What exactly has Israel done for us?
Dear Editor: This is in response to Debbie Jones' letter "America needs to wake up."
Jones would encourage the U.S. to support the nation of Israel with the silly notion that not to do so would mean that our "Western way of life would be in jeopardy."
I believe what we should be asking ourselves as a nation is, "What has Israel done for us lately?" When has the state of Israel contributed any troops in the numerous wars that are their own backyard? And just what do we get for the approximately $4 billion we send them each and every year in foreign aid?
In fact, Israel and its lobby (AIPAC) has had a very long, if not appropriate, influence in our electoral process and policies in this country. Congressional candidates are carefully screened by AIPAC for their views on the Middle East and are coached to modify positions that are regarded as unacceptable. In other words, they buy votes!
Jones writes that"God Bless America" would soon "ring hollow" if we didn't continue to support the state of Israel. In my opinion, we could probably all start counting our blessings if we would simply stop!
There is one point in Debbie Jones' letter that I can agree with though, and that's that "America needs to wake up!"
James Hallman
Holt, AL
I hate to inform Mr. Hallman of this, but here goes... Israel has done a lot for the USA. Israel has provided military support in the Middle East without fail, when asked. Israel has pledged to support the USA in our endeavors in the Middle East, both in the political arena and the military arena. Israel has provided the USA with invaluable intelligence that have helped the military plan strikes against our enemies as well as locate objectives that the USA wanted to capture or rescue. Also, the Israeli Special Forces help train US Military troops on a regular basis as well as handle some of the interrogations on key Al-Qaeda members that have been caught so that we can keep our hands clean. Israel also has been a reliable staging ground in the Middle East for the US military.
As for the lobbying Israel does to our members of Congress, every nation tries to influence the politics here just as the USA does in other nations. If a nation can bring the politicians of another nation around to seeing things their way, it benefits them. Israel isn't out there brainwashing our members of congress as you suggest. Israel isn't buying votes anymore then the local city council member is when they hand out pens and buttons to their constituency while telling them about what they stand for.
Israel has done these all things for the USA while being surrounded on all sides by people who want to destroy them. I think Israel deserves more respect then it has gotten in recent days from the president and a small amount of the American people.
Now on to the address the second letter.....
Immigration law wastes state resouces
Dear Editor: Here we go again. The governor and the state legislators have been struggling with the budget to decide how to make do with the money that is in precious supply in this state.
So what do they spend their time on? Writing an anti-immigration law that is in lock step with several others that are already tied up in battles in the federal court system. Why do they think they have everything right where others are wrong? It is the same old thing, political posturing.
When resources are low we do not need to be inviting lengthy court battles that will take state attorneys, or worse yet, require the state to hire private attorneys, to fight this battle that the courts have already prevented from being enforced in at least two states.
This law is wrong on its face and any thinking person will have to agree. No one in America has ever had to carry citizenship papers on their person before now. This will really help in attracting foreign companies to open their doors in Alabama, I bet. So their employees and families can be harassed and jailed if they don't have the proper papers on them. Welcome to Alabama's version of Russia.
William A. Formby, PhD
Northport, AL
Mr. Formby has this all wrong. The reason the other anti-illegal immigration bills have been tied up in court is because the Obama administration is fighting against both federal law (which these bills mirror) and states rights to defend its citizens against an outside threat from another country when the US government won't.
This bill isn't an attack against immigration if it is done in the legal fashion. Also, all the bills that are being fought over from other states are not wrong. That has yet to be decided in the court of law. The parts that have been prevented from being enforced so far are the parts that the courts decided would be hard, if not impossible, to undo the damage done to someones' life if the final ruling goes against the bill. That does not mean the bill is wrong or illegal.
As for the lengthy court battles that shall arise from this bill being passed, if the bill is deemed legal and becomes law, it will save the state money in the long term as well as give US citizens the chance to fill the jobs that the illegals were preventing them from obtaining. This would be better for both our national and state economy.
Also, Mr. Formby states "No one in America has ever had to carry citizenship papers before now." What does he think a driver license or a state issued ID is? Doesn't he know that by law we are supposed to be able to present identification to law enforcement officers when asked? That part of this bill is nothing new, it is just a reinforcement of an existing law and anyone here legally has nothing to fear from this bill.
Oh, and as for the foreign companies that come here to build plants like Mercedes, any foreign citizen that is brought over to the USA to work is issued a workers permit that says they have a right to be here. That acts like a social security number for those individuals but with a time limit. It is the workers responsibility to get this renewed, not the states or the employer.
The companies that bring their business to Alabama from other countries do it because of the incentives Alabama offers to them, not immigration policy. They will continue to come to Alabama as long as they are offered these incentives and they will continue to employ Alabamians as long as this relationship continues.
Mr. Formby also states " Welcome to Alabama's version of Russia." Really? Wow, I didn't know Russia (or the USSR as I think Mr. Formby meant) had it so good.
