The Arizona immigration law, recently signed by Governor Jan Brewer, has won few fans. The President, the Mexican government, Meghan McCain, and Janet Napolitano, all are against it. The issue needs redress, but the debate thus far is over methods. The problem already sends Arizona sprinting for a personal loan company to deal with it.

Janet Napolitano slams Arizona immigration law

Janet Napolitano recently voiced her displeasure with the Arizona immigration law. Napolitano is the head of the Department of Homeland Security, and believes it "is a misguided law." (From CNN .) The issue has long gone without addressing, and the President and Congress might soon make it a top priority.

Meghan McCain breaks rank with famous father

Meghan McCain daughter of John McCain, does not agree with her father on this one. A recent post by her on The Daily Beast declared the bill as it "misses the bigger picture of what is really going on with illegal immigration." She also posted those who don't see the impacts of illegal immigration on a daily basis, good and negative, can't appreciate the complexity of the situation.

Statements from the Government of Mexico

The President of Mexico himself denounced the bill, and Governor Brewer for having signed it. President Felipe Calderon issued a statement announcing his disappointment with the measure.

"The criminalization of the migration phenomenon, far from contributing to the cooperation and collaboration between Mexico and the U.S., represents an obstacle in the solution of common problems in the border region." - from Christian Science Monitor .

He was not the only Mexican official to condemn the bill. The consensus is that Washington has done little to deal with the problem, and the general attitude toward immigrants, especially Latin Americans, has been one of hypocrisy and ignorance towards Mexican immigrants and their contributions to American culture.

Not like this is the first time

Heavy handed legislation targeting immigrants has been tried before. It never works. It is apparent that many immigrants wish to come to this land to earn a quick payday with honest toil. A solution that doesn't benefit both sides would seem remiss, though you will find certainly always bad apples. There is supply and demand for their labor, and very little standing in the way of those forces goes un-circumvented for long.

Article Resources

CNN

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The Daily Beast

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Christian Science Monitor

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The TN League of Women Voters has a handy page on their web site with lots of current legislative information and talking points. See: (link...)

Did anyone see the "letter" in the sports section of the KNS on Sunday. It was signed by Roane County's own former judge, Thomas A Austin. I guess a halfway house is much akin to a frat house. Hijinks and pranks, fun and games. I'm not sure if he actually wrote the letter, but KNS seems to think he did and they require contact information to verify..so who knows.

It's not too late to participate in this year's Great Worldwide Star Count, "a half-month citizen science project that will harness thousands of observers across the globe to help map light pollution." The mapping effort runs from October 1 through October 15.

Help to map light pollution right here in Roane County. See: (link...)

For NASA's composite view of the lights of earth at night, see: (link...)

Here's a bargain. Three from Hillary... enjoy the, ummm... "wisdom"!

"We are going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."

"God bless the America we are trying to create."

"I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president."

RB

Thought it might be of interest what one of our younger generation is thinking about our socio-economic situation. This is from one of my 13 grandkids (the only one that is not brain-dead). He is now a senior at UT and his next move will probably be Med. School if he doesn't get waylaid into politics.