WHO IS MY FRIEND??

I felt grave concern recently when my niece told me that her husband has no friends. How could that be?  My nephew has always seemed to me to be warm, friendly and outgoing.  I was shocked. Yet, after some thought I realized that her comment had merit and that realization plagued me.

 

I view friends as extended family.  They are important to my psyche, my well being and provide me and my family strength in troubled times.  As a result of this exchange with my niece, I asked myself, "What is friendship?" 

 

One has to be a friend to have friends.  Friendship must be nurtured.  We can have many acquaintances but that is not the same as friends.  Acquaintances are people you know and who you greet casually e.g., "Hello there – how nice to see you", inquire about their health – "how have you been?" -- family – "how is the family?"  Oh, you may even go so far as to say "let's do lunch" – especially if you live in or near Hollywood.  Acquaintances are not people with whom we share interests, family stories, hobbies or with whom we wish to travel and do things just "for the hell of it". Acquaintances tend to come from working associates, may be a neighbor, someone from our church or even someone that we went to school with, met at a seminar or at a party.  They are the people we meet, know slightly and share few, if any, mutual interests or bond. While these "chance" meetings can sometimes result in long term friendships of decades but it can result in a long term acquaintance. I am often perplexed when people refer to casual acquaintances as "friends".  I often wonder if people who are quick to identify casual acquaintances as friends know what it is to be a friend.   

 

So, who are our friends?  My friends are from various walks of life but none of my close friends are people that I have known less than five years – most go back at least 10 years and many are from my childhood though admittedly those friendships are maintained at considerable effort.  I have my friends, my husband has his friends and we have our friends but in all cases they are all people with whom we both share mutual interests, hobbies, adventures and enjoy.  His friends have become my friends and my friends have become his friends.  Our relationships with each others friends are different.  Nevertheless, they are friends in whom we have a vested interest. Our friends, his, mine and ours, are people that we invite into our home, like to share a meal with, enjoy good conversation and spirited discussions and whose company we take pleasure in.  When our children were growing up, their children were our children's friends and vice versa.  Our friends also enjoy our company and show it by reciprocating in kind.  Although friendship may result from a chance meeting it is rare.  Friends, like family, cannot be taken for granted. 

 

It seems to me that many of us, in this modern age of television, cars, entertainment availabilities and busy lifestyle have lost our ability to form good friendships.  We have forgotten (some have never known) what it means to be and have a friend.  We work all week long, our weekends are spent in preparing for the week to come and we covet our valuable quality family time.  There is just not enough time to devote to developing friends.  We have forgotten to stop and smell the roses or perhaps more aptly put, slow down and cultivate the art of friendship.  It is as important to the development of our children as the quality time spent at the little league game or the dance ballet that we attend for little Johnny or Bonnie.   Perhaps it is time we all form a new alliance and learned to be a friend.

 

 

 

SENATOR LOTT NEEDS ENLIGHTENMENT

The rhetoric about the proposed legislation dealing with immigration continues and Senate sources report that this legislation will be revisited perhaps before the July 4 recess. It remains unclear whether the bill will be amended sufficiently to resolve the issues that are objectionable. Certainly, the supporters of the bill would like for us to believe that their current efforts should be passed without amendments and that we should accept the proposed bill out of hand. Thankfully, there has been a demand from the rank and file for our politicians to get it right.

The New York Times reported this week that Republican whip, Trent Lott said that “Talk radio is running America. We have to deal with that problem.” The paper went on to report that Mr. Lott also said that Senate Republican leaders may try to rein in “younger guys who are huffing and puffing against the bill.” These statements truly must be the most asinine statements of the week and if not, surely it ranked right up there with the worst. One could expect better from Mr. Lott.

Perhaps Mr. Lott does not understand that talk radio is the vehicle by which people are making their views known and sharing them with others who may have similar concerns. Perhaps it is time that the politicians got the message that talk radio is not the problem, political incompetence is. Perhaps it is time that we removed all sitting politicians and put in their place new faces, new ideas, new thoughts and new enthusiasm.

