Viewing the panoramic scenes from not only every corner of this country but of the world, I am filled with pride seeing the younger generation take to the streets to protest the injustices that have continued to be ignored for years. I do not make light of the injustices perpetuated against our young African American brothers at the hands of corrupt racist civil servants, but these injustices are part of an overall injustice against all minorities in this country. For centuries, our Native American brothers and sisters have been forced to live on reservations, and as many try to lift themselves up, the corrupt privileged have come and taken their hopes and dreams away. Most recently our Latino brothers and sisters subjected to fear of deportation or worse, placed in detention centers, with families ripped apart. Men in one area, women in another and children yet another. The women often molested or raped by those who feel they are above the law. The children brainwashed to hate themselves for being Latino. The injustice against many minorities is a long list that goes on and on.

This movement that has been sparked, this Civil Rights movement, and it is a Civil Rights movement, as many have had enough of their Civil Rights being violated. This Civil Rights movement cannot and should not be ignored or extinguished. This movement should continue even if we believe we have succeeded, as recent history has indicated, we must always remain vigilant. For there will always be those privileged select few hiding in the shadows waiting for opportunities to trample over our rights for their gain and power. This movement may have been sparked by injustices perpetuated against our young African American brothers but let it be the spark that ignites a new Civil Rights movement, bringing together all those diverse groups longing for equality, justice and liberty.

Let the single voices drowned out by rhetoric and broken promises be united in a thunderous roaring voice heard from every valley and mountain top calling attention to decades of injustices. Let this forceful powerful voice continue even after it brings about change that we so long for. There is no divide, we are resolute in our demand for our unalienable rights. For we are not of different races, but one, the only one that is absolute the Human Race.

2 scores and 17 years ago an individual gave a speech under a sweltering sun at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC shining a light on the racial divide and injustices perpetuated against African Americans. It is astounding and pitiful that despite the sacrifices of time and life by those generations before us, we find ourselves at the very same crossroads. Have we not evolved, have we not become enlightened? How can we find ourselves at the very same crossroads? It is for this very reason we must not conform ourselves with minor gains, we cannot be content for the table scraps, we must fight on and even after victory stay vigilant, in order to safeguard our rights. Our right to exist, to be seen, to be heard, to be respected and to be free. Let true freedom prevail through our thunderous roaring voice, for alone we are lost but together we stand united in opposition to tyranny and oppression. So let freedom ring and with that I leave a link of a man whose words sadly ring true today. I pray we do not find ourselves at these very same crossroads 2 scores and 17 years from now. Let us get it right, let us get it done this time for we stand resolute and united and we are not alone.

Click to access dream-speech.pdf

I have friends and family that have served and are currently serving in our arm forces. I have nothing but the utmost respect for them, but I do take issue with individuals who believe that it gives them carte blanche to belittle others.

I have always and will continue to try to lead a Christ like life. My heart goes out to those that have suffered and have witnessed and felt the loss of a friend or family member. A soldier knows the meaning of the word loss. They have lost friends in battle and lost their soul mate at home due to distance. We can never repay them for their loss.

There are two kinds of soldiers that I come across, the first is humble and happy to be alive, the second is an individual who uses their service to belittle others or view themselves as a sole authority on any topic that deals with this country or the military. While I have dealt with the first on numerous occasions, occasionally I have come across the second in blogworld.

I will discuss the second first. This individual believes we should not question our leaders, should not question the actions of our troops, should love America or leave it, should be thankful that they chose to fight for us while our supposed lazy asses stayed at home. They believe any form of questioning is traitorous and unpatriotic. They believe they and they alone really know what is going on from the infantry up to the President. I only have one thing to say to this type of veteran soldier, Kiss My ASS. You do not know anything and stop acting like you do. You are a disgrace not only to the uniform, but also to those that have given up their life so your dumb ass can come back home to say uneducated propaganda, yes that is all it is propaganda. You have no insight that is worth anything and does not contribute any solution to our present situation. I wish we could exchange your life for a soldier that truly represented the uniform in all its glory.

