theOoze and illegal immigration

So, theOoze has more directly weighed in on political matters. The writer of the article plays the very modern game of creating his own word, and trying to assign it to the US.

Today, the U.S. has become infected with the disease of immipartheid

The word is a combination of "immigrant" and "apartheid". And by "immigrant", the writer means "illegeal immigrant".

In 2007, the estimates range from 10 to 30 million undocumented, resident immigrants living in the U.S., the vast majority of which are non-white and of Hispanic descent.

And he wants to say that, somehow, how we treat illegal immigrants is like how South Africa treated blacks in Apartheid. He claims certain parallels.

1. Voting rights were restricted or non-existent.
2. Access to public services such as education and medical care were restricted and often of inferior
quality vs. those afforded their white counterparts.
3. Forms of identification emerged that designated the person as a member of a segregated class. (
consular cards, discussion about the implementation of a national ID card).
4. Movement within the country was restricted. (try getting on an airplane today without a valid ID).
5. Permits authorizing one to labor in certain occupations and/or certain geographic areas emerged.
Oftentimes, these permits did not include the spouse or other members of one’s own family.
6. The legal ownership of land was tightly regulated, precluding segregated persons from participation.

So, let's see...

Concerning #1, I doubt any country will allow non-citizens much if any in the way of voting rights. I was in Russia during at least one election, and though my being there was perfectly legal (I had a visa), I didn't even imagine that they would have allowed me, an American, the right to participate in their elections.

Concerning #2, of course access to education would be restricted. It really couldn't be otherwise. If anything, the life chosen by illegals will also effect their children--moving here and there; having to be stay "under the radar", so to speak; without the necessary paperwork, such as social security cards, to legally enroll in schools. But the fault is more with the illegals than with the society.

#3 is puzzling. As people in the country illegally, illegals don't have such IDs. Perhaps this writer is referring to things like voting ID cards?

#4 is even more strange. Movement in this country is NOT restricted, and his assertion that it is is asinine and misleading. Airplane travel has proven to be very vulnerable (remember 9-11-2001?), and you've spent a few hundred dollars to get a plane ticket, you'd probably want the airlines to make certain you're the one who's occupying the seat.

I've no idea where he gets 5 and 6.

What is most clear, from a casual walking down the street in a US city, is that immigrants are everywhere, they work and own businesses, they are free to come and go, they can cross state lines, they can own property. Those that are citizens can vote, and can even run for some offices (think Ahnald and California). As I've heard before, America is a nation of immigrants, a melting pot, and all kinds of people make up this nation, and that is a good thing. I went to college with fellow students from places like Japan and Tiawan, while in missions I attended training or served at bases with Brits, Mexicans, Philippinos, Canadians. I worked for two years at boarding school, right in the middle of nowhere in Appalachia, whose student body was sizably composed of students from many different African and Asian countries, and one could see these various races of students intermingling, in friendships, and even some in dating relationships.

I don't think the timing of this article is an accident. Though it isn't mentioned, it's too close to the time after the passing of Arizona bill to make me think it's not a response to it. Another attempt to make that bill seem racist, I suppose.