Let's see some rationality

In the rich tradition of Jonathan Swift irony, Carol Albanese's letter (Daily Bee, June 7) discusses valid grounds for resistance to the amnesty bill being pushed, pulled and yanked through Congress. There are Americans who urge support for the bill; after all, it does seem to support Emma Lazarus's immortal words engraved on the base of the Statue of Liberty in 1886; "… Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free …" But there is a difference now that must be acknowledged.

In the early 20th century, immigrant families legally came to Ellis Island to find freedom in a new land. They were fiercely determined to become U.S. citizens. They learned English, went to work at jobs they were grateful to find and diligently absorbed the elements and duties of American citizenship. They did not come expecting to be supported by the American taxpayer; they did not come expecting that Americans would learn their language to communicate with them. They came to develop their dreams in America — not with the demand that America would change to accommodate their dreams.

Today however, we are inundated with a wave of aliens that eschew the legal requirements for immigration, who serve as a drag on the resources of the nation and have little interest in becoming anything other than recipients of government largesse. The "… tired, poor, huddled masses …" from Ellis Island days have metamorphosed into an ever-growing, demanding, and resource-consuming mass.

It's time for some rationality.

BARB and WALT COPLEY

Sagle