In order to describe the first soldier, I will have to use a personally experience. I was taking my dog out for a walk when I noticed a man approaching me. My first reaction was to go in a different direction since my first thought was that this scruffy looking individual was going to beg for money. Against instincts I proceeded forward. The man did not ask for money just directions to any construction companies that were hiring. The only one I could think of he had already gone to. He asked if I could give him a ride. Shamefully I changed the subject because at this point, I did not know his intentions.

He could be someone evaluating me to see if I was an easy target to rob, whether it was my home or car. A funny thing happened as we continued to talk. He spoke of his honorable discharge, he showed me a picture of himself dressed in his marine uniform with his then girlfriend now wife. He spoke of the horrors he witnessed and fellow soldiers dying in his arm. He even showed me his scars on his neck, shoulder, and side of his face and took his word on the scars covered up that were caused by a dirty bomb, which led to his medical discharge.

He talked about how he was looking for work in the construction business, but no one was hiring. The economy the way it is it is not surprising. He spoke of how all the doctors wanted to do was give him drugs and not try to help him heal. He spoke of how very few were willing to give him a hand. He never wanted a handout; he just wanted an opportunity to work and support himself and his expecting wife.

Upon hearing this I felt very small, even though a part of me continued to question this man’s honesty. We returned to my home. I got my car keys and the last 20 dollars I had in my pocket. He asked that I take him to a shelter downtown so he may be with his wife. I spoke of my hardship and loss. He said he felt bad that he was dumping his problems on me when I had my own. I viewed him as a humble man for his words.

He spoke of how he missed the Marine Corps, the only life he ever truly knew. He spoke that he was not ashamed of having served. He does not regret any part of his service only that it was cut short. He had nothing nice to say about the president or the war. He felt that America needed to go to war but did so against the wrong country.

We reached the shelter; I offered him the 20 dollars. He refused and I insisted. I told him I had a vehicle to get around and he would need money to ride the TARC to find work and that he would need the 20 dollars more than I would. He accepted and said he would pay me back some day. I shook his hand and off he went into the shelter.

This is the sad state of our country. I know some right wing supposed ex soldier will say I am wrong that is fine, but how can I be. We have injured returning soldiers who are looking for work. Some are fortunate others are not. Why is this administration not creating a program to help soldiers find work and help them get on their feet instead of saying thanks for your service there is the door? What are we doing for our injured soldiers who have lost limbs? Is there some sort of retirement plan for these soldiers? Why do I surf the web and hear stories of soldiers losing their homes and eventually their families? Why is not this administration helping them stay on their feet until they find work?

Yes, I know its congress. It is that damn liberal congress that does not care about war or its soldiers. BULLSHIT. For 4 years we had a republican congress that did shit for its soldiers. Am I wrong should we not care about our soldiers? Why can we not help them reintegrate into society by helping them pay their mortgage and give them the skills to find work. My God they sacrificed everything for this country, their life, their families and this is how we repay them. We are a sorry country.

I hear bloggers write about what about the abuses by our military. Yes, we do have individuals who commit criminal acts and yes a few have been prosecuted. Others are roaming free. But make sure it is our soldiers, because as some of you may know America has two armed forces in the Middle East. One is our legitimate armed force and the other belongs to a conglomerate of American companies provided by Halliburton. That is another thing that pisses me off. These storm troopers have raped and murdered civilians, but it is our soldiers that get the blame. When is our media going to investigate the travesties committed by Blackwater troops instead of blaming it on our military? It is bad enough that they get paid a lot more than our own troops but to smear them for something they never did. Come on people.