Unfortunately, too many people remain committed and loyal to the party line and as long as that is our approach in making political judgment, we are doomed. It is time that we all stood up and acted in unison not for the sake of politics but for the sake of what is best for our country. Immigration policy requires our attention and we must demand that our politicians listen. Write your Senators and your congressmen. Make your views known and demand that our borders be secured and that an equitable, fair immigration plan be passed. We need to put pressure on our elected representatives and the President to get it right – we must not settle for anything less.

A REAL PLAN?

This morning on his radio show, Bill O’Reilly presented his idea for a fair immigration plan. He prefaced his remarks that he believed it to be a plan that most Americans could support. I agree. Every American who reads this "blog" should write their elected representative and the President of the United States and demand that they consider these suggestions and debate their merits.

I don't know about you, the reader, but I personally find the ongoing debate and politicizing of this important matter disgusting. I am tired of political positioning. It is time the politicians concentrate on doing the citizens business and leave to the electorate to rate their justification to serve based on the fruits of their labor.

From Bill O’Reilly’s web site.

“1) secure the southern border with 700, not 300 miles of barrier, double the border patrol and back them up with 10,000 National Guards people. That would effectively shut down human and drug smuggling from Mexico.

2) require all illegal aliens in the country right now to register at the post office with Homeland Security. After registering, they would be given a tamper proof ID card, designating their status and their right to work temporarily in the USA. If the illegal aliens do not register, it's a criminal felony. Right now sneaking across the border is a civil action. Remember that. Subjecting the person to immediate deportation or jail time. The criminal penalty goes way up.

3) any business that hires an illegal worker who doesn't have a tamper proof ID card faces draconian fines and possible prison time for the executives.

4) Each illegal alien would have his case reviewed by federal authorities. And they would decide who would receive a Z-visa to stay and who would not. That takes the blanket amnesty, something many American hate, off the table. It also allows the feds to make rational decisions about who's helping America and who isn't.

Under that banner, no illegal alien who commits a crime while here would be allowed to stay. Also under that program, no welfare of any kind would be paid to folks here illegally. They'd have to work for their living.”



Thank you Bill O’Reilly. It is good to know that someone in America is actually thinking.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

I am conservative in my thought process as well as in my financial, social and political practices. I do not mean to nit pick the proposed new law as drafted by SB 1348 but there are issues that must be addressed and that are not addressed i.e., it does not provide proper checks and balances to resolve the issues of illegal immigration. It does not provide for proper enforcement now or in the future. It only provides for a way to “save face” and give the illegal immigrants already here a legal path to stay in our country. These people knowingly violated our laws and we need to implement laws that will stick, that will be implemented and will provide security.

I don’t have the impression that either the President,our elected representatives or the Senators who drafted SB 1348 have any such commitment. Therefore, I urge the Congress to continue to debate and hopefully close up the loop holes and do what needs to be done to present a bill that meets the needs of our country and secures its future. SB 1348 as it reads now – is not a satisfactory bill to resolve the issues before us in my opinion. The President appears willing to settle for anything that will get this “Achilles heel” off his back and the Democratic controlled Congress appears willing to provide yet another band aid for something that sorely requires intensive care. Let’s face it – none of our elected representatives want to truly handle the problem and therein is my problem with SB 1348.

IT'S A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE

"
I have personally become so disenchanted with our political system I rarely sit through the comments of any “media” voice.

There is not a single liberal voice with whom I can mesh my own conservative views but I understand the anger and the mind set that makes them intolerant and tyrannical in their outbursts. I share their malady. I am just as intolerant, incensed and anxiety ridden with their comments as they are with mine.

They, like me, seek a better America, want the same freedoms, believe in the same value system (to a point) and subscribe to the “rule of law”. We differ on the best approach to achieve these goal and disagree vehemently politically.

