Friday, May 28, 2010

Dow down 7.9% in May; Worst Since 1940

May 28 (Bloomberg) -- REPORTING: U.S. stocks slid, capping the worst May for the Dow Jones Industrial Average since 1940, while the euro slumped and Treasuries rose as a downgrade of Spain’s debt rating and escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula triggered a flight from riskier assets.





Today the Dow tumbled 122.36 points, that's 1.2 percent, to 10,136.63 at 4 p.m. in New York and lost 7.9 percent this month. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index sank 1.2 percent to 1,089.41, led by financial shares on the Spanish downgrade and energy companies after U.S. President Barack Obama extended a moratorium on new deep-water drilling. Oil erased gains after rallying as much as 1.6 percent to more than $75 a barrel. Ten-year Treasury yields decreased 7 basis points to 3.3 percent. The euro slipped 0.7 percent to $1.2273.





Equities and commodities extended losses after Fitch Ratings stripped Spain of the AAA rating it’s held since 2003, saying the nation’s economic growth will slow as it attempts to cut its debts. Earlier losses followed disappointing U.S. economic data and a North Korean general’s warning of “all-out war” if any accidental clashes with South Korea break out.





“Spain’s downgrade just adds to more uncertainty,” said Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist for Newark, New Jersey- based Prudential Financial Inc., which oversees about $667 billion. “There are too many geopolitical events. We have a three-day weekend in the U.S., and traders will definitely want to lighten their books.”



‘All-Out War’

Losses in U.S. stocks widened earlier after North Korean Major General Pak Rim Su disputed the results of the international investigation that found his nation sank a South Korean warship. “Any accidental clash that may break out in the waters of the West Sea of Korea or in areas along the Demilitarized Zone will lead to all-out war,” he said, according to North Korea’s official news organization.



About 9.2 billion shares changed hands on all U.S. exchanges, 4 percent below the average for the year as trading slowed before the Memorial Day holiday.



“With volumes being as they are today ahead of the holiday weekend, there is not much in the way of conviction among traders,” said Mark Turner, head of U.S. sales trading at Instinet LLC, which handles about 4 percent of U.S. equity trading volume. “So any headline has the potential to move the market. And the situation in North Korea has especially been in our crosshairs.”



China’s Assurance

The retreat in the S&P 500 today came after the benchmark index rallied 3.3 percent yesterday as China assured investors it was committed to maintaining European investments even as a sovereign debt crisis rattles confidence in the region.



Benchmark indexes pared declines late in the day after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategist David Kostin raised his estimates for S&P 500 earnings to $78 a share for this year and $93 a share for 2011, up from $76 and $90, to reflect “strong” first quarter earnings and better-than-estimated profit margins.



The S&P 500 trimmed its advance for the week to 0.2 percent, while the MSCI World Index of shares in 24 developed nations rose 0.6 percent over the past five days. The U.S. gauge sank 8.2 percent in May and the global gauge lost 9.9 percent, the worst month since February 2009 for both and the biggest slide in May for the S&P 500 since 1962.



The Stoxx Europe 600 Index erased gains, dropping 0.3 percent today after rallying as much as 0.7 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 1.5 percent.



Golf Balls, Scraps

BP Plc slid 5 percent in London after Europe’s second- largest oil company said procedures to plug a leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico may last another day or two. BP added rubber golf balls and scraps to the mud it was pumping into its leaking Gulf of Mexico oil well in an effort to stop the spill.

Baker Hughes Inc., Halliburton Co., Transocean Ltd. and Schlumberger Ltd. slumped at least 4.9 percent to help lead declines in U.S. energy shares.



Obama is suspending exploration in two areas off Alaska, canceling pending lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and proposed sales off Virginia’s coast, extending by six months a moratorium on deepwater drilling permits and suspending operations at all 33 exploratory wells being drilled in the Gulf.



The gain in Treasuries extended the drop in 10-year yields this month to 36 basis points, the biggest monthly loss since December 2008, as government data showed consumer spending in the U.S. unexpectedly stalled, fueling speculation the economic recovery will be slow.

