Can I See Your Papers Mr. Hernandes

When I heard about this new immigration law in Arizona, I wondered who was advising the Governor Jan Brewer. It appears as though she is a one woman band, or she does not believe in team work, as it is now apparent that she is on her own as far as this new law is concerned.

The writer of this article Cayla Cravens in her blog 'Let's Talk America' - entry on May 3rd, 2010 says 'Look immigrants are here illegally', this statement is not true, as not every immigrant is illegal. Reading this part of her entry made me wonder if most people think immigrant means illegal. I once read a book called 'A Country of Strangers Blacks and Whites in America.' This country is a melting pot and it owes its success to immigrants some of whom moved here hundreds of years ago. It would not be surprising to take a survey and discover that every other person you stop moved or their ancestors had moved here from different parts of world. Why is that now things are different, is it a case of use them and then abuse them? These issues have been swept under the carpet for as long as it suited different states.

I agree that we should not reward criminals, but most of these people come here because of the their beliefs about America and the untruth that America owes them. This will definitely take the law enforcement away from their duties and place them in a precarious position. I would suggest a guest worker program as a way to avoid an influx of illegal immigrants.

This is witch hunting laced with racism and hate for other nationalities. I hope the Governor will wake and smell the coffee, as she will soon be cleaning the hotel rooms and working the fields herself.

' Mojave Cross' - A Religious Symbol

An article by Warren Richey, Staff writer / April 28, 2010 of Christian Science Monitor, re-ignites my insatiable appetite for the meaning of symbols in our society. We are consumed by the value of Christian "props" than the Christian walk! We have become a nation of symbols but our walk does not reflect the Christ in these symbols. Our walk reflects a power struggle, to prove a point, and to force one another to have same beliefs.

Christians all over the world revere the cross, as Jesus Christ, "after carrying the cross was nailed to it as a way to show the world that He was the son of God." The 'Mojave Cross' has been standing in place since 1934, erected to honor fallen heroes. So one wonders what was in the mind of the war veterans when they erected the cross on Sunrise Rock. Some may say that it is just a cross, but some would beg to differ as symbolism helps them stay focused on what they are passionate about. Those who say it is just a cross, would also be right as not only Christians were fallen heroes, so if indeed the cross represents a certain religion, then this symbol is in- appropriate.

The government did not have enough courage to pull down the cross, so a decision was made to sell the land occupied by the cross to private owners. It appears the government is two faced, and plays a game called do as I say and not as I do. The government finds itself between a rock and a hard place, as this violets the separation of church and state.

The cross remains covered, but lives of those who believe in the cross go on, so it does not seems to matter whether the cross is standing or not, but it is a comfort to those who lost their loved ones in foreign wars. Call it a war memorial cross or anything you wish, but in the eyes of many it should just be a symbol of peace and sacrifice.

This messy fight has nothing to do with Christianity, or religion. Christians do not need a cross to define their relationship with God. Since the cross has been in place for 75 years, and nothing catastrophic happened, it should be left alone. This would also show our respect and appreciation for the war veterans who erected and maintain the memorial.

Is More Taxation The Only way?

Raising taxes by such a small margin on sugary drinks is not going to curb obesity in the nation. It may just make a tiny bit of a difference to those who are financially disadvantaged. The saying "Mind over Matter" would better serve the reasoning behind taxing sugary drinks as well as junk food. Sometimes people just hate the thought of giving more money to the Government, as a result this may force them to fore-go luxuries in place of necessities.

My only argument with the writer is that we already know what did not happen with the cigarette taxes in the past, but my optimism tells me something better is going to happen this time. The government should leave each state to decide how they wish to collect the taxes, as well as how they wish to use the tax surcharge. There should be programs already lined up for this type of tax. Seeing results would also help convince organizations like the American Beverage Association who say that "a lot of people do not want taxes on their sodas".

Even though we know that this taxation will not curb obesity, but since it may just affect a small number of people, it is a great fund raising idea. Whilst we are at it, we might as well make it more meaningful by making the taxation steeper.