History will not care which of us was right. It will judge us, not by our political loyalties but rather, by the results of what we did. The legacy of our generation will be the result of the decisions that we make. Thus, it seems to me important that we concentrate our efforts on unity of purpose and not on our political allegiance. We need to do what is right for the country irregardless of political affiliation. We have to get beyond what is good for us or our neighbor – and do that which is right for our country and the nation. It is time for us to again affirm President Kennedy’s summons to citizenship when he said, “Ask not what your country can do for you but rather, what you can do for your country”. We need to do it not for us, but for our children and grandchildren.

Hindsight is 20/20. In my youth, my mother reminded me often that “there is more than one way to skin a rabbit”. However, she rarely varied from the method that she was taught as a child. I was taught by my Democratically affiliated family that without varying the degree of the convictions on which each of us draw our conclusions, we will never find a better way. Thus, why must we argue, implore and demand that others agree with us? Why can we not simply hear two sides without vicious rhetoric and near name calling? It seems to me that it is time to lower the tone and simply seek by an exchange of ideas, the best way.

I cannot imagine that history will be kind to us if we abandon Iraq. President Bush committed us to Iraq after receiving the support of Congress. There are those who would have the President assume all responsibility If we abandon our responsibilities in Iraq (and unfortunately like it or not, it is a responsibility) our legacy will be a generation known for its failure to live by its word and promises. It is time that we all stop, think and evaluate who we are and what we want to be. Whether we like it or not, our security and our children’s future depend on it. We must not abandon our principles or lose sight of what is at stake.

IS THE POT CALLING THE KETTLE BLACK?

Well, former President Carter has decided to weigh in with his assessment of President Bush as the “worse” President this country has ever had. Do give me a break, Mr. Carter. We all appreciate your generosity and kindness but under no circumstances would we want to take that title from you. Please don’t exert yourself with your goodness!

It is regrettable that the former President still feels that he may have something to contribute, since he contributed so little during his tenure in office. Goodness, how soon he forgets that it was his foreign policy that has brought us to where we are with Iran. Get a life Mr. Carter – get a life.

HOORAY FOR THE VETO

This message was sent to President Bush today with copies to Vice President Cheney Senators Reid, Feinstein and Boxer; Representatives Schiff and Pelosi.

Mr. President I applaud your veto of the Iraq funding bill and admonish you to hold your ground in exercising the executive powers of your office. You are doing what we elected you to do, exercising your best efforts at keeping our country secure.

The American people have been misled by those elected representatives who oppose your actions. The Democratic majority, with the assistance of some equally misdirected Republicans, choose to ignore the actions, deeds and threats of our terrorist enemies. It appears that they believe that by ignoring the real issues and withdrawing from Iraq, the terrorist threat will go away. In my opinion, nothing could be further from the truth and such actions would be catastrophic to our future. These people are short sighted, lack compassion, have no vision and show neither commitment or concern for the preservation of freedom and security of our country. Instead, their actions serve to provide impetus to the terrorist and put our American soldiers further into harms way.

Mr. President, I applaud your efforts and I believe you will be vindicated. I just hope that it will not be too late to keep our citizens safe from the efforts of this misguided Congress. Keep the faith, Mr. President and above all, the counsel of those who know and understand what it means to be free.

IT’S JUST MY OPINION

Why can’t people just say “I made a mistake” or “I’m sorry”? This week we had two major instances of celebrities who cannot accept that they are not Jesus Christ reincarnate, i.e., Will Gere and Alex Baldwin.

Alex Baldwin stepped over the line when he yelled at his daughter in a taped telephone message. His subsequent ongoing tirade and bashing of his ex wife served only to underscore his candidacy for anger management. In my opinion, he appears to be a man out of control and in need of help. He was wrong, his outburst was wrong and he is human, so just get over it, Alex.