Lowest Since 2009



The benchmark note yield touched 3.06 percent on May 25, the lowest level since April 29, 2009. Its 17 basis point gain yesterday was the most since June.

A gauge of U.S. corporate credit risk climbed the most in 15 months in May as Europe’s sovereign debt crisis sparked concern that economic growth may slow, making it harder for companies to refinance.



The Markit CDX North America Investment Grade Index Series 14, which investors use to hedge against losses on corporate debt or to speculate on creditworthiness, increased 1.34 basis points today and 25.2 basis points this month to a mid-price of 117.17 basis points as of 4:19 p.m. in New York, according to Markit Group Ltd. The index, which typically falls as investor confidence improves and rises as it deteriorates, climbed the most since February 2009, according to CMA DataVision.





Credit markets faltered in May as corporate bond sales fell to the least in a decade amid speculation Greece and other nations in Europe won’t be able to meet their debt payments and as the dispute between North Korea and South Korea raised the risk of a broader conflict.



Crude oil for July delivery fell 58 cents, or 0.8 percent, to settle at $73.97 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil’s 14 percent decline in May was the biggest monthly decrease since December 2008, when prices touched $32.40 a barrel.



Copper for July delivery lost 1.7 percent to $3.1045 a pound in New York. Gold futures rose in New York, capping a second straight monthly gain, on demand for an alternative to holding the euro. Gold for August delivery climbed 60 cents to $1,215 an ounce in New York.



To contact the reporters on this story: Rita Nazareth in New York at rnazareth@bloomberg.net; Elizabeth Stanton in New York at estanton@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: May 28, 2010 16:48 EDT

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Obama's Redistribution of wealth Victorious!

Edited from an Article written by: By Dennis Cauchon, of USA TODAY



The paychecks from private business shrank to their smallest share of personal income in U.S. history during the first quarter of this year, a USA TODAY analysis of government data finds.



Then, at the same time, government-provided benefits — from Social Security, unemployment insurance, food stamps and other programs — rose to a record high during the first three months of 2010. Presenting an unprecedented situation for the economy of the United States.



It's true that the records reflect a long-term trend accelerated by the recession and the federal stimulus program to counteract the downturn. The result is a major shift in the source of personal income from private wages to government programs.



The fact is, this trend is not sustainable, says University of Michigan economist Donald Grimes. Reason: The federal government depends on private wages to generate income taxes to pay for its ever-more-expensive programs. Government-generated income is taxed at lower rates or not at all, he says. "This is really important," Grimes says during the interview.



Let's face it, the recession has erased 8 million private jobs. Even before the downturn, private wages were eroding because of the substitution of health and pension benefits for taxable salaries. This new report is troubling.



Here are the facts: The Bureau of Economic Analysis reports that individuals received income from all sources — wages, investments, food stamps, etc. — at a $12.2 trillion annual rate in the first quarter.



Key shifts in income this year:



• Looking at Private wages. A record-low 41.9% of the nation's personal income came from private wages and salaries in the first quarter, down from 44.6% when the recession began in December 2007.



• Considering Government benefits. Individuals got 17.9% of their income from government programs in the first quarter, up from 14.2% when the recession started. Programs for the elderly, the poor and the unemployed all grew in cost and importance. An additional 9.8% of personal income was paid as wages to government employees.



Obviously the shift in income shows that the federal government's stimulus efforts have been effective, says Paul Van de Water, an economist at the liberal Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.



"It's the system working as it should," Van de Water says. Government is stimulating growth and helping people in need, he says. As the economy recovers, private wages will rebound, he says.



On the other hand, Economist Veronique de Rugy of the free-market Mercatus Center at George Mason University says the riots in Greece over cutting benefits to close a huge budget deficit are a warning about unsustainable income programs. While the government may be able to print money, it does not produce anything.



Economist David Henderson of the conservative Hoover Institution says a shift from private wages to government benefits saps the economy of dynamism. "People are paid for being rather than for producing," he says. In the meantime, government continues to grow and the private sector shrinks.

