I went out yesterday with a friend I've known for about ten years. Now while I've never completely agreed with him in all this time (I never would call us a match made in heaven,but it's not a match made in hell either...) and his opinions, I never wanted to hurt him either...well, not too badly. But yesterday was the straw that broke the camel's back in one foul (the stench is overwhelming) swoop.
First of all, I am dating an immigrant. Not just any immigrant, but a Latino. He is Bolivian. I grant you he is not Mexican and he was never illegal. Immigration of any kind is a nightmare. If I didn't love him, I wouldn't have stuck it out this long. But he's been back in the USA since going to his home over 15 years ago. He's been here for over a decade. He could only apply for permanent residency when he hit the (immigration) lottery. Jackpot. You're the bigger winner--you get to cut through more bureaucracy! Now the reason, I make this clear is that a friend (?) made a very low scathing remark yesterday.
But I'll get to that.
I never agreed with him that English should be the "official" language of Utah. This means that official paperwork, government website, etc. is all in English. If I was in Germany, before I agreed with anything I would DARN sure want to make sure I understand it 100%!!! I know some German too...you could call me an advanced beginner/low intermediate level.
Then we have yesterday.
Walking out of the music superstore yesterday, we came across a book called Mitt Romney: A Mormon in the Whitehouse. We're both LDS-my friend and I. I'm more moderate in my political beliefs (yes, a fencesitter to anyone who cares)...there are certain moral issues I will not compromise on and there are political issues that I lean more to the liberal side. I'm not ashamed to admit this either. He came out of the closet some time back. I don't remember when even though I'm sure it was a momentous time for him. I suppose I should care and store it in my memory. Ok. So he opines it would not be a good idea to have a Mormon in the white house as he would be too conservative. Obviously this guy doesn't pay much attention to his world. Mitt's state is the only one where a homosexual couple can legally get married. Yes, this is a very conservative thought. My problem with Gov. Romney is not that he's Mormon and would shove his morality down America's throat. He waffles. It boils down to "I want to be everything to everybody." Well sir, you can't please everyone and you'll kill yourself trying. So I told my friend that Romney is a waffler.
We continue out of the store and he drives me home. This is when the crap hit the fan BIG TIME. Friends and opinions...I don't know if they mix too well.
So when where about 6 blocks from my house, we are behind an old person who has handicapped plates. "Handicapped people shouldn't drive...even mentally handicapped people." Ummm. Okay. I just softly said "Thanks a lot." I know I will be one of those old grannies that does not want to give up her driver's license when she reaches...the age that I should rightfully give it up. A car is my freedom. I have a hard time not driving for 3 months when I have to. I'm not completely right in the head and this is a handicap. Yes, I am disabled in some ways.
Then he starts in on the immigration movement. And let me tell you...his ideas are so liberal...yeah right!!!
I think he should be the Gay Poster Boy for the Minutemen. Excuse me if that sounds rude but.... He stated that a flag that read "Arizona--the New Aztlan" is worse than the Swastika. Mind you, that's Hitler's swastika.... What the ... I was burning up. I realize that illegal immigration is illegal. Yes, they are breaking the law. But how is this worse than Nazis who killed so many people? This is a headscratcher.
I think he should be the Gay Poster Boy for the Minutemen. Excuse me if that sounds rude but.... He stated that a flag that read "Arizona--the New Aztlan" is worse than the Swastika. Mind you, that's Hitler's swastika.... What the ... I was burning up. I realize that illegal immigration is illegal. Yes, they are breaking the law. But how is this worse than Nazis who killed so many people? This is a headscratcher. It basically boils down to this. Americans blame someone else for their problems. Yes, there are horrible people that are illegal immigrants. This much is true. But Dahmer, Bundy, Gein....to mention a few...were horrible men who were citizens of this country. Yes boys and girls, you read that right. They were not illegal immigrants. Yet if you look, there's the pity these people who were hurt by illegal immigration. Yes, there is identity theft by these people. But this is also done by legal citizens. Think meth addicts. If we go about stereotyping everyone, we'll get nowhere. I think many of these people simply want a better life for their families. What was proposed were fines to be paid before applying for residency. That's fine. Like I said, yes it is illegal. But why load them all up and dump them in the already very clogged corrections system? Why send them back so they can come again and again and again.... It's time to fix what's broken and a Berlin Wall II (we fought against that because it wasn't a democratic country that put it up) just is not the way to go about it. Stop scapegoating people (omg, did I just say immigrants are people????) and accept responsibility.
After all, why should I feel bad for you when you leave your door unlocked for five minutes and have your stuff stolen. That's like feeling bad for you when you leave your keys in your car and come back to find it gone. It's an opportunity. And it's just stuff. Realize that sometimes life is sometimes inconvenient, but if you want to protect your things, it's just better that way. I'll feel sorry for you when you have your doors locked.