Will Gere overstepped the line when, against the law in India, he kissed a woman in public in what was an offensive act to Indian culture. He apologized but it was not a heartfelt apology. In the same breath as he spoke his apology he attacked the ultra conservative culture that bans such actions in public. In other words, he does not see anything wrong with what he did thus the Indian culture is too conservative and dogmatic? Is that for him to judge or even comment on? What gives him the right to tell the people of India what is right or wrong? It sounds to me like another out of control Hollywood personality. How sad that these two Hollywood creatures are getting all of the publicity for their “bad boy” acts of contrition.

It seems to me that these two examples of American lack of respect for others is what is wrong with our American society. Too many of us feel that they somehow are “above it all” and that their actions should not be subject to any criticism no matter how offensive they may be to others.

CONGRESSIONAL MISFITS?

The Congress of the United States has, in my opinion, revealed its self for what it truly is, a group of misfits. By their passing of the bill that would sit a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq, they have shown that they have no interest in preserving the freedom of this country. They have failed to act as good custodians of our Constitution and they have let the President, our soldiers and the American people down.

I cannot believe that the Congress has had the audacity to send the Iraq funding bill to the President with billions of dollars in pork and a time table for withdrawal from Iraq. All of that pork and no compassion or concern for the people of Iraq. They are truly demonstrative of the selfishness that seems to be developing in this country. Do they not understand or see that we have no choice but to fight the battle in Iraq? Withdrawal is not an option. Where is their head? I urge the President to veto this bill and I will applaud him his vision. In my opinion,those who were elected to preserve and protect our Constitution have failed.

President Bush has acted with concern and devotion to country while too many of the duly elected custodians apparently lack the ability to understand their responsibility in helping secure our country. They have, in my opinion, lost their way. Unfortunately, the American people seem to share in their lack of character and for that, we may all pay the price. Perhaps the sitting Congress is truly representative of the lack of foresight, vision and compassion of our citizens at large and, if so, the future appears very gloomy. I hope that the President will follow through with his vow to veto this bill. If he does not, I will be very disappointed.

JUST ANOTHER DIVERSION?

Yesterday, April 19, Attorney General Gonzalez appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee to defend the firing of eight Federal Attorneys. I believe that Gonzalez and the administration had every right to decide whether to fire attorneys appointed by them and in whom they had lost faith for whatever reasons i.e., incompetence, sluggish work ethic (in my day it was called laziness) or simple lack of compatible moral character or political philosophy. The action by the Senates Judiciary Committee is, in my opinion, in response to the "sour grapes" of "poor losers" who lost their Federal job. They probably thought that once "in" they were above the fold and could not or would not be disturbed.

Questions have been asked as to the extent politics may have provided the motivation for the firings. It would seem to me that any person serving in any Administration should realize that they are serving within a political environment at the pleasure of the party in power. In my opinion, this is not an issue that the Country should become alarmed about. It strikes me that what we have encountered here is a group of card carrying Republicans who failed to impress their boss, right or wrong. Perhaps their work ethic or relationships more closely identified with liberal philosophies that did not bode well for their job responsibilities. Many registered Republicans are closely aligned to the liberal views of the Democratic Party and thus, it is easy for them to "cry foul". As the two parties have grown to be less and less individualistic and increasingly embrace similar views, it is difficult to differentiate philosophies.

I personally am getting tired of the politicians constantly nit picking at each other and using valuable taxpayer monies to criticize and create disillusionment with our President. We elected the President and the Congress to do a job, and it is time they did that for which they were elected and stopped playing politics with our taxpayer money.

RESPECT ?

As I watched the televised convocation services from Virginia Tech yesterday (Wednesday, April 17), I was puzzled. Would it not have been proper for the school officials in their address to the assembled group to acknowledge the President and Mrs. Bush in their preamble? None of the school administrators that I saw, including the President of the University, did so. The Governor of Virginia, in his address, acknowledged the President and Mrs. Bush. I would have thought that this simple act of respect would have been proper at all levels on any occasion.