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Speaking Of That

Sunday, May 23, 2010

The gathering revolt against government spending

This just in from Michael Barone. Perhaps the country will wake up soon!



This month three members of Congress have been beaten in their bids for re-election -- a Republican senator from Utah, a Democratic congressman from West Virginia and a Republican-turned-Democrat senator from Pennsylvania. Their records and their curricula vitae are different. But they all have one thing in common: They are members of an Appropriations Committee.





Like most appropriators, they have based much of their careers on bringing money to their states and districts. There is an old saying on Capitol Hill that there are three parties -- Democrats, Republicans and appropriators. One reason that it has been hard to hold down government spending is that appropriators of both parties have an institutional and political interest in spending.



Their defeats are an indication that spending is not popular this year. So is the decision, shocking to many Democrats, of House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey to retire after a career of 41 years. Obey maintains that the vigorous campaign of a young Republican in his district didn't prompt his decision. But his retirement is evidence that, suddenly this year, pork is not kosher.



It has long been a maxim of political scientists that American voters are ideologically conservative and operationally liberal. That is another way of saying that they tend to oppose government spending in the abstract but tend to favor spending on particular programs. It's another explanation of why the culture of appropriators continued to thrive after the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994 and during the eight years of George W. Bush's presidency.



In the past rebellions against fiscal policy have concentrated on taxes rather than spending. In the 1970s, when inflation was pushing voters into higher tax brackets, tax revolts broke out in California and spread east. Ronald Reagan's tax cuts were popular, but spending cuts did not follow. Bill Clinton's tax increases led to the Republican takeover and to tax cuts at both the federal and state levels but spending boomed under George W. Bush.



The rebellion against the fiscal policies of the Obama Democrats, in contrast, is concentrated on spending. The Tea Party movement began with Rick Santelli's rant in February 2009, long before the scheduled expiration of the Bush tax cuts in January 2011.



What we are seeing is a spontaneous rush of previously inactive citizens into political activity, a movement symbolized but not limited to the Tea Party movement, in response to the vast increases in federal spending that began with the Troubled Asset Relief Program legislation in fall 2008 and accelerated with the Obama Democrats' stimulus package, budget and health care bills.



The Tea Party folk are focusing on something real. Federal spending is rising from about 21 percent to about 25 percent of gross domestic product -- a huge increase in historic terms -- and the national debt is on a trajectory to double as a percentage of GDP within a decade. That is a bigger increase than anything since World War II.



Now the political scientists' maxim seems out of date. The Democrat who won the Pennsylvania 12th Congressional District special election opposed the Democrats' health care law and cap-and-trade bills. The Tea Party-loving Republican who won the Senate nomination in Kentucky jumped out to a big lead. The defeat of the three appropriators, who among them have served 76 years in Congress (and whose fathers served another 42), is the canary that stopped singing in the coal mine.



Will Republicans come forward with a bold plan to roll back government spending? The natural instinct of politicians is to avoid anything bold. The British Conservatives faced this question before the election this month. When Britain was prosperous they promised no cuts at all. When recession hit, they were skittish about proposing cuts and mostly unspecific when they did.



That may have been why they fell short on May 6 of the absolute majority they expected. Now they're in a coalition with the third-party Liberal Democrats, who proposed more cuts, and the cuts they've announced have been widely popular. Boldness seems to work where skittishness did not.



Unlike the Conservatives, Republicans have no elected party leader. But House Republicans like Eric Cantor, Kevin McCarthy and Peter Roskam are setting up web sites to solicit voters' proposals for spending cuts, while Paul Ryan has set out a long-term road map toward fiscal probity. Worthy first steps. I think voters are demanding a specific plan to roll back Democrats' spending. Republicans need to supply it.



Michael Barone, The Examiner's senior political analyst, can be contacted at mbarone@washingtonexaminer.com. His columns appear Wednesday and Sunday, and his stories and blog posts appear on ExaminerPolitics.com.



Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/The-gathering-revolt-against-government-spending-94603774.html#ixzz0oofUGSmt

Saturday, May 22, 2010

In case you don't know about the illegal immigration problem in the U.S.



Showing results for photo van with illegals. Search instead for photo van with illeagals



1.     Amarillo.com | Local News: Agent stops van full of illegal ...

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3.     Immigrant smuggler tasered: 25 illegal immigrants found in van - KSWB

Apr 26, 2010 ... SAN DIEGO -- A man driving a large van packed with about with 25 suspected illegal immigrants was arrested Monday in the East County after ...

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4.     18 illegal immigrants found jammed in van » Knoxville News Sentinel

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6.     8 Illegal Immigrants Killed In Van Crash - CBS News

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8.     Border Patrol searching area for illegal immigrants on the run ...

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9.     Rollover crash kills 4 illegals - Family, Friends, Firearms

8 posts - 8 authors - Last post: Sep 30, 2003
Photo by Alfred J. Hernandez. Just after 5:30 p.m. Sunday, between 20 to 30 illegal immigrants were spotted loading into two vans in the ...

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http://www.google.com/images/icons/search-16.gifGet more discussion results

10. Feds arrest 59 criminal illegal immigrants in Houston - Worldnews.com

Feb 26, 2010 ... photo: AP / Marco Ugarte. Houston Chronicle: U.S. envoy lauds Mexico for nabbing ..... 18 illegal immigrants found jammed in van2010-02-26 ...

article.wn.com/.../Feds_arrest_59_criminal_illegal_immigrants_in_Houston/ -

·  Stolen van stopped on I-40; 18 suspected illegal immigrants ...

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·  Contractor blamed for suspected illegal aliens found in van ...

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·  Five plead guilty in Iridium illegals scheme | PoconoRecord.com

Mar 4, 2008 ... The original indictments say H&T provided vans and drove illegal aliens from downtown Wilkes-Barre to Iridium at least three times between ...

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·  17 Illegal Immigrants Arrested in Mobile County -

Sep 6, 2007 ... A traffic stop on Interstate 10 in Mobile County. US Border Patrol busted a van full of illegal immigrants.

www.wkrg.com/...illegal_immigrants.../Sep-06-2007_10-51-pm/ - Cached

·  Immigration agents crack down on Arizona Illegal Immigrants - KDVR

Apr 15, 2010 ... using the vans to transport thousands of illegal immigrants from spots near the Mexican border to Phoenix. ... Multimedia; Local Photos ...

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·  Deputies stop van carrying illegal aliens - Topix

Deputies stop van carrying illegal aliens. Full story: Citrus County Chronicle .... Personalize your forum posts with your photo and hometown. ...

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·  Officials search for illegal immigrants after boat found near pier ...

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·  Illegal immigrants face crackdown in Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh ...

Jul 23, 2006 ... Guatemalan farmhand caught driving a van with 15 other illegal aliens said he was resigned to his fate. ... Photos. click to enlarge ...

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·  KTAR.com - Illegal Aliens Rear End Homeland Security Vehicle

Jan 29, 2008 ... A mini-van full of illegals rear-ended a Homeland Security SUV this morning ... by Jayme West/KTAR Newsroom; Photo by Doug Murphy/Ahwatukee ...

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·  The Post and Courier - Police: Woman trafficked illegals ...

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·  ABP Photo of the Day Archive -- 2006

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·  Three illegal aliens charged in murder-for-hire plot

May 4, 2010 ... Montgomery County booking photo/KYW1060 ... made a routine traffic stop on a van, which turned out to be carrying 11 illegal aliens. Much … ...

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·  Leader Telegram: News - Forty-nine illegal aliens rounded up in region

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·  Crime victims of illegal aliens

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·  Rash of Illegals crashing through port of entry

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·  Immigration activists protest at detention facility

Apr 27, 2010 ... 1 of 5: Protesters sit on street and block a immigration detention center van with illegal immigrants from driving. (Photo courtesy ABC7's ...

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·  Immigrant accused of harboring, employing illegals - Milford, MA ...