Sunlight Energy Is Free

The sun will always shine no matter what, and it will forever be free. So the world should move fast towards the light and stop dragging it's feet. Solar power energy is the future, it is clean, pure and readily available, it is also here to stay.

There is so much uncertainty when it comes to the use of renewable energy, it is mainly because we are used to our comfort zone. Anything new might disrupt our lives, since we like the way things have been in past two thousand years, why change now? Next time you do the mundane task of turning on an electric powered bulb, which is not energy saving, think, am I helping destroy our environment, or am I conserving it?

Statistics show that "The US produces 4,000,000,000,000 Kw Kilowatt Hours of Electricity each year. Less than 2% of this is solar energy. The energy that strikes the surface of the earth in 8 minutes is more than the world uses in a year. In two seconds the sun releases enough energy to fuel 1,000,000 cars for a year." These statistics have made me bring to your attention the fact that we are living on borrowed energy, which leaves dangerous carbon prints on our environment.

Why is China, and European countries like Germany leading in the use of renewable energy, when they have very little sun compared to the USA? It is because their governments are forward thinking and have seen the cost effectiveness of sunlight energy during the few months they have it. They have created programs that offer incentives to their citizens making clean energy affordable. They have also seen that this is the best way to create jobs in a tough economy such as the current one.

This article is to convince you that, renewable energy is the way to go in support of all the green talk we are hearing lately. We can all make an impact by educating ourselves about the advantages of solar power energy over the use of fossil, coal, electric and bio diesel energy.

In order for us to conserve the already depleted resources, renewable energy is the way to the future, we might as well embrace it sooner rather than later, generations to come will be very thankful to us for having done this.

The initial cost of installing solar panels seems to be a deterrent to most home owners, as it is exorbitant, but the good news is that the costs can be recovered in a short period of time. Also, the government, in the hope of keeping up with the leading countries is willing to offer financial incentives to home owners in the form of tax break.

Once installed on roof tops, solar cells will continue to harvest power during the day, if there is any surplus energy, homeowners can resell this energy to their utility companies for future use.

Freedom of Speech or Is It?

Oh Canada! by Ann Coulter, March 24th 2010, in the anncoulter.com website. This blog entry has been prompted by Ms Ann Coulter's resent visit to the University of Ottawa in Canada.

Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing if used with respect, dignity, and civility, no one should be made to second guess what is going to come out the mouth of a conservative, or liberal. To knowingly promote hatred is simply not freedom of speech!

Fore-warned if fore-armed, so rocking the boat and then crying foul is not the best way to use intelligence, but research and arming oneself with relevant information on the country to be visited would be the way to reflect knowledge as well as integrity and a wish to promote peace.

As America's freedom of speech is not the blue print of the world's freedom of speech, Ms Coulter should have educated herself on the rules and regulations to be followed when visiting Canada. As a result of first delivering a hate speech, Ms Coulter has received an unsolicited piece of mail with a reprimand. University of Ottawa's letter to Ann Coulter.

Speeches can still be delivered effectively without any hatred or diatribe. Delivering a speech with clean, easy to understand language always proves to be more effective. Leaders, educators, and journalists who keep their cool when they have the audience's attention seem to find more popularity than those who stir up anger emotions in a crowd.

The old saying, "when in Rome do as Romans do", still applies to all of us especially when we are representing our country of birth. If we carry ourselves in a respectful manner away from home, we show the world that we come from a country of civilized, educated, as well as respected individuals. This may not be so, if we chose to portray bad behavior in the name of freedom of speech. Freedom of speech is not a ticket to talk down or show our hatred for different nationalities. As Americans, we can prove that we are ambassadors of peace, and that we do not just preach it, but we live it.

I believe it is not too late for the writer to redeem herself as she is a very intelligent person, who could really make a difference in the world if she chooses to do so.

Ms Coulter, travels with body guards to her different speaking engagements, so if hers is truly free speech and not hate speech, she should be free to deliver it without any body guards.

"Political points that jab like a knife in the heart."

