disturbing the comfortable

On a trip, we went through Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. There are communities there were people speak their own language. They’ve spoken Lakota for a long time—since before the English knew they were English. “Since time immemorial,” the saying goes. It’s the same on the Navajo—Dine`—Reservation in the southwest. Or with the descendants of Spanish settlers in New Mexico. These people have been speaking their native language, their “milk tongue,” for hundreds and hundreds of years before the Republican yahoos decided they knew what real ‘Merikuns should speak. It’s crap: racist, jingoistic crap. Now they want people to all have photo identification, so when someone says “Your papers, please,” they can obey these silly laws.

They should be ashamed of themselves. And they would be, if they knew what shame meant.

House Passes Bill to Make Voters Show ID
http://rawstory.com/showarticle.php?src=http%3A%2F%2Fcustomwire.ap.org%2Fdynamic%2Fstories%2FI%2FIMMIGRATION%3FSITE%3DMIDTF%26SECTION%3DHOME%26TEMPLATE%3DDEFAULT%26CTIME%3D2006-09-20-21-02-16
By JIM ABRAMS
Associated Press Writer


WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House voted Wednesday to require Americans to show proof of citizenship in order to vote, and the Senate moved to build a 700-mile fence along the Mexican border as Republicans sharpened attacks on illegal immigration before the midterm elections.

The 228-196 House vote on a new photo ID plan and the Senate's consideration of the fence were both part of a get-tough policy on illegal immigrants that Republicans have embraced after Congress' failure to agree on broader legislation that would set a path for undocumented workers to attain citizenship.

House GOP leaders have insisted that tighter borders and tougher laws must precede more comprehensive immigration changes. The House passed the fence bill last week and plans votes Thursday on other enforcement measures: to increase penalties for people building tunnels under the border, make it easier to detain and deport immigrant gang members and criminals and clarify the ability of state and local authorities to detain illegal immigrants.

Republican sponsors of the voter identification bill said it was a commonsense way to stop fraud at the polls. People need photo IDs to board planes, buy alcohol or cash checks, said Rep. Vernon Ehlers, R-Mich., chairman of the House Administration Committee. "This is not a new concept."



"This is what Americans want," said Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., "They want safe borders and they want safe ballots."

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The bill would require everyone to present a photo ID before voting in federal elections by 2008. By 2010 voters would have to have photo IDs that certified they were citizens. In response to criticism that this would be a burden for the poor, the bill stipulates that states must provide the identification cards free of charge to those who can't afford them.