My friend EdC, from Texas, sent this to me. I NEVER forward or pass things on, but occasionally mention some here. It is wonderful to have such friends as EdC, LawKim, the Laundry Witch, Christmas Marty, LisaPooh, the Irv Man, of course the Beagle and Mud and Verdana, Tyroneus, MJ, Red Dragon, Hoppa, Ashby, CCRyder, Ole Miss Melinda, Kentucky Mike, and many others who supply important information. Y'all are da bomb!
My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the Orange
County Register which, of course, was not printed. So I decided to
"print" it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Please pass it
along if you feel so inclined.
Thank you.
(signed) Dave LaBonte
Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange
County Register:
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is
made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down
the Statute of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being
treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of
entry. Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people
like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new
kind of immigrant any longer.
Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to
the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line
in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands
and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and
support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning
English a primary rule in their new American households and some even
changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a
new life and did everything in their power to help their children
assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free
lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were
the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a
future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War
II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come
straight over from Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st
generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their
parents had come from.
They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan.
They were defending the United States of America as one people.
When we liberated France, no one in those villages was looking for
the French-American or the German-American or the Irish-American.
The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that
represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have
thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to
represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their
parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants
truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the
melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants
the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by
playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the
entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to
their mother country.
I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about.
I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the
early 1900s deserve better than that for the toil, hard work and
sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that
has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better
life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as
an example bythose waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statute of Liberty,
it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the
immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling
the United States just yet.
(signed) Rosemary LaBonte
P.S. - I hope this letter gets read by millions of people all across
the nation!!
There's no need for a quote or a smiley today...
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