Posted on 01/08/2005 6:51:49 AM PST by SandRat
Making mincemeat of the Mexican government is easy.
It's a hobby for border dwellers - on both sides of la linea - to laugh and cry over the actions of out-of-touch Mexico City bureaucrats. We've witnessed too many gaffes and missteps to remember.
So when critics howled over the Mexican government's newest blunder, I didn't wince. What's another dumb move, I figured.
Last month the Mexican government distributed more than 1 million comic books that advise what and what not to do when crossing the border - illegally.
Mexico bashers north of the border had a conniption fit. The pocket-size comic book is proof of a Mexican conspiracy to invade the United States, critics suggested.
My first thought was no, it's just Mexico City bungling it again. And I thought about piling on the Mexican government myself.
But then I did something I suspect the critics did not do. I read the guide.
What do you know?
The 32-page color, poorly drawn comic book is more than a step-by-step how to illegally cross the border.
It's a common-sense advisory on how Mexican citizens should comport themselves when they are in this country, legally or not. The instructions are more mundane than sensational.
But that didn't stop the usual suspects.
"This is not the action of a friendly neighbor," Colorado Republican Congressman Tom Tancredo told the New York Times.
"What would the Mexican government say if we encouraged our citizens to violate Mexican law?"
Being a congressman and chairman of the Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus, Tancredo apparently can twist and distort the guide.
It doesn't encourage Mexicans to illegally cross the border. It repeatedly states that border crossers should enter the United States with proper documents.
But if Mexican citizens make the difficult and dangerous decision to cross illegally, the guide warns readers of real dangers crossing rivers, deserts and mountains. And it lists do's and don'ts if Mexican citizens are stopped by American law enforcement officers.
"If you choose to cross the desert, make sure to cross during the hours when the heat is not intense," states the Spanish-language guide.
The guide, published by Mexican Foreign Relations, contains similar directions to those we Americans hear at airports or receive from the Department of Homeland Security.
Do not trust smugglers, do not take packages from strangers, do not leave children with strangers, do not cross with false papers, do not lie to American immigration agents, do not resist arrest, do not carry guns or knives, do not attend loud parties.
It contains more "do not" than "do."
Where's the encouragement?
What probably irks critics is the legal advice the booklet provides.
It lists basic human rights for Mexican citizens if detained or arrested.
They can ask to speak to a Mexican government representative. They can request medical care, and food and water. They do not have to sign documents in English. They should be accorded dignity regardless of their legal status.
Darn that Constitution. That would be ours, not Mexico's.
There's much to criticize Mexico about, however.
Its ruling class ignores the poor and powerless. The privileged elite is more concerned with the ups and downs of the stock exchange. And some people in government and business are corrupt.
But critics of the comic book should read it to the end.
This guide does not encourage Mexicans to cross into the United States without proper legal documents. Its purpose is to identify the migrants' risks and rights.
œ Ernesto Portillo Jr.'s column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Reach him at 573-4242 or at eportillo@azstarnet.com. He appears on "Arizona Illustrated," KUAT-TV Channel 6, at 6:30 p.m. and midnight Fridays.
ping
BTTT
“I give it as my fixed opinion, that but for our graduated cadets, trhe war between the United States and Mexico might, and probably would have lasted some four or five years, with, in its first half, more defeats than victories falling to our share; whereas, in less than two campaigns, we conquered a great country and a peace, without the loss of a single battle or skirmish.” Winfield Scott
It may be time to do it again. Obviously those escaping Mexico to come here would welcome an invasion and fight with us against the oppressive Mexican regime who encourages their illegal immigration at the peril of those very persons who are encouraged to leave.
We retain the cheap labor but the government gets to tax them. They become citizens. The oil is ours.
And I still maintain that we can move the State of Israel to Baja and let the Arabs kill each other till they're content.
"Oh so commiting an illegal act against America and Americans you have "rights" now?"
As far as i'm concerned, they only have the right to be shot on sight, there ought to be a bounty on them.
That certainly would be a deterrent one would think ;)
Would those documents happen to include matricula cards, perchance? But then, this guy writes for the Red Star, so I am hardly surprised...
I wouldn't be surprised if this Portillo is on the payroll of the corrupt Mexican government. He's an idiot --- if he really cared anything about the Mexican people, he'd want the greedy corrupt oligarchs out of there.
I don't know --- first have the peasants drive the upper classes out --- they'll quickly head for exile in Europe the first hint of problems --- which would of course be if the USA ever limits immigration in any way.
We're being saddled with the responsibility for providing for the 80% of the population anyway --- at least then we could get the many resources --- like the oil to help us out. Right now it's a zero sum economic game --- Americans must do it all with just our resources, the wealth of Mexico is just for a handful of people.
The cartoon messages are quite interesting --- notice it's an evil gringo couple trying to seduce a poor hapless Mexican maiden into smuggling drugs over the border.
BTT
Oh so commiting an illegal act against America and Americans you have "rights" now?
Very clearly, under certain federal laws, as written, and as they now stand, they do.
That's one of the problems that need fixing....
Careful sir we here in America are creating that big loving commune of "free enterprise", and we don't cotton to cynics.
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