Is this yet another example of the failure of higher education to set an example for respect and proper etiquette? I found this omission of acknowledgement offensive. I felt guilty that I was having this feeling amid the suffering and grief of this learned body. Nevertheless, I wondered if the absence of what I perceive to be a proper acknowledgments of the President and First Lady was perhaps, a deliberate omission. As badly as I feel for this terrible tragedy that has come upon the students and staff at this University, I also feel disappointment in its leadership.

A friend forward to me the following "blurb" "© 2007 WorldNetDaily.Com 'Speakers at the Virginia Tech convocation yesterday called on Allah and Buddha in their efforts to minister to the survivors, family and friends of victims of the shooting massacre at the school – but Jesus wasn't mentioned."

Perhaps I am alone, but I expected more from a well respected University. The tragedy of what has happened there is no excuse for these oversights, in my view.

HOW COULD IT HAPPEN?

Not since 9/11 have we, the citizens of this country, felt so inadequate. The slaughter of our College students at Virginia Tech today has left us numb, disbelieving and wondering where we have gone wrong.

It is too soon to blame. We must wait for the details to be revealed to us. In the meantime, our hearts go out in sympathy and compassion to the families who have lost their children in this unspeakable act of violence. Let us not engage in quick and illogical fault finding, let us learn the facts and when the facts have been revealed, act to correct our inadequacies. .

In the interim, God bless the families who suffer tonight and the survivors at Virginia Tech who will never forget this terrible day.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

I vowed to start the New Year off with regular weekly dissertations of subjects that caught my interest and stirred my blood with vim vigor and action. Alas, tis the first week of the New Year and I am only now picking up my fingers and pecking a note of commentary that perhaps, no one will read but I will take satisfaction from knowing I spoke from my heart.

In keeping with the tone of a New Year and a new Congress filled with different faces, it seems proper that I share with you my total dismay at politics, right, left, center and all around. I am tired of battles that reflect only partisan politics with each side taking the position that the other side, by virtue of their political positions must be wrong. I want to hear politicians who are committed to America, my country, the countries interests and the preservation of our freedoms and the security that should go with it come forward with ideas, debates and resolutions. I am not interested in who is right. I am interested in what is right for the country. My mother used to say, “There is more than one way to skin a cat”. So it is with politics. There are many ways in which results can be achieved, so let the powers debate the ways that are in the best interests of our country and forget which side of the aisle in which they reside.

POLITICAL DUMBING DOWN?<

I have decided to turn over a new leaf. I am going to post every week in order to share with you my observations of events that seem worthy, in my opinion, of a dissertation.

This week the California State Assembly passed legislation that will give the Mayor of Los Angeles greater control over the Los Angeles Unified School District. In short, the Mayor has been empowered to wield greater weight to the decision making that is customarily reserved to the Schools staff and the School board. Governor Schwazenegger is on record as supporting this transfer of power and it is a foregone conclusion that if he has not, he will sign this new “manifesto” for management of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

There is no doubt in my mind that school management needs to be reviewed in every city, county and State nationwide and that there are many opportunities for improvement in every area of education. It just does not seem to me that adding another level of political muscle is the answer. But then, I have been amazed at how few people want to correct problems – local, State or Federal. This is, indeed, the age of selfishness. There seems to be no vision – no broad brush of potential for the future. Indeed, it is impossible to grasp the possibility that our politicians even know what they stand for – or believe in – let alone possess a vision for our country.

Increasingly we hear only the special interest of the day, week, month or year. What the Republicans are for, the Democrats are against and vice versa, The people must not know that the opposing party could have a good idea. To dare exercise vision, hope or a plan would turn the debate from politics to the candidate’s competence and that would be a risky endeavor. We Americans are only interested in the polished, well coiffed and glibe candidate that will successfully skirt the issues of truth and make us believe that his or her speech writers have caught the substance of the man or woman.

