Dummygration Problem
Becoming a citizen of the United States is a long and (sometimes) nerve wrecking process. The naturalization itself can be completed within eight to twelve months, but the whole procedure from the first work permit to the day one actually becomes an American citizen will take many years. There’s tons of forms to fill out, countless hours of standing in line at the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) and lots of frustration because at some point something will go wrong and one has to go back to get the error fixed. On top of that it costs money and although it’s not a fortune it’s not cheap, either.
Despite all that I never really expected it to be easy. If you are from Germany you know that most things take time. Try moving from one place to another in Germany and get your phone hooked up and you will know what I’m talking about. Try finding a parking spot in Germany and I assure you that you will never consider moving there once you’ve tried. German rock stars have written songs about that problem!
If I weren’t a Christian I would swear right now that it never occurred to me to bring a German flag to any of my interviews with the INS or demand a green card, let alone my citizenship on the grounds of me being the backbone of America. Sure, I let my imagination run wild sometimes but I guess my imagination is very limited.
Watching hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants marching the streets of American cities to protest tougher immigration laws is deeply disturbing to me. It’s worse than what’s going on in France right now, where people refuse to accept the fact that they could actually get fired from their jobs at some point. And in my opinion it’s worse than all those Islamic extremist pinheads insisting nobody should ever be allowed to draw a picture of the prophet Muhammad.
Yes, I do realize that most illegal immigrants come to America hoping for a better life and mean no harm to anybody. And I do understand why people who live in poverty make the decision to take the illegal route instead of waiting for years to be allowed into the country. The real problem is rooted not so much in them but in politics.
When I read this and dozens of other articles I can only scratch my head in disbelieve. What’s going on in Washington? The Dummycrats have finally found a way to tackle the Republicans (at least they think they have) and you can watch them drooling all over the Senate floor in excitement. They oppose anything that would have the slightest chance of getting illegal immigration under control and at the same time they promise us: “We will take care of national security!” Not only is this utterly ridiculous, it’s scary!
Politicians should always have the nation’s best interest at heart. You would think. Of course, it’s not the case. Political power seems to be the great motivator for most people in the Senate as well as in the House. That’s the way it has always been and it will probably never change. The only way to keep these people in check and manipulate their actions is by us going to the ballot box and make a clear statement with our vote.
I’m convinced that most Americans will do so in the next election. I cannot imagine Dummycrats getting any traction on this issue. It has never been this obvious that they are playing political games at the cost of the safety of the American people. You’d have to be insane to vote for these people!
P.S. If I keep robbing banks, can I demand to own one some day? Sure, it’s illegal but if I’m doing it anyway …
When America develops the political will to build a 13-foot fence from sea to shining sea topped with razor wire and reinforced by moats and watchtowers manned with thousands of armed border guards, then I will look on the immigration issue as more than political posturing on either side of Congress.
And when Americans are willing to establish the bureacracy to admit, register and control the guest workers (one which would dwarf even Germany’s immigration bureaucracy) then I will look on the guest worker issue as more than just politicking.
Comment by ralphieboy - April 3, 2006 @ 2:35 am
Being both a “native-born” and a “naturalized citizen” of the United States I fully agree with you. I am considered native-born in that though born in Bayreuth, Germany, my parent’s were stationed in Germany immediately following the last world war. When in the Army, in order to attend OCS at Fort Benning, I needed to “forswear” my German Citizenship and thus went through the Naturalization process. As I lifted my hand and swore allegiance to the United States, it never occured to me to hoist the German Tri-Color and say “Oh, by the way…”
Great article Michael, I consider myself fortunate to have a fellow citizen like you!
P.S., try to keep from robbing banks, it just messes up the naturalization process and makes more forms necessary.
Comment by GM Roper - April 4, 2006 @ 4:07 am
P.P.S., would you consider changing your blog roll to reflect my new blog home URL? http://gmroper.mu.nu Thanks
Comment by GM Roper - April 4, 2006 @ 4:09 am
Hehe, GM, you’re probably right. Robbing banks is not the way to go.
Your URL will be changed as soon as Juergen gets back. I tried to change it but it looks like I’m too stupid to do it. Unless someone can give me a hint, it might take a few days.
Comment by Michael Meyn - April 4, 2006 @ 5:09 am
I have a problem with your “robbing banks” analogy, or rather, imagine instead that the USA had banks with piles of money lying about unprotected that the customers never bother to pick up because it would involve too much bending & lifting.
