The Constitution: All or Nothing
By Vincent Yanez
Russell Pearce, the force behind SB1070 (which allows racial profiling in Arizona), and also SB1108 (which would end educational programs that he deemed were ‘indoctrinating’ kids with progressive ideologies, like Mexican-American studies and African-American Business Groups), is spreading his love once again.
- Image by Rosie O’Beirne via Flickr
No, I don’t mean he is planning on tampering with state driving records, which is why he was discharged as the Director of the Arizona Motor Vehicle Division (Arizona Republic/via wiki). And, no, I don’t mean he has gone back to spousal abuse, which is why his wife filed a dissolution of marriage which states she was ‘grabbed by the throat…and thrown down’ due to his ‘violent temper’ (New Times/via wiki). Nor do I mean he is back to forwarding emails from the leader of the White Separatist group (Arizona Central/via wiki), later claiming he hadn’t actually read the entire email before forwarding it.
What I’m talking about is his new piece of legislation that will not allow the children of illegal immigrants, who are BORN ON AMERICAN SOIL, to be automatic citizens. Pearce says they have ‘hijacked’ the 14 Amendment. The argument is over the line ‘subject to the jurisdiction thereof’. They are stating that, since an illegal immigrant is not ‘subject to our jurisdiction’, their children do not have to be accepted as a legal citizen.
This amendment was the final say in dealing with the children of American slaves. Pearce and his supporters rail that it was written for a certain time in American history and cannot be hijacked by the illegal immigrants as a means to stay in our country with their ‘anchor babies’.
Fair enough. A Constitutional Amendment that was written for a VERY SPECIFIC TIME in history should not be HIJACKED decades later to allow others to GET THEIR WAY. Awesome!
The 2nd Amendment was adopted in 1791. At that time in history we did not have a significant federal force or a national guard and America was still expanding into the unknown West. It recognized that the states, townships and cities all needed a regulated militia in order to defend it from unknown foes. It states ‘a well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.’
Now, we have the U.S. Military and each state has their own National Guard. We also have state troopers, sheriff departments, city police and rent-a-cops. We are no longer people who are part of a ‘regulated militia’ needing to worry about our ‘security’. We are in a different time then we were back in 1791, just as we are in a different time then when we had slaves in America.
So, wouldn’t you say that the 2nd Amendment is an Amendment that was written at a certain time in American history, specifically to deal with a specific issue and is now being HIJACKED by those who want to GET THEIR WAY? Sure, it isn’t an illegal couple with their ‘anchor baby’, but instead, it’s someone that only feels safe in Wal-Mart with a pistol shoved down their pants.
What’s good for the goose, right? Or is this where you start talking about prying stuff from cold, dead hands?
The Constitution GUARANTEES the right to bear arms, right? The Constitution also GUARANTEES that ANYONE BORN ON AMERICAN SOIL is a citizen. It isn’t a pick-and-choose sort of thing. This isn’t like the bible, where you get to shop for the quotes that fit your ideals and ignore the ones that don’t. This is the Constitution of the United States. This is the law of the land. This is something that EVERYONE in this country abides by, honors and dies to defend if called upon, right? Or is it ‘different’ this time around?
Do you really want someone with a past as questionable, dishonest and (frankly) embarrassing as Russell Pearce making decisions that are not even pretending to be about ‘enforcing laws’, but are instead, sad power-trips by a modern-day racist?
I heard them argue that the children of Ambassadors aren’t automatic citizens (that is because there is a specific clause, being that they are a ‘satellite’ of their nation state), and some have stated as a ‘fact’ that tourists babies aren’t automatic citizens (actually, they are, until they renounce their baby’s citizenship for their home country). Actually, babies born within 12 nautical miles OR over American airspace are also considered citizens, nice try.
- Image via Wikipedia
I have one more question. Where are those (since Obama took office) who have screamed, held up misspelled signs and cried that their ‘Constitution is being trampled on’? Here you go, an actual Amendment being trampled on, and not one peep from the Tea Party. It makes one wonder, when the ‘real’ Americans scream, ‘I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK’…what do they mean by ‘BACK’? How far back? When you didn’t allow blacks to be educated? When you didn’t allow women to vote? When you blacklisted thousands because you were afraid they were ‘secret communist’? How far back is far enough? When will you feel safe again? Once the landscape appears ‘lighter’? Are you mad I implied you may have racist tendencies? Good, show me I’m wrong, stand against racists laws and start defending your Constitution. ALL OF IT.