Suzzane Shepherd is president of the Down Syndrome Association of Central Texas. Her son Jack has Down Syndrome. Jack is a sixth-grader at a local middle school.

Reading this article made me imagine myself in the shoes of people with intellectual disabilities. Words spoken without thought, are like a two edged sword. Suzzane is targeting all members of the society when she puts pen to paper. She hopes that this article will fall on fertile ground and the general public will desist from using the word 'retard'. White House Chief of Staff used the word to "denigrate those who disagreed with the administration on health care". What sort of an example does this set up, especially coming from a political leader? A nation usually follows what their leaders do or say; so having said this, our leaders are supposed to be on guard at all times as their careless words can do more harm that good, especially putting into consideration that mean words could shape who we are.

President Barak Obama's "special olympics joke lands him in hot water." The President became a little too relaxed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and caused himself unnecessary embarrassment when he joked about his bowling alley score, comparing it to "special Olympics or something". He apologized, but the damaged was already done. The word 'retard' should be banned or replaced with a more civil vocabulary word, no one wishes to be labeled with their illness or disability as they did not choose this path for themselves.

Politicians need not make humiliating comments in order to score political points as the expense of children like Jack. Citizens vote for representatives who stand for integrity, compassion, transparency as well truthfulness among many other characteristics. This measure applies to all colors of the political spectrum. It has nothing to do with democrats of republicans, but has a lot to do with humans beings on this earth.

In conclusion, here is a quote to support my beliefs as well as the beliefs of the writer of this article -

"I think it's very important to see that words hurt and words do matter. And these words that in some respect can be seen as humiliation or a put-down with special needs do cause pain and they do result in stereotypes." Shriver

US 2010 Census...The Fear of The Unknown

The US 2010 Census is upon us and it comes with a lot of fears for many undocumented immigrants, as well as some US citizens. Here are a few facts about the census -

The census is required by the constitution every 10 years.
The government does not use the census as a witch hunting tool for undocumented individuals in the nation.
Also the US Census Bureau does not share the information with immigration officials.

So, the census is a good process used in matching numbers and needs, no one should be intimidated by the census takers knocking on their door. Undocumented immigrants are afraid to be counted as they feel that the census takers will report them to the authorities, so this makes it hard to have correct information on how many people live in a household. Questions asked, such as, how many people lived here... are to determine how many people were not counted in prior years.

Individuals are also encouraged to fill out their census forms and mail them back if they are concerned about census takers knocking on their doors.

In order for the government to provide the most needed resources to the community, undocumented immigrants as well as US citizens need to open their homes and not let fear intimidate them. Communities should rally around and help their people to understand that census takers are not immigration officials.

Not only does this fear affect undocumented immigrants, the citizens are also afraid that the man knocking on their doors might just be posing as a census taker. So security is also threatened as we cannot not take people for granted. Citizens will have to use their discretion when answering their door bells, they need to be well informed about what to ask for as form of identity from the census takers.

Political parties too are afraid that their opponents may use some unwelcome tactics in order to increase numbers in their constituents, since the count helps to determine the number of seats each State has in the US House of Representatives.

See also other reasons given for holding back -

Where does all this leave the census takers? Imagine all the stories you have heard about the pizza delivery people who sometimes end up in the hands of muggers. They too are afraid, but have to be well informed and follow their gut feeling when approaching certain neighborhoods.

Here is a statement from a Phoenix city councilman who chairs the city's census committee..."A census boycott is a bad idea because it would reduce federal assistance for education and other programs that benefit immigrants and their children". Michael Nowakowski

As a nation of good citizens it is up to us participate in the census exercise, it is also our duty to educate those who misunderstand the goals of undertaking the project. This will help alleviate all fears connected to the up coming US 2010 Census.

I know that undocumented immigrants want the best for their families, especially their children, after all this is why most of them risk all they have to come to this country. So they need to be encouraged to come out and support this process which will help make their dream come true.

"We want change, we need change, we want better for our kids," said Londono, who emigrated from Colombia 24 years ago. "We are the voice of our community. What are we waiting for? Let's get our children counted."