Pops weighing in...

I cannot imagine what woud have happened to me if I had paraded down the steet with pro-USA banners and American flags in the middle of Spain where I lived.

We respected local customs. We didn't speak English in public. We always spoke Spanish to everyone first. We never walked into a bank, store, or bus stop and asked if anyone spoke english. We didn't call the peseta (later the Euro) a dollar. I hear dollars openly called pesos all the time.

Circumstances were different for us, of course. We weren't normal citizens. But I can tell you that it takes a tremendous amount of pride to resist the indigenous culture. Every culture has so many wonderful parts to it. I found myself wanting to be more Spanish. I read books written in Castilian Spanish to make sure I was speaking like the natives. I didn't deny my American culture but I found I could augment it with the vibrant, bright culture the Spaniards have.

I haven't even talked about taxes. If you live here, drive on the roads, call the police, go to the hospital etc. etc. you should pay for what you use. You should contribute to the pool of resources instead of just making withdrawals.

Immigration is what brought my mother's family from Ireland and my Swiss ancestors here. It is a great benefit to our country. I love to meet people of all ethnicities and backgrounds. But lets do it in a controlled, LEGAL!!!!! way. If half of the USA eventually is comprised of Mexican citizens...AWESOME! I speak their language and would love to interact with such a dynamic Latino culture. But they should have to come here legally. Just like I would have to go to Mexico legally.

I hear right from the Hispanic people's mouths what difficult things they go through in Mexico. The government resists reform. They want to export their economic problems to the US. Mexico City has been described to me as a hole. I talk to people all day about this. They are wonderful people. I have learned so much about the Mexican people...right from the source. Many people work for 60 hours a week and send it all home to Mexico to their families to help with food, weddings, unemployment etc. They are a wonderful people.

But I also have called the police on Mexicans who are cashing bad checks, using forged Social Security cards, using forged Consulate cards, and who are dishonest in every way. There are also a lot of white people who do this too. But the people who I busted were illegal aliens. The cost for me to call the police was paid for by my own tax dollar. These crooks had NEVER contributed to the system that was incarcerating them. The cost to incarcerate them is another story. The police were able to verify that these people were not only illegal aliens but were using the same social security number as over FIFTY other people!!!

There is so much deception clouding this culture...I hate to say that but its true. I am tired of getting the runaround when i ask a person to see their ID. There's that uneasy look when I ask for their ID to cash a check. There is that sheepish look when they want me to break bankwide policy to cash their $300 check from McDonalds.

My gosh...I get people at the bank asking me EVERY DAY..."can I cash my friend's check?"..."can I deposit her check for her?" Do you know why they do this? BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE THE CREDENTIALS TO GET A BANK ACCOUNT...THEY DON"T HAVE SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS...they are trying to beat the system. It is so aggravating to see this. If you live here as an illegal immigrant...AT LEAST abide by the rules...

I will say it again. I speak Spanish. I don't have a problem with every sign being posted in two languages. I can read both...and so can "Conformity." We hope our kids will learn too. I would have no problem speaking it to half the people I see each day. I LOVE the latino culture. But there are rules. Imagine a world without traffic lights. Freedom, right? You can drive wherever you like. Well...you can just imagine the chaos that would ensue. This is a worn out cliche analogy to show that rules are an important part to the functionality of society. Immigration MUST be reformed in some way.

You cannot, and shouldn't expect to, just walk into another country and join the ranks as if you had always been there. There is an orderly process to accomplish this. This process does not consist of you hiding in the back of a van while the driver speeds across the border and gives you a fake ID and wishes you luck.