For the truly dedicated public servant to bring up the realistic needs that must be confronted, is tantamount to “political suicide”. An example of the reluctance of the American public to willingly grasp the facts and act in our long term interests is clearly illustrated in President Bushs’ polls. Few of our citizens want to deal with the world as it is – only as THEY want it to be. Add this “mix” to our educational guidelines and what have we gained? The last time I looked, school boards were elected by the people whom they serve. They do not run as politicians, though we all know they are political or they would not be there. Nevertheless, we try to choose them on the basis of their vision for our schools and in the best interests of educating our children. What can be gained by adding another layer of political “muscle”?

It seems that we can be assured of one thing. Education in California will take second place to politics. Maybe we can call it the “dumbing down of education”? Why not? Education and politics have "dumbed down" Our children for years. Now it is time to “dumb down the system? California, as always, leads the way. .

For those of you who wonder what I mean by “dumb down”, it is lowering the standards. I believe that we in California excel in “dumb” but fail in applied “smart”.

SENIORS VS ANOTHER GENERATION

OR DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES?

WHAT ARE WE TEACHING OUR CHILDREN?

I don’t know how many of my friends, acquaintances and/or readers keep up with the news of the day. I suspect most of you. People who surf the web and access web pages such as mine are, I think, curious and likely news challenged. Thus, my comments about a news item of yesterday will come as no surprise. I was appalled by the news report of the young boy who was attacked on a school bus and worse, by the report that it took the father two weeks to gain access to the video of the bus attack. I could not believe that the school, the police and the bus driver would be so derelict in their responsibilities. It is amazing to me that our society has come to a point where we cannot confront issues of violence without “political correctness”.

Several months ago my brother in law, a bus driver for a school in Cottonwood, Arizona, punished a child who was misbehaving on his bus. He was terminated because he did not follow the school’s guidelines in dispensing punishment for a clear act of disobedience. My brother in law is a wonderful person, a strong disciplinarian but he has a unique way of relating to children. As I understand it, his offense was requiring the offending child to sit in an appointed seat away from his friends. If our schools and their staff cannot or will not permit simple ground rules of structure, how can we expect our children to grow up respecting the law? Isn’t it time we revisit our guidelines for building moral character and reviewed what constitutes right or wrong? Certainly, parents should take the lead, but should we not also support those in whose care we entrust our children and give them a broad foundation for the exercise of discipline?

I remember as a child learning first hand that any disciplinary action at school would be met with equal or greater discipline from my parents. My parents always supported the teacher at least insofar as I was ever to know. What, if any, discussions that may have been conducted outside of my hearing range, I never knew and for that, I am glad. I was sent to school to learn and my teachers were empowered to teach me discipline and to educate me. That, in my opinion, is as it should be. On the other hand, our teachers in those days knew right from wrong but alas, that should be a subject for a future dissertation.

The message that follows was forwarded to me. Although I do not know the person who wrote this and cannot personally attest to the events that he writes about, I believe the content of this letter is true. We just returned from three months in Mexico. We learned first hand as a guest in Mexico that Mexico requires and in fact demands far more from the US citizens crossing their border than we seem to demand from theirs. My husband and I believe that a guest worker program is needed but not at the risk of compromising the security of our country. We want SAFE borders. No more illegals of any nationality and our laws must be enforced fairly and in blind justice. Those who are here illegally must be required to go through the legal apparatus for gaining access to our country and ultimately, if they desire and have met our requirements, citizenship. No one should be granted citizenship who is not willing to abide by our laws and that means the laws that were in effect when they came across the border. People who hire illegals must be punished and people who deal in illegal entry should be punished. It is time our existing laws were enforced. At leat that is the way I see it.

The following message was forwarded to me. I urge you to read it.



Subject: U S CITIZENS WORKING IN MEXICO



The following from a director with SW BELL in Mexico City.



