyphenated Americans?
All this
is a not so subtle message that these people still relate more to a foreign
culture than American. After
awhile, this mindset becomes engrained and they think of themselves and teach
their children to think not as Americans, but as something else.
This is a danger signal for the continued viability of our culture.
And in our new found desire to be more accepting of just about everything
these days, we not only let it go, we encourage it—especially in our schools
where future generations are being indoctrinated and diversity of culture is
celebrated at the exclusion and serious dilution of American culture.
Language
is another critical element of that unifying glue that holds a nation together
and official acceptance of multiple languages does nothing but further the
disassociation with “things” America. We
divide ourselves into disparate camps and create untold and unnecessary problems
for all. Although the ability to
speak multiple languages is a gift, a law officially recognizing multiple
languages within one country-one culture is a curse.
How did
we come to this situation? When
politicians start to play the pandering game for political gain, votes, or
acceptance and recognition, they often lose sight of our original American
values and become more concerned with the superficial than the factual—all to
the detriment of the common good and our future as a free and viably independent
country.
Where do
I stand on national priorities and America’s foundation?
Seal the borders using fences and well armed military
forces backed by no non-sense Rules of Engagement—then forewarn the world;
America is now deadly serious about defending her borders.
If we consider border security of such critical importance that we send
troops around the globe to defend foreign borders, why can’t America’s
borders take priority in defense of our own people and our own existence?
Stop or
at least set extremely low limits on legal immigration accompanied by a tough
screening process. Keep in mind
that it was lax immigration controls that helped 19 terrorists successfully
attack America on 9/11/01.
Refuse
to officially recognize hyphenated American descriptions and drop all reference
to heritage on government forms! You
are either an American or a foreigner and if you’re a foreigner, you better
have the proper visa.
English
will be the only official language of the United States—period.
I admire those that are multi-lingual but I don’t abide any official
pressure that requires me to be increasingly proficient in a foreign language in
order to function in my own country.
It seems
clear to me that unless we return to a philosophy of America first, America will
finish last. Legitimate
Americans, our culture and our language come first in my book—always have,
always will and if that offends anyone at all, too dang bad.
Just the
view from my saddle…