As I expected, the proposed Immigration Reform bill percolating in Congress isn't going anywhere anytime soon. I also anticipated the reasons, which are:
1. Hysteria over the idea of "amnesty" (however defined) for those who are in the country illegally.
2. Political cowardice on both sides of the aisle, as no one wants to offend the Hispanic vote.
3. Belief that principled compromise in the interest of solving the problem is the same as craven sellout.
All of these are utterly and equally stupid.
I, too, oppose amnesty. If you read my proposed immigration reform measures (go back a month or so in the archives), you'll find that they are very similar to the ones stalled in Congress, with one major exception: I proposed a much smaller fine for the registration of those in the country illegally, my rationale being that while a fine is needed to reinforce the idea of guilt, it can't be so large that no one could pay it and thus serves only as an excuse to ignore the law.
The political cowardice issue is beyond contempt. Elected officials more interested in courting bloc votes than in protecting the nation should be voted out of office and condemned in no uncertain terms.
Finally, what's wrong with compromise? In the current poisonous political culture, the idea of principled give-and-take to reach a solution satisfactory to all has disappeared, replaced by a winner-take-all, screw-you-and-the-horse-you-rode-in-on approach that is guaranteed only to prolong problems and make them worse. In the immortal words of Officer Ripley from the great science fiction film Aliens (appropriate coincidence, eh?): "Did IQs just drop sharply while I was away?"
I hope that our elected leaders will suddenly find the wisdom to work together to solve this problem, unfettered by the pressure exerted by the supporters of illegal immigration. But somehow, I think this is about as likely as my finding new hair growing on my bald spot.
Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.
Bilbo
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