IN ITS RUSH TO GUSH, THE LOS ANGELES TIMES LEAVES MANY QUESTIONS UNANSWERED
In the LA TIMES today (1/30) there's a story about an illegal alien from Guatemala named Marcelino Tzir Tzul who faces deportation to his native Guatemala after he was nabbed by the cops on Placentia Ave. in Costa Mesa for riding his bicycle on the wrong side of the street and who was subsequently interviewed by the ICE agent at the Costa Mesa police station after he failed to produce any ID.
The story was written by Jennifer Delson who lets readers know at least seven times that Tzir reads the bible and goes to church. Is that relevant? Nope. It's a spin. It's to let you know that this man who broke our laws by illegally crossing our border and who broke our laws by riding his bicycle on the wrong side of the street and who has no ID--or at least none presented to the cops--is a good guy because he reads the Bible.
Delson also tells us that Tzir found work in Costa Mesa, but she doesn't tell us where or how he did it with out ID. She also doesn't tell us what he did about not having a social security number.
She also doesn't tell us what type of work Tzir was doing or the name of his employer.
She doesn't tell us if anyone is checking on his employer to see if he is complying with our laws , or whether he is getting a leg up on other similar businesses by hiring people off the books and thus keeping his labor costs low.
She does tell us that Tzir was making $ 400 a week in Costa Mesa and that he sent money back to Guatamela. She doesn't tell us how much he sent back. She also doesn't tell us if any payroll deductions were made from this money or how they were handled if he has no ID.
She does tell us that Tzir was living in "an aging apartment complex on Hamilton Avenue where he paid $ 225 a month to share a bedroom." She does not, however, tell us what the total rent was and how many others were sharing that apartment. She doesn't tell us that we've had a number of murders and other crimes near aging apartment complexes on Hamilton and that this is one of the slum areas in our city that seem to be breeding places and safe habitats for gangs.
She does tell us that a relative paid a smuggler $ 14,000 to bring Tzir and her own son to Costa Mesa. She also tells us that relative is also an illegal alien. She doesn't tell us how much Tzir was paying back each week to this relative to work off his portion of the $14,000.
When you make reasonable assumptions about Tzir's expenses each month, based on what Delson reports and your common sense, you're left to wonder how he made ends meet. It just seems that there must be a gap between what he made and what he spent. So, if there was a gap, how was that gap filled?
Delson doesn't tell us, so we're left to speculate.
Could it be that Tzir was using the various charity services that include getting free bags of groceries, free medical and dental care, free money to help pay the rent and utilities and much more?
When we say "free" we mean free to him. Some of those things are being paid by taxpayers, in one way or another, so they're not free to us. And, if this is the case, what happens when we multiply this one individual times thousands of similar individuals? Is it possible we're seeing a fraying of the traditional U.S. social fabric in Costa Mesa that is based in part on self-reliance and paying your own way?
Illegal immigration is not a victimless crime. Citizens are the victims by having their quality of life eroded by having a large population of people in their midst who do not play by the same rules in ways big and small.
And, what is the result of having a large population of illegal aliens in Costa Mesa?
If you're a reasonably aware citizen, you know the answer. We have gangs. We have a high violent crime rate. We have slums. We have failing schools. We have a coastal city that is falling to inner city levels.
Don't worry though, some are reading the Bible.
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A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE AMERICAN WAY
Our society is based, at least in part, on individual self-reliance and competition and playing by the same rules. In theory, each of us tries to take care of ourselves and we compete with others to be the best at whatever it is that we're doing. When we succeed, we're often rewarded with higher incomes and the higher quality of life that those incomes can give us. This is a system that has worked well for America. It has allowed us to move forward with new ideas, new inventions, new ways of doing things.
As one moves forward, others see the move and compete harder. They then may move forward. In time, the whole society moves forward. That's what makes a First World economy and nation where the greatest number of citizens can realize their dreams and live in comfortable conditions.
But, society realizes that it can't be all, me, me, me and that those individuals who succeed may owe something back to the society that allowed them to succeed. After all, one doesn't succeed in a vacuum.
For this reason we have various provisions in our tax codes that encourage charity giving to those who did not succeed and we have various other ways to ensure that our fellow citizens are not left out in the cold as the nation moves to ever higher standards of living and comfort.
So far, so good.
However, when you add millions and millions of non-citizens to the mix who are not playing by the same rules, you start to see the system break down.
That, in brief, is partly what we're seeing in the U.S. and Costa Mesa right now with the massive influx of illegal aliens.
The world is full of poor people, but it is misguided compassion to bring them all to Costa Mesa. That just harms citizens and puts our city on a downward spiral such as we've been seeing over the past few years. Eventually the place that was desirable to move to becomes undesirable both for the original citizens and also for the illegal aliens (Think Santa Ana).
Doubt this downward spiral exists? Look no further than our public schools for a clear example.
Newport Beach, which is in the same two city school district as Costa Mesa, has no failing schools. Costa Mesa, by contrast has many failing schools. Same school district. Same school buildings. Same school administrators. Same teachers. Same classrooms. Same classroom equipment. So, why is Newport Beach succeeding while Costa Mesa is failing?
The answer is that Newport Beach has not let the liberals turn that city into an illegal alien sanctuary, while Costa Mesa has. Newport's schools are not full of the children of illegal aliens, while Costa Mesa's are.
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Those are our opinions. Thanks for reading them.