Jan 14, 2008 ... Tacuri was arrested along with 14 other illegal immigrants during a predawn raid at his home Dec. ... State police stopped the van for motor vehicle violations in Foxborough, ... Photo and page reprints. Market Place ...

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·  Van carrying illegal immigrants wrecks NW of Tucson

Apr 16, 2010 ... Van carrying illegal immigrants wrecks NW of Tucson. Story. By Phil Villarreal and Brian J. Pedersen Arizona Daily Star | Posted: Friday, ...

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·  12 illegal immigrants arrested during traffic stop | savannahnow.com

Apr 15, 2010 ... Police arrested 12 illegal immigrants after stopping a van for a traffic violation in Cloquet.Deputy Police Chief Terry Hill says the van had Georgia license plates ... Coastal Mommies · Photo Galleries · 2010 Elections ...

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Search Results

1.     Illegal aliens in custody after fleeing cops on Ohio Turnpike ...

May 21, 2010 ... The driver, identified as Melvin Hernandez, of Mexico, also faces felony charges of transporting illegal aliens. The Toyota Sienna mini-van ...

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2.     Wet Arizona winter fatal for illegal immigrants - Tucson News and ...

Feb 16, 2010 ... If SB 1070 ever becomes law in Arizona, Illegal Immigrants there surely will ... pulled over a van on Richmond's Route 95 for a traffic violation. ... Flie photo. Source: CBP. Los Angeles - Three suspected 'coyotes' have ...

politifi.com/.../Wet-Arizona-winter-fatal-for-illegal-immigrants-193704.html - Cached

3.     Chattanooga Times Free Press | Immigration agents raid Arizona van ...

Apr 16, 2010 ... The shuttle operators are accused of giving illegal immigrants fraudulent receipts to make the ... Friday - May 21, 2010 - 1 Comment - Photo ...

www.timesfreepress.com/.../immigration-agents-raid-arizona-van-shuttle-busine/ - Cached

4.     D.R.Berry Says: Sheila Jackson Lee: Let's Give Health Care to Illegals

Sep 29, 2009 ... VAN SUSTEREN: And if we can identify them -- OK, but I mean, ... My Photo. D.R. Berry: Politically savvy trivia goddess extraordinaire ...

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5.     Illegal aliens in the Netherlands | Radio Netherlands Worldwide

Oct 26, 2009 ... We investigate what it's really like for illegal aliens living here in the ... Mind your ear drums! (Photo: Dokters van de Wereld) ...

www.rnw.nl/english/radioshow/illegal-aliens-netherlands - Cached - Similar

6.     Protesters block detention van - UPI.com

Apr 27, 2010 ... blocked a federal detention van carrying illegal immigrants who ... Enlarge Photo. Demonstrations protest against Arizona Imigration ...

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7.     Poizner pushes to stop services for illegal immigrants at GOP ...

Mar 12, 2010 ... Not only is Whitman a huge, "fan" of Van Jones, she is on the climate change ..... Photo Galleries. Ventura County's Most Wanted May 18 ...

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8.     KVOA.com | Tucson, Arizona Several suspected illegal immigrants ...

Apr 16, 2010 ... I know a a nurse that worked at the UMC trauma ward. when one of these typical crashes occurred (17 illegals being smuggled in a van with ...

www.kvoa.com/.../several-suspected-illegal-immigrants-injured-in-i-10-crash/ - Cached

9.     Moonbattery: Bureaucrats Issue IDs to Illegal Aliens

May 17, 2010 ... Bureaucrats Issue IDs to Illegal Aliens. Posted by Van Helsing at May 17, ... now endorse or issue photo identification cards to residents. ...

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10. Topic

Agents raided van shuttle operators in Arizona Thursday in a massive investigation into smuggling of illegal immigrants. (AP Photo/Matt York) ...

www.winonadailynews.com/topic/?q...t... - Cached

YouTube - Illegal Aliens kill Arizona rancher

Mar 29, 2010 ... queueVan Flips and 28 Illegal Immigrants Jump Out233732 viewsinlovewithi ... queueMario Quiroz Photo Essay: 200000 Immigrants Ma...231 views ...



