Ok folks the elections are getting closer and the rhetoric is ramping up. Do we want a return to the last eight years or a "guaranteed international test", as Joe Biden has promised, should we select the alternative? I am not going to use this blog to hype a candidate. I am neither an expert nor do I believe I know either candidate well enough to provide any advise. The only advise I will give, that I know I can give from an educated and experienced perspecitve, is to GO VOTE. That is, if you are a citizen, and you are registered. Otherwise, the ACORN folks may have told you it was a drawing for a new sports car you were filling out and that you have to go to such and such location on Nov. 4th to "submit your ticket", "...just write Obama on it", they said, but that was a lie, don't do it.
In all seriousness though, not that the above statement was completely inaccurate, I feel it is not only our right, but our responsibility to register and vote when there is an election of any kind. I hate when I hear someone complain about something that they actually have some control over. High taxes, regulations, bad representation, etc. etc. We do have a say, and it is still a very powerful one. The problem today is that too small a percentage of the population actually makes the effort.
If you want change, if you are dissatisfied with government, or you know which candidates you like, go vote. Don't waste your ability to weild one of the greatest powers ever given a citizen of any country anywhere. Make sure you clearly mark your ballot. Remove those nasty chads. If you run into a Diebold machine, ask for a write in ballot and write in your vote, hehe, had to sneak that in.
Democracy is alive and well, but with the rising level of apathy among Americans, democracy is at risk. Yes folks, the very freedoms the Constitution has afforded you the last two hundred thirty odd years are in jeapordy. And this is no joke, it is a serious thing and one that should not be ignored.
Be a good American, go vote.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
The Illegal Imigration Debate
One of the key issues that Presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain will be debating is that of illegal immigration. They will pooh hoo over reform and amnesty. They will consider border security. But one thing I have not heard in the discussion that is the most important aspect, and largest contributor to illegal immigration, is what they will do about businesses that employ illegal immigrants. These businesses should begin to feel political, economic, and legal pressure, in my opinion, if we ever want to truly curtail illegal immigration.
Businesses that pay meger wages, and in some cases extract money from their own workers with threats of deportation or even grave bodily harm. This is the soft slimy underbelly of illegal immigration. This is the most efficient way to reduce the influx of illegals while also doing good for the economy. How is that, you might ask. Well, firstly those companies that hire illegals can and should be put out of business. They should be fined out of existence and their owners jailed for their crimes. This will allow honest business owners to finally be able to charge a fair price for their services and pay their legal workers a better wage, and very likely provide more jobs.
This is an avenue of approach that most politicians loath to consider. They are very concerned that those very businesses that are causing this very negative effect on our country could have the clout to put them out of office should they put the proverbial foot down. The political machine will continue to focus on the factor that least affects their position. In this case, it's the illegal immigrant. The man or woman that is only looking for better opportunity. And we continue to allow that opportunity to be provided by not enforcing labor laws.
Another way to help the illegal immigrant is to put pressure on countries and foreign companies that use either slave or child labor. It is abhorant that we even allow products from manufacturers that are known to use these tactics to be imported. We are the most powerful and wealthiest nation on earth. We don't need to save a buck or two on most products at the expense of others. And quite honestly when someone buys a product that comes from a manufacturer that knowingly uses unscrupulous labor practices it is an act of accpetance.
But the acceptance starts at the port, or at the border. The acceptance is with our own system allowing these procucts into the country and those businesses to do business here. Therefore, it is the opinion of this writer that the focus of illegal immigration should not be where the least good could be dealt, but where the most damage could be done against those who are facilitating the practice.
We'll see what happens from now until November, but mark my words; neither candidate will bring up the topic of facilitation unless the constituency begs the question.
Businesses that pay meger wages, and in some cases extract money from their own workers with threats of deportation or even grave bodily harm. This is the soft slimy underbelly of illegal immigration. This is the most efficient way to reduce the influx of illegals while also doing good for the economy. How is that, you might ask. Well, firstly those companies that hire illegals can and should be put out of business. They should be fined out of existence and their owners jailed for their crimes. This will allow honest business owners to finally be able to charge a fair price for their services and pay their legal workers a better wage, and very likely provide more jobs.
This is an avenue of approach that most politicians loath to consider. They are very concerned that those very businesses that are causing this very negative effect on our country could have the clout to put them out of office should they put the proverbial foot down. The political machine will continue to focus on the factor that least affects their position. In this case, it's the illegal immigrant. The man or woman that is only looking for better opportunity. And we continue to allow that opportunity to be provided by not enforcing labor laws.
Another way to help the illegal immigrant is to put pressure on countries and foreign companies that use either slave or child labor. It is abhorant that we even allow products from manufacturers that are known to use these tactics to be imported. We are the most powerful and wealthiest nation on earth. We don't need to save a buck or two on most products at the expense of others. And quite honestly when someone buys a product that comes from a manufacturer that knowingly uses unscrupulous labor practices it is an act of accpetance.
But the acceptance starts at the port, or at the border. The acceptance is with our own system allowing these procucts into the country and those businesses to do business here. Therefore, it is the opinion of this writer that the focus of illegal immigration should not be where the least good could be dealt, but where the most damage could be done against those who are facilitating the practice.
We'll see what happens from now until November, but mark my words; neither candidate will bring up the topic of facilitation unless the constituency begs the question.
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