had a major case of the self-inflicted blues. Really, really down, mostly because of what I perceive to be my contributions to the nastiness that is the illegal immigrant debate. My goodness, to hear and read otherwise tender and compassionate people say that it is not only ok but a good thing to kill people that cross our borders without going through the proper channels makes me literally ill. And to know that I’ve contributed to that mentality makes it worse.
How did I get to such a point? I read my Bible, I study my Bible, I pray, I meditate, I think, I try to do good things. And still, I somehow find myself surrounded by people saying that illegals can (and in a couple of cases should) be killed. And unable to convince them otherwise, in no small part because I have written and said many times that our borders should be closed, that illegals are hurting our economy and we need to have some type of guest work program. In my mind, nothing that I say should lead anyone to think about violence against fellow humans but unfortunately it does.
I’m not sure what to do about it or what to say about it. Fact is, I am convinced that we do need to close the borders, that people here illegally take more than they give and that we need to document them because we need the workers and we need them to pay their fair share. So I can’t just not say that, it would be a lie. But how do you articulate those positions without inflaming people so much that they want to shoot these people?
And to add to this, I watched a movie that perfectly illustrates what is happening in this issue. The movie is Rosewood, I finally was able to watch the last half of the movie last night (third DVD from Netflix). Sickening is the best way to describe how whites treated blacks in destroying a town in the 1920’s. More to the point, it was such an accurate portrayal of fear and mob mentality that it too made me physically ill. What a great movie it turned out to be. The first half was slow and really not worth watching. But the last half, oh man, it was incredibly moving.
The emotions displayed by the mob of illiterate whites in that movie is pretty much what I see in the cyberworld discussing illegals. There is so much underlying prejudice and fear that it cannot stay hidden. I’m not sure what to do about it but I have to think very hard and long before discussing it again. Is a person’s life really cheapened by the color of his skin or the size of his bank account? In our society, I think the overwhelming evidence is yes.
Father, forgive me for I have failed you.
bigjolly, I hope I am not one of the commenters that caused you to feel that way. The illegal issue is a hard one. I am very sorry that the illegal was shot by the border agent. My contention against Eric was simply that there is a doubt in my mind as to whether or not it constituted murder. I think the border needs to be closed and immigrants need to be processed in an orderly and lawful manner. Like you I fear the horde mentality that could lead to lynch mobs on either side of the issue.
duhmoose, not at all. It’s me. Just need to evaluate what direction I’m headed. Feels like the wrong one today, especially when I realized I’ve encouraged that type of thinking. And you know what the funny thing is? There was a guy that pointed this out to me a few weeks ago and I didn’t listen.
Like Moose says, it’s a difficult, emotion-filled issue. As I said the other day, its heartbreaking that the young man was killed, but with the lawlessness along the border, where snipers are taking shots at agents, its hard to put yourself in the agent’s shoes and in that split second know how to react. Those most responsible are our governments on both sides of the border refusing to recognize how serious things are getting. I also hope I have not caused you any consternation.
On “Rosewood”, I grew up about 30 miles from Rosewood, in Archer, FL. Archer was fairly integrated when I grew up in the 60s & 70s and there really weren’t many racial tensions. Most folks, black and white, were poor farmers. Our closest neighbors were black and they still live by my mother.
The sad thing is I never knew anything about Rosewood and the incidents that led up to it until the movie went into production. I don’t know if it had been forgotten or was just one of those things people didn’t want to bring up. While my mother’s family came from the Kissimmee area and Dad was from the panhandle, I knew many families that were from the area and would have been quite aware of the incident, yet I never heard about it. It was a difficult movie to watch.
Ain’t that the truth? No, you’ve caused me no heartache, my problem is internal and about me.
That’s interesting that you grew up near Rosewood and didn’t know about it. In the special features of the DVD, they pointed out that there was very little knowledge of the incident in the surrounding area, sort of a “it didn’t happen if we don’t acknowledge it” attitude. I never heard of the movie, found it by searching Netflix recommendations. I might watch it again but it won’t be anytime soon. Powerful movie.
BigJ,
Although I’ve only met you in person once, I feel I know you well enough through blogs to say what I’m going to say. If you know nothing else about me by now, it’s that I’m all about accepting personal responsibility. But you are not responsible for someone else’s opinion that killing illegal immigrants is an acceptable reaction to the problem. Any opinions that were formed in that regard are the responsibility of the owner of the opinion. I’ve never seen you do or say anything that condoned murdering of illegal immigrants. The fact that some have formed that opinion is owned by them and no one else. You have not failed God. People who think murdering other people is an acceptable reaction to a problem have failed God.
Dude, thanks for your words. I agree that people are responsible for their own actions, no question. But, in the same way, it is my responsibility to not add fuel to the fire. And I think that in some ways, I have added fuel because I wasn’t more selective of the words or the audience. It wasn’t so much LST, although there were some nasty comments there, it was in browsing the various sites that day and “feeling” the fear and hatred that people were typing in their comments. For me to articulate a political position in any way that adds to this fear is wrong.
My friend all that you have succeeded in doing is reaffirming what the Master has said.
As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man.
Ya just ain’t got that much power. You simply provided the water.
Their mentality was in place long before you or I came on the scene.
Yes, that is exactly how I feel.
You articulate what you believe in your heart is right and true. That is what you own. Nothing more. Stand your ground.
People are going to get inflamed for what ever they choose to get inflamed over.
I screw up at times but my cardinal rule is two fold, I don’t make “it” personal and I don’t take “it” personal.
I think that I have to recognize that at times, I am standing on Holy ground. That is, there are times when the position I advocate isn’t worth the damage or potential damage that can result. And then, I must evaluate the way in which I’m advocating it and adjust if necessary. In reading some of my posts on illegal immigration, there are times when the rhetoric is perhaps “hotter” than it needs to be.
And I do believe in my heart that illegal immigration is bad for our country. I just need to remember that illegal aliens are human and God loves them every bit as much as He loves me.
So adjust your tone and move on. Take joy that the Father saw fit to remind you.
Movin’ on. Thanks.
Squawk is right on….as is the Dude….We truly are all God’s children and we must be responsible for how we act, what we say, etc. Our country is overwhelemed with the illegals and it is only when we stand up for our country that it will change. Killing is not the answer but sitting passively on our laurels isn’t the answer either. Closing the borders would be the best thing we have done for America in years and I hope we close them soon. I also think we must document every person residing in the United States and enforce the payment of taxes on every one who works and eats. Period. Sans violence.