Friday, May 14, 2010

Cinco to Midnight: The Great Mexican End Game (American Thinker)

By Selwyn Duke
 Recently, columnist Charles Krauthammer expressed support for amnesty for illegals, while Newt Gingrich advocated a path to what he called "legality." The two men stipulated that border control must come first, but still, what makes two conservatives such weak sisters on this issue? Perhaps part of the answer was provided by Dick Morris, who said that immigration is a losing issue for Republicans.




Morris is no pillar of principle, but he knows political trends. What's his reasoning? Over the short term, a hard-line immigration stance benefits many politicians; as for the long term, however, there's something called demographic change.




Hispanics are the most rapidly growing group in the nation. In fact, if current immigration and birthrate trends continue, Hispanics will become America's largest ethnic group during the next century. Constituting fifteen percent of the population already, they're poised to become twenty-nine percent by 2050.




This is relevant because, while many rationalize away the reality, a majority of Hispanics oppose tighter border control. For example, one survey showed that 81 percent of Latinos in Arizona oppose their state's new immigration law, with 70 percent registering strong disapproval.




Because of this, many have warned Republicans against "alienating" this burgeoning voting bloc.For instance, Simon Rosenberg, the head of a group that studies such matters, said, "If the Republicans don't make their peace with Hispanic voters, they're not going to win presidential elections anymore. The math just isn't there." 




Unfortunately, the common sense just isn't there, either. That is, while Republicans recognize this electoral reality, they don't seem to ask (honestly) what's necessary to avoid this alienation. Because if they did, they'd realize that the new immigrants' affinity for liberalism goes far beyond a love for porous borders.




Question: If we imported millions of Scandinavians  --  who have created the most liberal governments on Earth -- would we expect them to magically change their ideology upon seeing American terra firma? If not, why would we expect otherwise with south-of-the-border socialists? If they choose Hugo Chávez and Evo Morales types below the Rio Grande, why wouldn't they above it? Geography doesn't change ideology.




Despite this, many Republicans claim they can "reach out" to Hispanic voters and woo them. This is fantasy. Today's immigrants, most of whom are Hispanic, vote Democrat approximately 70 to 80 percent of the time (Bush did better, but surprise, surprise, he favored amnesty for illegals), and this won't change. Oh, there is one way woo them: Adopt Democrat policies across the board (you can remain pro-life and against faux marriage) -- favoring socialist measures and big government. 




This is, of course, why leftist politicians love unfettered immigration so much: They are importing their voters -- socialist voters.




Now, some claim that since socialism is quintessentially un-American, time, prosperity, and acculturation will purge it from new populations. This is also fantasy. Would you expect this with the Scandinavians? As for prosperity, upper classes were more likely to vote for Barack Obama than lower ones. And acculturation? The pressure today is not to assimilate, but, owing to multiculturalism, to cling to your ethnicity.




The symptoms of this abound.  We have seen new arrivals protest in the streets wielding signs stating "Gringo Go Home" and the shocking video of California teacher Ron Gochez calling for a Mexican communist revolt in the U.S. Then there was the recent incident in which a girl was told that her drawing of an American flag was offensive, and another where students were punished for wearing American flag-themed clothing. And both of these travesties were the handiwork of a teacher or administrator who reflects the anti-Americanism now permeating the establishment.




It also, sadly, reflects many on the ground. For instance, commenting on the second incident, student Annicia Nunez opined, "I think they [the flag-clothing wearers] should apologize cause it is a Mexican Heritage Day. We don't deserve to be get [sic] disrespected like that. We wouldn't do that on Fourth of July." Like many, this girl draws an equivalence between American and foreign holidays. Don't ask if she considers herself American. The only question is if she views herself as Mexican or shows some deference to hyphenation.




And we have become a hyphened nation, less capable than ever of assimilating immigrants. Yet we now have more than ever to assimilate. While we admitted only around 250,000 immigrants annually during most of our history, that number has ballooned to approximately 1 million (85 percent of whom hail from the third world and Asia). To paraphrase columnist Frosty Wooldridge, the rate of immigration long ago exceeded the rate of assimilation.




