I saw Stephen Colbert on Larry Kind Live and have made up my mind regarding him. I love him. I think he's a funny guy but I've worried, in the past, that perhaps he was a little shrill in terms of political motivations... However his motivations are far more comedy and (if you'll forgive the term, but he all but admitted it in the interview) a certain sense of "attention whore" on his part. On that basis and in that context he's simply fantastic. I watch both his show and The Daily Show with John Stewart with relish. John Stewart, incidentally, is one of the few outspoken liberals that I really respect for his ability to call "bullshit" on the wackos on our side (I remember, vividly, his reaction to the disgraced plagarising teacher who felt it was his 'job' to challenge authority by asking if his job wasn't, you know, to
teach!!) without hesitation. He'll make fun of Hillary just as fast as W and doesn't seem to be so tied to ideology as to suffer from 'Bush Derangement Syndrome', which I've complained about here in the past. There are so many good reasons not to like W or his administration (turn on CNN for awhile) that making shit up just doesn't make sense. I would love to have a long conversation with John Stewart.
In terms of our presidential nominees I do not have a firm choice, however I will speak out in my hesitation regarding Hillary Clinton. To my fellow Democrats I remind you that as much as you hate W they hate her. Running her will do a variety of bad things, first among them will be the overwhelming number of republicans who will come out not to vote against her, not for their candidate. Already the attacks have come and it's only a matter of time before those law files and Vince Foster and other issues from the past resurface. My guess is that the Republicans will play it fairly soft on her (while posturing to take her on) until she's picked, then come down even harder. I think running her is begging to lose again. Things may change over the next few months but all her recent work trying to appear measured and moderate is likely to be undone rapidly in the public opinion polls. This is my fear, especially if the Republicans pick someone like Giuliani. As it is the two parties are virtually identical on many issues (especially spending our tax dollars, along with our grandkids tax dollars) with the primary difference being flag-waving issues (gay marriage, for example). Frankly both parties piss me off anymore... I've given serious thought to trying to start a "none of the above" amendment for the constitution, allowing voters to pick "none of the above" and barring rejected candidates from running again until the next cycle. Imagine if we could force these people out! I'll bet things would change fast once the incumbent system is destroyed. But I digress.
On the topic of
illegal immigration I think the answers are simple and self-evident. I've given this a
lot of thought. First, I have no objection to expanding the most liberal immigration policy fond anywhere in the planet, ours. Look it up. An expanded legal temporary worker program would provide the workers some say are necessary for our economy while allowing them to be tracked better, protected from abuses better, enjoy privileges such as driver's licenses, and to contribute to our tax base.
Illegal immigrants I see on TV often remark that they've done nothing wrong but that avoids the issue that they
illegally entered our country which, I must remind them apparently,
is a crime. In Mexico it gets you 20 years in prison. Look it up. Additionally the complaint is "how could we possibly afford to round them all up and deport them?" We don't have to and it'd be a futile and expensive waste of time, money, and effort if we tried. The reactions in the cities of Irvine, Texas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma show that immigrants will leave en-mass if they feel they are not safe/welcome. This is happening now (turn on your TV, CNN has been reporting on this topic for weeks now) and is undeniable. Additionally if employers are forced to comply with current federal guidelines (not even any new laws, though I would not oppose laws strengthening the notion that all employees must be legal) the draw for illegal immigration (jobs) will dry up and they will go elsewhere on their own. They're not here for our cheap gasoline or frosty beverages. Force is unnecessary if you are able to understand and change the system itself. This
is a problem. In no particular order; it makes those who support flagrant disregard for our laws under the flimsy guise of 'combating racism' look ridiculous, it harms American and legal workers by lowering pay and safety standards, and it makes a mockery of the rule of law. Note how I don't need to beat the terrorism drum to make the argument. We cannot allow the corporate/business sector to continue to take advantage of illegal workers, both for their sakes (as humans) as for our sakes (the legal and economic impacts on our country). It's an easy fix, an obvious problem, and should be a non-partisan issue. The right thing to do is make this a legal program with some level of oversight, something lacking in the current illegal system, so that our laws, economy, and workers can be properly respected.
