This sort of behaviour is hardly likely to foster good will between the contending sides in the illegal immigration issue:
A parting gunshot from a vehicle leaving Waffle House in West Asheville, NC shattered a window and caused a minor injury, police said. The shooting happened around 3:00 a.m. Saturday after a group of whites argued with a group of Hispanics at the 24-hour restaurant on Smokey Park Highway, Asheville police Lt. Wallace Welch said.
"The two groups were jawing back and forth with each other over citizenship issues and whatnot," Welch said. As the Hispanic group drove off, someone in the vehicle fired at least once into a large window near the front door, he said.
Whether from a ricocheted bullet or flying glass, Welch said, one man's arm was bleeding when police arrived. Police were looking for a white Dodge Intrepid that left the restaurant going west.
It's not clear yet, apparently, whether the driver of the Intrepid was insured.
Anyway, perhaps more significant is a letter passed along to me by a friend. The e-mail had no link so I can't vouch for the veracity of its major claims, but that hardly seems important since they would be easy enough to check out:
My wife is in charge of the English-as-a-second-language department at large southern California high school which is designated a Title 1 school, meaning that its students average lower socio-economic and income levels. Most of the schools you are hearing about South Gate High, Bell Gardens, Huntington Park, etc., where these students are protesting are also Title 1 schools.
My wife tells me that 100% of the students in her school and other Title 1 schools are on the free breakfast, free lunch program. When I say free breakfast I'm not talking a glass of milk and roll... but a full breakfast and cereal bar with fruits and juices that would make a Marriott proud. The waste of this food is monumental, with trays and trays of it being dumped in the trash uneaten. She estimates that well over 50% of these students are obese or at least moderately overweight. About 75% or more DO have cell phones.
The school also provides day care centers for the unwed teenage pregnant girls (some as young as 13) so they can attend class without the inconvenience of having to arrange for babysitters or having family watch their kids.
She was ordered to spend $700,000 on her department or risk losing funding for the upcoming year even though there was little need for anything; her budget was already substantial. She ended up buying new computers for their computer learning center. Half of which, one month later, have been carved with graffiti by the appreciative students who obviously feel humbled and grateful to have a free education in America.
She has had to intervene several times for young and substitute teachers whose classes consist of many illegal immigrant students here in the country less then 3 months who raised so much hell with the female teachers, calling them "Putas"--whores--and throwing things that the teachers were in tears.
Free medical, free education, free food, day care etc.. etc.. etc.. Is it any wonder they feel entitled to not only be in this country but to demanding rights, privileges and entitlements?
To my bleeding-heart liberal friends who want to point out how much these illegal immigrants contribute to our society because they LIKE their gardener and housekeeper and they like to pay less for tomatoes: spend some time in the real world of illegal immigration and see the TRUE costs. Higher insurance, Medical facilities closing, higher medical , more crime , lower standards of education in our schools , overcrowding, new diseases etc.. etc.. etc.. For me--- I'll pay more for tomatoes.
We need to wake up. The guest worker program will be a disaster because we won't have the guts to enforce it. Does anyone in their right mind really think they will leave and return voluntarily?
There are many hardworking Hispanic/American citizens that contribute to our country and many that I consider my true friends. We should encourage and accept those Hispanics who have done it the right and legal way. It does, however, have everything to do with culture. A third-world culture that does not value education, that accepts children getting pregnant and dropping out of school by 15 and that refuses to assimilate... and an American culture that has become so weak and politically correct that we don't have the will to do anything about it.
It's sentiments like these, held by a majority of Republican and Democratic voters alike, that are a major reason Bush's approval numbers are so low. Our government has allowed this situation to grow progressively worse for twenty years and now that the issue has finally gained some prominence the President sounds less than credible in his assurances that he'll fix the problem. He won't, because the only problem he sees in this mess is a political one. He knows the American people want action so he'll throw a few desultory jabs and feints and hope they'll be mollified.
The refusal to do anything substantive about illegal immigration may well precipitate the downfall of the Republican party. The Democrats won't do anything either, but since they're not in power at the moment they won't be held responsible for their ineptitude by the voters. They'll just sit back and reap the benefits of a Republican party base that is disenchanted with its political leadership.
Bush's lack of genuine concern about this issue is a boon to the Democratic party.