Yes, I know we have no control over them. It is a grey area. They are not subject to U.S. law or local law that is bullshit. I had a high school reunion and there were 2 former classmates that work for Blackwater who are high ranking officers with them. If it were not for my best friend who is an officer in the military and wanted me to stay off the topic of politics, I would have loved to grill them over Blackwater. If Blackwater insists on having their military there why the hell are, we even there, is it to baby sit them? Let the Iraqis deal with Blackwater let us reassign our troop to Afghanistan so we can invade Pakistan and kill Osama once and for all.

Unfortunately, when it comes to common sense our leaders have shown time and time again that they have no clue what that is. We have domestic issues that could be resolved by having our military home. Instead they are far away, and we are left with a skeleton army at home. It is pathetic. We underpay our troops and civil servants and it is no wonder that our society is getting dumber and dumber.

We are America for Christ sake. We need to be the beacon for democracy not for corporate greed and corrupt politics. We need to pay our educators more and show our troop we care about them. We need to throw them a parade, help them stay on their feet until they find jobs. They risked their lives and their sanity to serve our nation and yet we could care less. We are a pathetic nation. At least we are not spitting on them like we did our Vietnam troops that would just have me seeing red. I have never served but know too many that have past and present.

I even had cousin who served in Vietnam who could never keep his demons in check. He turned to a bottle to forget his nightmares until it took his life.  Let us not commit the same mistake. Grab our politicians by the balls and say enough is enough we need to treat our returning soldiers with dignity and respect and thank them by helping them find jobs so they can provide for their families. And if they refuse in a perfect world, we would execute them, but in the real world the best we can do is vote them out of office.

To the marine I met on the street I hope you found a job and your getting back on your feet. To all the wounded soldiers who have return with an honorable discharge, my heart goes out to you and I thank you for your sacrifice I just wish our government cared about you. To returning troop without injuries I thank you as well and pray your family is still whole as some may find themselves replaced. My heart also goes out to the family you sacrificed to serve our nation. As for the generals that did not have the balls to say fuck you to Bush when he proposed the invasion, you should just take your life really. You wait a year after you retire to write a tell all book. Why not tell it all while it is going on? I do not care if you felt it was in poor taste or a smack to your commander and chief’s face to do it while wearing the uniform please. You were gutless worthless generals who betrayed your troops. No one should blindly lead their troops into a no-win situation.

To our congress that failed to truly examine the facts before giving the green light to invade Iraq go commit suicide, atone for your blindness and lazy stupidity. And finally, I wish Papa Bush had used a condom then we would have been spared 8 years of hell. Thanks for a great depression and a war with no end. Thanks buddy. Really love paying 4.29 for a gallon of gas. Love the fact that food cost has tripled so that my credit cards keep going up and up as your buddies in those huge financial buildings charge me 24% interest. Thanks really from the bottom my fucking ass. Hell would be to good for you and your cronies.

God bless our troops and please God let us get better leadership come November. Please Dear God help us. Nuff said.

On November 2002 with the support of the Bush administration the Homeland Security Act was passed, which set into motion one of the most massive reorganization of our federal law enforcement and Department of Defense. On March 2003 the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement was renamed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or better know by it’s acronym ICE.

ICE was granted powers to better protect our national security in response to the 9/11 attack which it has leveraged in becoming a powerful and sophisticated federal law enforcement agency. ICE is made up of 3 agencies: Bureau of Customers and Boarder Protection, Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services and Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

For the year of 2003 there were 8 Fugitive Operation Teams which had arrested 1900 illegal aliens and removed 5 of the most wanted by the agency. ICE also launched Operation Predator to protect children from sexual predators.

In 2004 the Fugitive Operation Teams increased to 18 then 26 in 2005. During 2005 the Border Enforcement Security Task Force was created. In September 2007 ICE implements the electronic travel document system, which reduced the amount of time required for partner countries to issue a travel document.

By 2012 under the Obama administration the Fugitive Operation Teams increased to 129 teams. ICE during the Bush and the Obama administrations had directives to identify and remove illegals who were criminals participating in human trafficking, drug cartel activity as well as exploitation of children.

