Tag Arizona Immigration law

May I See Your Identification?

Allen Frederick 2 Comments

Random Ramblings from the Resident Raptor.

Insight for your “Journey across the Sky”

A View from the Nest www.eagleviews.org

Decent people will live in the land. People of integrity will remain in it. But wicked people will be cut off from the land and treacherous people will be torn from it. Prov 2:21-22 (GW)

Several centuries before Christ, Alexander the Great came out of Macedonia and Greece to conquer the Mediterranean world. On one of his campaigns, Alexander received a message that one of his soldiers had been continually, and seriously, misbehaving and thereby shedding a bad light on the character of all the Greek troops. And what made it even worse was that this soldier’s name was also Alexander. When the commander learned this, he sent word that he wanted to talk to the errant soldier in person. When the young man arrived at the tent of Alexander the Great, the commander asked him, “What is your name?” The reply came back, “Alexander, sir.” The commander looked him straight in the eye and said forcefully, “Soldier, either change your behavior or change your name.” This story has a lesson for each of us. When we call ourselves Americans, we are identifying with this nation and the principles upon which it was established. When we swear allegiance to the flag we stand with others to defend the Constitution of these United States of America. We are being . identified with the United States of America. Is your behavior compatible with that name and with the symbol that shows that you are an American?

Great Seal of the State of Arizona
Image via Wikipedia

Arizona is soon to enact what some say is an ill-conceived immigration enforcement act. This statute does not affect other states, nor is it enforceable across state lines. The law strictly forbids police officers to ask an individual for identification unless the officers encounter a suspect while in the course of enforcing another infraction of the state statutes. For an example; a person walking down the street of downtown Phoenix should not, and can not, be detained by police and questioned to produce identification unless that person has committed a crime. Seems to me the bill is reasonably restrictive.

Compare that to the law that requires identification when purchasing cough medicine at the local Target. Which seems to be more reasonable to you? To be asked to produce identification after being stopped for breaking a law or being asked to produce ID to buy over-the-counter cough medicine? If you answered the cough medicine then you must be a liberal democrat set on demonizing legitimate behavior in order to legitimize illegitimate behavior.

Another example would be the mandatory, random drug tests administered to commercial drivers. Isn’t this an invasion of one’s privacy also? Is there proof or suspicion that the person being tested is using an illegal substance? If there is no reasonable suspicion that they are under the influence of drugs or alcohol then why are they being required to submit to a random test? Shouldn’t people who show signs of the possibility of being under the influence have to take a random drug test? Why should someone who has never used drugs or alcohol have to be subjected to this form of interrogation? Why aren’t the picket sign carrying activists protesting this injustice? Or are only those who actually commit a crime entitled to political action?

Why must law-abiding citizens be treated like suspects when there is NO Reasonable suspicion that these citizens are doing anything illegal? Well that is the rationale being used to justify opposition to the Arizona immigration enforcement bill.

Constantly we hear the din of political activists demonizing the Arizona bill for profiling illegal aliens and yet everyday many law-abiding, natural-born, citizens are asked to produce their identification. If it is reasonable that I should have to show my photo ID to the cashier at Target to purchase over-the-counter cough medicine, then it is just as reasonable for a suspected immigrate to be asked to present ID to a police officer. I wonder what illegal aliens produce when they buy cough medicine at their local Target?

Continue reading “May I See Your Identification?” →

The Invasion of the Ants

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

Since the passage of the Arizona Immigration Bill debate has once again turned toward immigration reform. The last time this issue was front page news I wrote a blog article about it and I guess it is time to dust it off and bring it back to the front page. So my two cents worth on the Immigration reform debate.

A Parable of Uninvited Guests

Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! proverbs 6:6

One ant is fine,two ants are okay as well but when they show up by the thousands then well it is no longer fine. Ants have their purpose in life and I am sure that God has great plans for the tiny ant, but as for me and my house I prefer to live an ant free existence. I have nothing against these fine little black creatures crawling around the earth in large numbers burrowing into the ground heck, I even had an ant farm when I was a kid. I loved looking at the intricate underground pathways these critters would burrow into the sand but never did I contemplate for one minute allowing those critters out of that glass menagerie and into my room to build their home there. Outside is a great place for ants to play and roam around and furrow for food but my house is not an ant farm and these critters are not welcomed indoors.

That being said I need to recount a story of a friend of mine who had moved into a new apartment out in the country. Country living can be relaxing at times but it also brings with it new challenges and obstacles to overcome. On one particular occasion he recounted to me the story of finding ants running across his living room floor. He would try to kill one after the other but there would always be another one to kill later. If it were me I would have been crazy with the thought of these little beings running all over the place and crawling along my bed while I tried to sleep and doing God only knows what those things do when no one is looking. Anyway after a few days of this ant parade night after night he decided to introduce these ants to MR RAID. Mr Raid, as advertised, rooted out these pesky critters and littered the living room floor with not one, not two but several hundred perhaps even a thousand ant corpses lying there in the morning sun awaiting removal by Mr HOOVER. Those tiny terrorists were rooted out and destroyed and life returned to normal for my friend.

This silly little story points to a larger lesson one can learn if we  take time to contemplate such things. Our society at large is made up of many people groups and cultures. Some make good neighbors while others, like the ants, can cause themselves to quickly become unwelcome. If we respect and honor our neighbors, and do not invade their homes uninvited then we can all pretty much live in peace, one with the other. It is at those times when we make ourselves an uninvited guest in someone else’s house that we risk a visit from the exterminator. We are then no longer a peaceful neighbor but a pesky intruder. We have gone where we are not welcomed.

Now in the defense of our little ant buddies they do not have the intellect to know that their place is outside and not inside but those of us of  the human persuasion sure do know the limits of respectful behavior. If we choose to cross that line of respectful living then we deserve and should expect a not welcomed sign. Any society that permits being overrun by tiny terrors will end up being over run by a multitude of terrors. Their peaceful existence will end and be replaced by chaos. Just like those little ant terrorists invaded my friends happy home and made his living quarters far less inhabitable so does allowing terrorists to continue to work inside a country. Perhaps it is time to call for MR RAID and end the overrun of these tiny terrorists.