Sad, But True.
The recent anti-immigration uproar has touched a deep nerve in my personal life, yet I have concluded what many U.S. born Americans claim is sadly true. Am an american born in Mexico, orphan since the age of 10, I did not plan to come over to the U.S., yet my father went down to Mexico to claim custody and brought me over to the California Republic. My father spent a sizeable amount of money and time trying to get his orphan son (me) to his care in the U.S., my visa was denied in the basis that if I was allowed to enter I would stay in the country (which was the whole point of the immigrant visa application, to stay with my dad). After several attemps, my father decided to contract a coyote and bring me in illegally, I was born in the mexican state of Durango, in a small mining town were people died weekly in mining accidents (lost some of my early childhood friends as young as 13).
Upon arriving in Tijuana, B.C., where a stayed for two weeks, the first sight at dawn was the beautiful san Diego skyline in the distance, I felt my heart beat racing in anticipation of my upcoming, uncertain adventure.
I used to sit on top a a hill every day and gaze at San Diego's downtown area, admiring the beauty of the monster of steel and asphalt. My entry into U.S. territory was through a hole of the barbed wired fence which runs just east of San Isidro, ran about 5 miles (yes, ran. there was no time to walk, the bp helo came about my bearings every 20 minutes or so.) to a house which was used as a terminal, where I was picked up on what looked like an old datsun 210, I was wrapped in a blanket and crunched in the spare tire well, driven on what might been the I-5 north, I made out some voices in a dueling mix of accents, those of the mexican coyotes and the national guard soldiers (as I learned later they were not BP agents but NG elements manning the check point), made it past the check point, midnight had come, and the smuggler pulled the back seat rest down and called me to come out of hiding from the trunk, he said:
"welcome to The U.S.A"., son, enjoy the view, he was referring to the sea of lights ahead as we approached Orange County, as I turned around, I remember a young couple of Asian girls driving a nice car ( first time I saw another race other than mine, first time I saw a multi-line highway and first time I saw a Honda vehicle), that's when it hit me!!! I was in another country, another culture, another way of life. That's when I made a promise to myself to be a good citizen, go to school, learn the language the soldiers and the smugglers were talking, and be a productive person.
time has passed by at lightning speed, am 30 now, have a wife an child, got the Honda accord I fell in love with, a decent job, decent income, decent life,
never arrested, not a misdemeanor, not a felony, not a single dollar out of any government program or handout- and am willing to give out my ssn to any non-belivers !!, every year paid taxes until I got eligible for a refund due to dependents.
I hav'e had a good life here in the U.S., because I have been a good citizen on my own free will, although I am a citizen of illegal background, I can attest that I have been more of an asset to this country than many U.S. born fellow citizens, I hold no loyalty to any other flag, principles and people than those of the U.S. of A., as I affirmed when I placed my hand on the old testament and said to a Navy Captain: "so help me god".
Yet make no mistake, loyalty to the United States does not eradicate my love for my culture, this is where I understand why my fellow American Born citizens
resent the behavior of some immigrants whom have no intentions to asimilate
the American culture (legal or not), on a recent drive from work in Los Angeles, on very foul weather, I noticed this driver driving erratically, switching lines without signaling, cutting off, tailgating and speeding, with no lights on at dusk, I catched up to him, give him a low-high beam flashing of my haedlights, he waited until I caught up, rolled his window down and inquired what the F....... did I want, I politely said to him to be more careful obout his driving moves and turn on his hedlamps for safety in the rain, he replied: "why"???, I said: "well not only to be conscious of the fact that we all share the road and you are making it unsafe, and because there are traffic rules and laws which you are violating", his response was a blatant: "I don't give a s*** about the laws", and a very polite "f*** you, son of b****" in a very eloquent spanish, I asked him what if he run over some one or crashed and hurt another driver, his answer really, really depressed me, it was: "I'll just go back to Mexico" (I guess he knows the no-extradition crappy law they have down there for a-holes facing harsh punisment here).
Immigrants in general, are well ment, family loving, hard working people (like myself), who in my opinion deserve a shot at a work permit, then residency and eventually citizenship, the few elements like this coward who wouldn't even say "I'll stay and face the consecuences of my actions, like a real man" deserve to be shot (figuratively). I declare my despise to this kind of fellow, be mexican, american, european, or any nationality, race or creed. I jus felt very sad this one was from my former country, and that like him, there are many who f**** up for all of us.
ps> on a special note, I got more than I bargained for that cold night on the I-5 check point where I made the promise to learn English, not only did I managed to do it, but also Italian and french sticked to the frying pan I have for a brain.
just wanted to share the story of a good immigrant, who wishes everybody well and that this issue gets resolved soon to begin healing and keep our country the way we want it, peaceful,tolerant and ruled by law, by the people and for the people.
to keep this posting firearms-related I would post my collection, but I think I had already taken a cosiderable amount of space and time of you readers, so I'll leave that for another posting-
Manuel D.
ciao y hasta luego, may the god of your faith bless you all. love your families, respect your parents and ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.