In contrast to the above ICE is not only securing our country from illegal resident criminals but also targeting those who are law abiding individuals who want to be citizens of the United States. The question that arises is when did massive deportation become a directive and why is a segment of the population viewing illegal immigrants as an invasion force instead of individuals seeking the American dream.

During the Bush administration, the president himself advocated for not only amnesty but a path for citizenship for illegals who were here working and seeking a better life for their family. Unfortunately, you had individuals like Pat Buchanan who opposed the president and advocated for total removal of illegal residents from the country. This opposition became a rallying cry used by alt right shock radio hosts like Rush Limbaugh and Glen Beck to scare a segment of the population into believing that illegal immigrants were a danger to our national security. The rise of the alt right has been a detriment not only to our country but our democracy which I will explore in another article.

During the Obama administration the directive changed. The focus was not only following directives established under the Bush administration but also massive deportation. When you examine who were the target of the massive deportation, we find it to be recent arrivals. With an increase of detention of the recent arrivals comes the problem of where to detain them, answer privately owned prisons. Which too is another detriment to our country and our democracy which I will explore in another article. While President Obama used an executive order to pass DACA, he failed to push for immigration reforms advocated by President Bush. The failure could be attributed to the rhetoric spewed by the alt right pundits and shock radio hosts.

During the Trump administration the directive changed to detain and deport anyone. This change in directive has led to massive raids and separation of families. It has also increased the rhetoric of portraying Hispanics as rapist, murderers, drug lords and human traffickers.

Currently immigration has become a humanitarian issue. All you need to do is view the hundreds of images of men, women and children separated and detained in facilities with only a futon and a saran wrap looking blanket. Conditions which are not humane. Yet there are those in government including President Trump who believe it is justified.

Programs put in place granting path to citizenship to those illegals willing to serve in our arm forces have also been subject to deportation upon completion of their tour of duty. Given how little has been done to care for our veterans this is not shocking at all. How we have been dismissive of veterans is yet another topic to explore in another article.

Imagine being at home enjoying a Thanksgiving meal with your family, then suddenly someone bust open your front door and someone else bust through the back door of your house. The next image is that of 4 ICE agents in battle amour in front of you and another 4 to the back of you with assault rifles aimed at you. You then are transported to a facility with children screaming and crying. Once at the facility, the men, women and children are separated. How would you feel if that were you?

Imagine you are crammed in a section of the facility with another 200 individuals with only a futon mat with a saran wrap like blanket, having to share limited access to water and bathroom. Would you call this humane? Yet there is a segment of the population in the United States who believe they are deserving of such treatment for residing in this country illegally. In some form or another we all are residing in this country illegally.

Native Americans were here first and they were subject to genocide policies supported by Presidents in this nation’s history. To this day they are contained in reservations, a modern-day form of a detention centers. During world war II we detained anyone of Asian descent in detention centers for fear they were Japanese spies and would undermine our defenses. Every generation has a segment of the population who state they are Christian but believe the policy to be just. I am not sure which bible they have read but the one I have does not advocate for humanity’s inhumanity towards a segment of the population.

Immigration is a humanitarian issue that is easily resolved. We have had republican presidents in the past that created a path for citizenship for many law abiding illegal residents. It is time for the rhetoric to end and solutions to be made. Immigration should not be a dark journey to the American dream. It should be one of Lady Liberty welcoming them to our shores as she has done so often in our nation’s history.  She is the true representation of the United States that we are a great melting pot of diverse individuals coming together as one. For in the end we are part of one race, the only race that matters, the human race.

https://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2012/06/11/154782404/immigrant-advocates-obamas-deportation-policy-a-failure

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/immigration-stands-as-obamas-most-glaring-failure

I believe voices need to be awakened to lead the charge for social change. Much has changed in a relative microscopic time. We have taken a step back in our democracy and our civility. That is why I have returned to writing after a 9 year hiatus to add my voice to the chorus.