I spent five years working in Mexico. I worked under a tourist visa for three months and could legally renew it for three more months. After that you were working illegally. I was technically illegal for three weeks waiting on the FM3 approval.

During that six months our Mexican and US Attorneys were working to secure a permanent work visa called a FM3. It was in addition to my US passport that I had to show each time I entered and left the country. Barbara's was the same except hers did not permit her to work.

To apply for the FM3 I needed to submit the following notarized originals (not copies) of my:

1. Birth certificates for Barbara and me.

2. Marriage certificate.

3. High school transcripts and proof of graduation.

4. College transcripts for every college I attended and proof of graduation.

5. Two letters of recommendation from supervisors I had worked for at least one year.

6. A letter from The ST. Louis Chief of Police indicating I had no arrest record in the US and no outstanding warrants and was "a citizen in good standing."

7. Finally; I had to write a letter about myself that clearly stated why there was no Mexican citizen with my skills and why my skills were important to Mexico. We called it our "I am the greatest person on earth" letter. It was fun to write.

All of the above were in English that had to be translated into Spanish and be certified as legal translations and our signatures notarized. It produced a folder about 1.5 inches thick with English on the left side and Spanish on the right.

Once they were completed Barbara and I spent about five hours accompanied by a Mexican attorney touring Mexican government office locations and being photographed and fingerprinted at least three times. At each location (and we remember at least four locations) we were instructed on Mexican tax, labor, housing, and criminal law and that we were required to obey their laws or face the consequences. We could not protest any of the government's actions or we would be committing a felony. We paid out four thousand dollars in fees and bribes to complete the process. When this was done we could legally bring in our household goods that were held by US customs in Loredo Texas. This meant we rented furniture in Mexico while awaiting our goods. There were extensive fees involved here that the company paid.

We could not buy a home and were required to rent at very high rates and under contract and compliance with Mexican law.

We were required to get a Mexican drivers license. This was an amazing process. The company arranged for the licensing agency to come to our headquarters location with their photography and finger print equipment and the laminating machine. We showed our US license, were photographed and fingerprinted again and issued the license instantly after paying out a six dollar fee. We did not take a written or driving test and never received instructions on the rules of the road. Our only instruction was never give a policeman your license if stopped and asked. We were instructed to hold it against the inside window away from his grasp. If he got his hands on it you would have to pay ransom to get it back.

We then had to pay and file Mexican income tax annually using the number of our FM3 as our ID number. The companies Mexican accountants did this for us and we just signed what they prepared. I was about twenty legal size pages annually.

The FM 3 was good for three years and renewable for two more after paying more fees.

Leaving the country meant turning in the FM# and certifying we were leaving no debts behind and no outstanding legal affairs (warrants, tickets or liens) before our household goods were released to customs.

It was a real adventure and If any of our senators or congressmen went through it once they would have a different attitude toward Mexico.

The Mexican Government uses its vast military and police forces to keep its citizens intimidated and compliant. They never protest at their White House or government offices but do protest daily in front of the United States Embassy. The US embassy looks like a strongly reinforced fortress and during most protests the Mexican Military surround the block with their men standing shoulder to shoulder in full riot gear to protect the Embassy. These protests are never shown on US or Mexican TV. There is a large public park across the street where they do their protesting. Anything can cause a protest such as proposed law changes in California or Texas.

Please feel free to share this with everyone who thinks we are being hard on illegal immigrants.

IMMIGRATION Monday, April 24, 2006

Our politicians return to Washington today, hopefully to work. That, of course, remains to be seen. Actually, they will return to Washington to continue that which they do best. Point out the sins and errors of the other party and try to convince all of us that they are "worthy" of our support. Although immigration and energy are the number one domestic issues, realistically, one cannot expect that anything will get done. Our politicians are too busy trying to preserve themselves.

I support immigration. The fact that people from other countries want to come to our country and reap the benefits of a free society is, in my opinion, a tribute to our way of life and their ambition, character and self esteem. I do think that it is important for them to understand that we will respect their background, their culture and their belief but they should be prepared to live by and under our law.