Then there is an even more troubling factor: the consequences of taking in so many immigrants from just one country.    




In a relatively recent phenomenon, approximately 50 percent of legal immigrants have been coming from Mexico. And about 67 percent of American Hispanics have origins in that nation; this amounts to, including illegals, a population of approximately 20 to 30 million -- about 20 percent of Mexico's population. What are the consequences of such an unbalanced immigration policy? University of Edinburgh professor Stephen Tierney explains them very well in his book Multiculturalism and the Canadian Constitution, writing:




In a situation in which immigrants are divided into many different groups originating in distant countries, there is no feasible prospect of any particular immigrant group's challenging the hegemony of the national language [press one for English, folks?] and institutions. These groups may form an alliance among themselves to fight for better treatment and accommodations, but such an alliance can only be developed within the language and institutions of the host society and, hence, is integrative. In situations in which a single dominant immigrant group originates in a neighbouring country, the dynamics may be very different. The Arabs in Spain, and Mexicans in the United States, do not need allies among other immigrant groups. One could imagine claims for Arabic or Spanish to be declared a second official language, at least in regions where they are concentrated, and these immigrants could seek support from their neighbouring home country for such claims - in effect, establishing a kind of transnational extension of their original homeland in their new neighbouring country of residence.




Note that parts of the U.S. are already so heavily Mexican that their residents perceive no need to assimilate. Also note that these immigrants have in fact received support from Mexico, as its government has interfered in our domestic affairs and demanded that they be accommodated.




Professor Tierney goes on to write, "This fear [of cultural genocide] is often compounded in situations where the immigrant group has historic claims against the receiving country. ... For example, in the Mexican-United States case ..." 




In this case ... what? There is just such a claim. Sure, it's specious, but good luck convincing the Reconquistas of this. As pundit Dr. Jack Wheeler points out here, Mexico's rulers engender hatred toward the U.S. by, among other things, placing an enormous map depicting Greater Mexico -- which includes much of our land -- near the entrance of Mexico City's Museum of National History. Wheeler writes, "Every class of students on a field trip from their school to the museum is made to sit down and gaze up at the huge map, while the teacher explains how so much of Los Estados Unidos was stolen from Mexico and really belongs to them." The rationale is that all the land treaties the U.S. made with European powers, such as the Louisiana Purchase, were illegal and that the regions thus obtained rightfully belong to Mexico. States Wheeler, "Every Mexican national legally or illegally in the US is told by the Mexican government his or her allegiance is to Mexico -- not America."




Wheeler also claims that Mexico owes its independence to us, as we helped defeat its French overlords. But belaboring the point is fruitless, as reason plays less of a role in people's decisions and behavior than many of us like to think. You won't reason a person out of ethnic and national patriotism -- and citizenship tests certainly won't purge either from them. Possession is nine-tenths of the law, like it or not. The question is, who will possess the American lands in question -- and what will American culture be possessed of -- a generation or two hence?




So not all immigration is created equal, and Mexican immigration is unique. For it is not just the migration of individuals -- it is the transplantation of a foreign nation into the body of our own.  




This is just one reason (recently naturalized Times Square bomber types are another) I've long advocated at least a moratorium on all immigration. The people make the country and government, not the other way around. 




Thus, a debate about immigration policy is nothing less than a discussion about what kind of nation we wish to be. Will it be Mexico North? Iran West? Right now we're looking more like the Balkans. 




In fact, with a socialist voting bloc that threatens to give us a Hugo Chávez North sometime in the future -- that is, unless current trends can be reversed -- the realizing of Mexican nationalists' Aztlan dream may not be lamentable. A partitioning of the U.S. may offer the only hope of enjoying a land where the American dream lives on.




Don't like the sound of that?  Then you'd better start reversing those trends and initiate that immigration discussion fast -- in approximately twenty years ago. Because it's later than you think -- about cinco to midnight for America.
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