The peniless folks who wander in to pick up the piles of money would be stealing in the legal sense, but not in the sense of taking anything away from the customers. In fact, they would even be benefitting the customers indirectly by going off and spending some of the money in their stores & businesses.
In any case, that is my analogy of the immigration situation. If they would at least lock up the banks at night and control access, then the piles of spare change would become less attractive.
The folks who come in
Comment by ralphieboy - April 4, 2006 @ 6:21 am
@ralphieboy
Hahaha! I get it now man. You just don’t do comedy and humour do you?
Comment by rc - April 4, 2006 @ 7:09 pm
@rc,
whatever makes you laugh…
Comment by ralphieboy - April 5, 2006 @ 9:55 am
George Friedman gets it about right in that the terms of the debate are badly framed. It isn’t about immigration, per se. Mexico is the only country on earth that shares borderlands with the US. This makes the US SW potentially like Alsace/Lorraine (to put it into a context any educated german should understand). Americans instinctively know this and the Aztlan/MeCHa mexican irredentists make it explicit. These demonstrations are an opening move in a game of border adjustment. They are a 4GW attack on the will to keep our territorial integrity.
Comment by TM Lutas - April 8, 2006 @ 5:21 am
As the old joke goes: “It’s bad enough that you Gringos stole half our country. But you took the half with all the paved roads!”
But nonetheless, we must keep in mind that people were speaking Spanish in the American Southwest long before anybody came along speaking English.
Comment by ralphieboy - April 9, 2006 @ 1:40 am
Did you know that you need a franchise license to rob banks? If everyone just robbed any old bank they wanted this would create chaos. So, in order that their be orderly, rational bank robbing I have created Bank Robbers of America. By joining the BRA not only will you ‘own’ your own territory but also you will get many other benefits like discount ski masks, discount car rentals….
Comment by Paul - April 9, 2006 @ 7:24 am
Glad I emigrated from Germany during the fifties. I had no problem at all becoming a naturalized citizen of the USA, but that was after serving two years on active duty in the American Armed Forces.
Why don’t we give illegals the choice of serving in the Army or being deported? But the floodgates should be plugged. Even Thomas Jefferson feared such Catholic Invasion of the kind that is ignorant, controlling, corrupt, unreformed and unregenerate. While their religion is no doubt the reason for those disastrous conditions in Central America, our Catholic hierarchy on the left coast is supporting this blight on American soil. May God help us! I fear any kind of dhimmitude, whether it is of Mohammedanism or Catholicism.
Comment by klutter - April 9, 2006 @ 10:05 am
@klutter,
We could change the wording on the Statue of Liberty to read “Give me your ignorant, your contolling, your unreformed and unregenerate, and we will draft you into the armed forces….”
I tell you, our military bases would have the tidiest trimmed lawns, the crispest sheets and the best burritos mess hall chow of any armed forces in the world.
We could also amend the constitution so that the children of illegal immigrants are automatically born with the rank of private.
Comment by ralphieboy - April 9, 2006 @ 10:25 am
Well, ralphie, with NO thanks to the liberties Romanism granted you, there are none, you are free to get out your Mexican flag and join the Crusade.
Comment by klutter - April 9, 2006 @ 11:04 am
So far the protests (demonstrations) in Texas have been peacefull. White shirts, American flags, signs that are not too anti-american.
Thats all well and good. But I have to tell you that if they turn ugly and/or anti-american or anti-texan, you will see how most of the Texans really feel about the Mexican invasion.
It won’t be good at all for anyone.
Papa Ray
West Texas
USA
Comment by Papa Ray - April 9, 2006 @ 6:32 pm
klutter,
actually, I’m all for letting the wetbacks fight the towelheads for us, I just worry that they might come to make a common cause against us at some point.
Amd besides, they would never be fit to serve Patriot missiles: whever the commander announced “Launch time!”, they’d all lie down for a siesta…
Papa Ray,
we all know how the Mexicans felt about the Texan invasion in 1836 when General Santa Ana paraded up and down the ruins of the Alamo and declared “Mission Accomplished!”
Comment by ralphieboy - April 9, 2006 @ 10:54 pm
Ralphieboy: “But nonetheless, we must keep in mind that people were speaking Spanish in the American Southwest long before anybody came along speaking English.”
And they were speaking various dialects of Native Americans long before they were speaking Spanish. Your point is?
Comment by GM Roper - April 11, 2006 @ 5:09 am