I COULDN’T HAVE WORDED BETTER MYSELF. GREAT JOB AT PRESENTING THE ACTUAL FACTS.
YOU’RE RIGHT THAT PEOPLE CAN’T JUST PICK AND CHOOSE WHICH AMENDMENTS THEY CHOOSE TO FOLLOW OR PUT INTERPRET THEM TO SUIT THEIR VALUES. GOOD JOB !
Being that MOST nations no longer give citizenship unless at least one parent is a citizen; it is high time for the USA to fall in line.
As for the rest of the above Op-Ed piece: SB1070 is nothing more than a copy/paste of existing Federal law. For that matter: the USA would be wise in adopting Mexico’s laws pertaining to illegal immigration.
Problem is, we have a thing called the Constitution, and no matter how much a moronic Governor, a not-so-mavericky Senator, a racist Sheriff or a misguided lawmaker don’t agree with it, they are REQUIRED to abide by it as American Citizens. It is not their, or a states right, to change something just because of their fear and hate. Nor can a state decide to take away our guns, take voting rights from women or disallow blacks from receiving an education. Once you make that ‘okay’ to do, then you open the door to all the small-minded, racist and god-fearing states in this country to start passing laws based on their ignorance and ‘values’.
The Constitution is interpreted by the Supreme Court and changed by Congress. Anything otherwise is against what this Democracy is founded on, plain and simple. The U.S. ‘falling in line’ could also be applied to us spending less on war toys and more on education, providing Universal Healthcare and caring for it’s citizens in a thousand other ways…just like MOST nations….or does it only count to be like’ them’ on matters like this, but in all other things, we’re the U.S. and we don’t need to ‘fall in line.’….?
Their is one glaring difference between 1070 and Federal law. Federal law is designed for men and women who are SPECIFICALLY TRAINED in the immigration problem. These are people who are EDUCATED to know what to look for, what to suspect, what to notice and how to approach and deal with such situations. These are ALSO people who are located in VERY specific areas of our states, with the intent of actually taking care of things before they become bigger issues. Their jobs are not just to ‘nab them pesky illegals’, they are the front line on kidnapping, people dying in the desert, drug running, etc. They are an elite group of people who are trained for this job.
To copy/paste this law and hand it to every Deputy Barney Fife and Sheriff Arapio is not only inviting problems, but is potentionally dangerous. Arapio has shown his hatred, racism and ignornace for years now. He has and is being investigated for the things he does that blatantly go against the Civil Rights of Americans. He is known to ’round up’ a group of people he ‘suspects’ are illegal, throw them in vans, take them to a ‘processing center’ until they can ‘prove’ they are legal.
They did this is Holland, Denmark and Poland. They ’rounded up’ individuals, took them to ‘processing centers’ until they could ‘prove’ they weren’t Jews. I find it FASCINATING that so-called good Americans are okay with this sort of behavior.
Allowing a group of law enforcement who have NOT be trained, educated, schooled or taught ANYTHING about what ‘suspected’ means, or what ‘a gut feeling’ really is, is only going to create more racist, morons like Arapio, who will target, profile, harass and annoy innocent people, and hide behind ‘the law’, all in an effort to rid their cities and towns of a problem they have only in their heads, called racism.
Of course, these ‘good americans’ (brewer, pearce, arapio and mccain) will claim that ILLEGALS ARE COSTING US MONEY. Fact is, those states with large illegal populations actually MAKE MORE MONEY from their illegals then they pay out because of them. That is a fact. Here, read this:
http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/economy/illegal-immigration-provides-benefits-states-despite-rhetoric/
They also scream about THE CRIMES OF THOSE ILLEGALS. Well, the FBI and the border town sheriffs have both said that though the illegal population has risen over ten years, crime has not. In fact, studies have shown that cities and towns with MORE illegals are actually SAFER. Here, read this:
http://www.newsweek.com/2010/05/27/reading-ranting-and-arithmetic.html
So two questions. One, how come if these ‘good americans’ are on the side of RIGHT, VALUES and the LAW, they are so willing to LIE to prove a point and win their case? When you lie, nothing you say can be believed, and they’ve shown that they cannot be trusted with facts. Shouting the Sky is Falling is no longer Patriotic.
and Two: If illegals ARE NOT costing us money and they ARE NOT causing more crime….and yet you STILL want them and their ‘anchor babies’ out of here….what exactly is your reasoning? And once they’re gone…who will you target next?