That said, I believe that we must exercise care that those who come to our country come for the right reason, to reap the benefits of free enterprise and not to take advantage of our country and its humane charity or destroy it and all for which it stands. Our laws must protect those who want to work while preserving our freedoms and commitment to the rule of law. Every person who crosses the border should do so legally and and no person who has entered this country illegally should be given preferential treatment.

Those illegals who are here now should not be departed en mass. There should be a program implemented that would permit those who are here now to register and apply for a guest worker or appropriately identified program for short term legal status. A program should be implemented that would investigate each applicant and, if the applicant is found worthy, they would be issued a "guest worker" permit. A date certain should be established to accomplish this goal and anyone who is in this country illegally and has not complied with the process by that date, would be subject to deportation.

In my vision, once the illegals have complied with the guest worker registration they would be eligible to apply for citizenship under already established law and the guidelines that apply to all applicants for immigration and citizenship. No one would be given a free ride, no one would be exempt from our laws and no one would gain access to citizenship except by following our established laws. The guest worker permit could be extended by application for extension but it would not be renewed automatically. Anyone who failed to file for extension of their work status upon expiration of their guest worker status, would be subject to immediate deportation. No person, country of origin or race should be an exception.

In my opinion, no great new immigration law needs to be passed. Existing law needs to be clarified, amended to provide a "path" (but not a promise) for illegals to become legal and existing laws must be enforced.

WIFI OR NOT TO WIFI

The New Year has begun and there is every hope for a great year in spite of the latest news of the loss of 12 coal miners in West Virginia. However, this seems a good time to address a pet peeve of mine that continues to grow more frustrating with each attempt at communication utilizing wireless access to the net.

I have had several opportunities to use the WIFI technology as my access to the “web” and each time I am frustrated by the ongoing lack of reliability of WIFI as a provider for access to the web. It is as squirrely as a used car salesman’s veracity. It is not, in my opinion, a reliable resource that should be expected to provide reliable service – at least I have not found this to be so. I use WIFI from my local area network at home and if I am not sitting in close proximity to my system link, my transmission and access capability is squirrely. After many attempts and effort at utilizing the WIFI offerings that are becoming more prevalent and availabile, I have concluded that WIFI is a developing resource that holds great promise. I have also concluded that the charges for access to the web via WIFI providers exceed its actual value. In my opinion, more development, research and reliability needs to be generated by the providers of this service before it will become a viable resource for communication.

This “blog” will be posted via WIFI from Mexico, in spite of several attempts to gain enough transmission capacity to post it to the web. I will go to the source of the WIFI server and from there, ultimately get on line. From an area within the supposed transmission zone, it is a dud. I love the concept, I am frustrated with the actual performance. Why do our technical “nerds” continue to release and “hype” technology that is not yet perfected? WIFI in my opinion is such a technology.

ON REFLECTION

We in California have spoken. The electorate has rejected any rationale that would return California’s spending practices to a resemblance of sanity. In California’s recent election process that featured several propositions that would have returned California to a beginning for sane dialogue, truth was rejected. The false claims, lies and innuendos of the purveyors of incompetence were embraced by the majority. The liberals and the unions demonized the Governor and the electorate chose the devil of misconception. The lobbyists and the union for the public “trough” won. Somehow, the masses do not seem capable of putting two and two together or thinking for themselves. They must be told how to think and like lambs to the slaughter, they go to the polls and vote the “message”.

There seems to be an idea that unlimited money and resources should be available for those who serve the public cause and that the wealthy should pay for the free spending of the bureaucrats. What will happen when there are no wealthy purses to rob? Will the unions and the bureaucrats suffer? Perhaps they think they shall somehow be immune?

Our California populace would have us go bankrupt as a State rather than accept responsibility for correcting our own ills. The State reflects a population of brain power lost. When will it all end?