Linda Chavez’s defense of immigrants
Re: “‘No amnesty’ crowd is prejudiced,” May 25 Linda Chavez column.
Linda Chavez seems to say that those who oppose the immigration bill are just ignorant, hateful xenophobes.
If only it were that simple. Everyone has ancestors who came from somewhere else. The issue is, simply, why do a great number of people who have broken and continue to break our laws get a free pass? Further, why do we believe these folks will obey our laws in the future, given how they got and stayed here?
Accusing those who disagree of being prejudiced is not constructive. This debate is heated and emotional enough without that.
Stan Moore, Morrison
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No one can argue that Linda Chavez has some valid points in defense of illegal aliens. But prejudiced? Maybe, maybe not. In many cases, the Latinos are their own worst enemy. Is it too much to ask the immigrants to learn English? Is it fair that they break the rules to enter America illegally while some family in Poland plays by the rules and waits as long as eight years to be accepted into our society?
If only there was a simple litmus test that determines who gets in and who doesn’t. But this is a land of laws, and it’s quite clear that those who flaunt those laws must be held accountable. A deeper question lies in their motives. Are these illegal immigrants crossing our sovereign border out of a deep-seated love for this country, perhaps to proudly call themselves Americans, or are they simply just looking for a paycheck?
Gene Sabatka, Arvada
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You folks who rant and rave about illegal immigrants who work for low wages, no health benefits and no job security also tend to be staunchly anti-union. Don’t blame the current wave of immigrants or even small businesses for your lousy work situation. Blame corporate America (the big manufacturers, hotel chains, agribusinesses, etc.), which bought the politicians who convinced you that unions were some kind of anti-American socialist plot. You bought it, and now that “downsizing, outsourcing, restructuring, and contract renegotiation” (once called unfair labor practices) are the norm, you blame the illegal immigrants for sneaking up here and hacking apart your Memorial Day spare ribs.
J. Brandeis Sperandeo, Denver
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Efforts by the Bush administration and its Senate allies to dump the unemployed surplus population of the Third World inside our borders is so lovingly crafted that it includes a provision anyone from a lawless country would recognize.
The so-called “fine” that illegal immigrants would pay to become legal is modeled after the infamous mordida. As any traveler to Mexico can tell you, “the bite” is the bribe paid to corrupt officials so they will turn a blind eye to a violation of the law.
This registered Democrat is disgusted by the idea that official Washington wants to elevate corruption from a retail to a wholesale venture.
John Walker, Coaldale
What to do about global warming (if it exists)
With all the demagoguery around the subject of climate change, where does one get an independent, expert assessment? Despite the much-maligned federal government’s reputation, Congress and the president do have national, independent experts available to them in the form of the National Academies. In fact, the National Academies (i.e., National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, National Research Council, and the Institute of Medicine) have taken a hard look at the science of climate change and have unequivocally found that global warming is real. Given their conclusion, I would argue that we, as a nation, need to move beyond the hysteria of personal attacks and selfish posturing. A real dialogue on what we must do to fix the problems associated with global warming is overdue. A modern-day “Apollo program” aimed at environmental sustainability and energy independence would be a step in the right direction.
Lawrence M. Reisinger, Colorado Springs
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Some say President Bush acted too quickly, on the basis of bad information, to invade Iraq. Ironically, many of the same people now say we must act immediately to stop emission of carbon dioxide, which may cause global warming, which may be more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit, which may be a crisis (according to Al Gore), which may be acting too quickly, on the basis of bad information.
Unfortunately, our knowledge of “global warming” is even less certain than our knowledge of Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction. Let’s not make war on carbon dioxide, and the American economy, until we know more about “global warming” than we did about Iraq’s WMD.
Richard C. Savage, Franktown
Health insurance bill
Gov. Bill Ritter should take the lead from his appointee at the Division of Insurance, Commissioner Marcy Morrison, and sign House Bill 1355 to protect consumers and small-business owners from discriminatory insurance rate hikes. Substantive health care reform is possible with the blue ribbon commission, but ask any business owner whose premiums have gone up 30 percent in consecutive years, or one of the 770,000 uninsured Coloradans. The answer should be clear: Colorado cannot afford to wait. Discriminatory rate bands undermine the fundamental purpose of health insurance: the more people in the insurance “pool” the better, and the more affordable insurance will be for all of us. It is not fair that Colorado businesses are being discriminated against when they have employees or family members with health care needs. Health insurance should protect consumers, not insurance companies.
Lindsey Hodel, Denver
Questionable quotation
The lovely, happy spread on outdoor living that graces the May 24 Room section includes this quote: “I’m just going outside and may be some time” (Scott’s Last Expedition).
That’s a very odd choice, given that the line was spoken by Capt. Lawrence Oates of Scott’s Antarctic expedition just before he went out into a blizzard to die.
Wikipedia sums up the context nicely:
“On the way back from the pole in January, February and March 1912, the party faced very difficult conditions. After the loss of one man, Edgar Evans, Oates became severely frostbitten and weakened quicker than the others. His slower progress coupled with the unwillingness of his three remaining companions to leave him behind caused the party to fall behind schedule. Eventually Oates, the need to sacrifice himself in order to give the others a chance of survival, deliberately left the tent to die in a blizzard, saying: ‘I am just going outside and may be some time.’ However, Oates’ sacrifice made no difference to the eventual outcome: although Scott and his remaining men continued onwards towards the food depot, they eventually died around twelve days later, whilst trapped in another blizzard eleven miles short of their objective. Oates’ body was never found.”
Not exactly the connotations of gracious outdoor living and al fresco fun that you were hoping for, I think.
Jodi Peterson, Paonia
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