Anybody have any thoughts on this?
"Standing in the center of a theater in the round-type setting with an audience full of business people, Bush spoke sympathetically about the plight of foreigners who risk their lives to sneak into the United States to earn a decent wage. He said the U.S. needs a temporary guest worker program to stop people from paying to be smuggled in the back of a truck.
"I know this is an emotional debate," Bush told the Orange County Business Council. "But one thing we can't lose site of is that we are talking about human beings, decent human beings."
"You can be a nation of law and be a compassionate nation at the same time," he said to applause."
They polled Americans to see how they felt about the deportation of illegal immigrants. Do the results surprise you?
Would you favor the sweeping deportation of illegal immigrants?
Yes 59%
No 41%
Total Votes: 10,328
7 comments:
It doesn't surprise me, but considering how many people had immigrant ancestors, it disappoints me.
Results occure like this because people boil complex social issues down to a 10 word question that can be easily measured. Most People do not understand that their problem is not with immigrants. In fact if the pollsters could see the reality of the bigger issues, Their problem is with human services that are misapportioned.
I disagree with most of my emergent friends on this issue. Jim Wallis is right that Budget's are moral documents. However That is MORE true of our churches and our Christian homes, than of our government. Our churches should be the first line of care and human services, not our government. When "Compassion" is forced by coercion (taxation), that is not compassion at all. If our churches were meeting the needs of those with the greatest needs, rather than our government system, than the attitudes of people would DRASTICALLY differ than these results.
I am working 1-2 evening every week this summer with providing human services at one of the local race tracks.
This is certainly an emotional issue that is very complex. I agree that we need to be compassionate, and welcoming. We all had ancestors at some point that came to this country from somewhere else.
However, there exists a mechanism for people to come to America legally and become a citizen. While it may be a bit unwieldy from a red tape perspective, it is not difficult.
I have no problem with people wishing to come to America and make a positive contribution, following the rules that are in place for people to join our great country. That should include following the laws of our land.
My experiences with a large and growing population from another country that exists where I live have been difficult. Many do not speak english and expect us to learn their language in order to communicate with them. Many do not hold an Arkansas drivers license, but they drive every day. Many do not have insurance coverage on their vehicles, nor are they properly registered, yet they drive every day. (Ok, the police officer in me is showing, sorry.)
I guess my biggest point is this. If I moved to another country, for any reason, with the intention of staying there for any length of time, I would expect to have to do certain things to assimilate there. Learning the customs, laws, language, and following the established social norms of that country would be automatic. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be the case in many instances here that people take those steps.
I'm not saying that we scoop "them" all up and ship them back to where they came. Nor am I saying that Christ followers should not extend grace and compassion toward every tribe, tongue and nation. I just wish that those who come to America would extend the same courtesy to us that we would if we moved to their country and intended to live there.
This is an issue that I struggle with every day. EVERY DAY. I work in a school, a place where all the aspects of this issue are encountered constantly. And to further cloud the issue we have teachers with very dogmatic, yet valid, positions on both sides. It is a very complex issue, and the more I think about it the more confused I get. And convicted on some level. I know how I personally have always felt/reacted, and I know how I should, as a follower of Christ feel and react, and the difficulty is reconciling the two. I'm leaning more in one direction I think, but it's tough going. Especially when you are around the negativity and anger and resentment all day long. Not only in the school I work in, but in our churches. Right now the best I can do is to remember that these are people. And God loves them the same as he loves me. They are the "least of these". What does that demand of me? And, as trite as this sounds, I really am asking myself - What WOULD Jesus do?
Immigration has always been one of those few issues where I actually agree with Bush. :)
My impression is that many of the immigrants who risk life and limb, and break the law, to work in the U.S. come from such desperate situations that being an outlaw pales in comparison.
Perhaps if we could take a tour of the places these people are coming from, we could relate to their desire to covertly work at the most demeaning jobs in the U.S.
In other words, I don't think we, as rich Americans, have a clue what it's like to be poor elsewhere.
Don't mean to come across as headstrong on this...just something I've thought about a lot lately. :)
You didn't, David. Your thoughts are running much the same as mine have been lately....
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