How Childish Are You?

I am curious...and I like to have the last word.  In response to my post about Arizona's tough new immigration law, I lost a couple of followers.  Big deal, their choice.  In that post I included a link to a previous post where I vented some frustrations about illegal immigration and how it affected me personally. How childish do you have to be to do the following?  Some one commented on that post and asked me a question that I would be happy to answer for them.  Here is the problem...they didn't have the intestinal fortitude (guts) to leave a name with their comment.  Um..how would you like me to answer a question if I don't know who you are.  Here is the question they asked.

You make excellent points.


I'm curious, did your ancestors have green card or any working document ready to show when they arrived on Ellis Island? I'm guessing no. That is all.

Now, I'm guessing that this was a comment left by one of those who are no longer following me.  I readily admit that I have stopped following some blogs because the author held beliefs that I did not agree with.  Let me also say, I follow many blogs where I don't agree with everything that everyone posts.  The one or two I have stopped following were way out there in my opinion.  Ultimately, if someone doesn't want to follow me, then please leave if you don't enjoy what I write.  I'm fine with that.

Back to the question and my answer.  As a matter of fact, yes, my ancestors had all the proper documentation they were required to have when they came to this country.  THEY FOLLOWED THE RULES. 

And, in fact, my maternal grandmother traveled 4 times back and forth between the United States and Hungary between the ages of 2 and 16.  Her parents came to this country for a better life.  When she was 2 they returned to Hungary to help out HER grandparents.  She returned to the U.S.A.  by herself when she was 15 so she could maintain her American citizenship.  She left her parents in Hungary, her father working hard and her ill mother helping out when she could.  She then went back to Hungary again, BY HERSELF to retrieve her parents.  Unfortunately her mother passed away while in Hungary and her father would not return to the United States without his wife.  My grandmother (now 16) then got on another boat bound for the USA with her cousin who was 18 and a friend who was also 16.  These ocean voyages took weeks.  They didn't have any one traveling with them to insure their safety.  But they filed the proper paperwork to leave and return to this country every time because they wanted to be Americans. 

My ancestors wanted to have a better life.  They wanted to contribute to a nation they believed in.  They didn't come to this country and immediately start engaging in illegal activities.  They didn't try to smuggle their relatives into the country in their steamer trunk.  They worked hard, they paid taxes, they owned property and  they left a legacy that spans several generations.  My grandmother never regretted her decision to come to this country without her father.  She missed him and was sad that she would never see her parents again.

One more point I would like to make before I get off my soapbox.  Many that come to this country illegally -and I know there are illegals in this country who are NOT Hispanic - they claim that they come to this country illegally because the paperwork and the requirements are so stringent and costly and time-consuming.  Wanna know something?  It's much easier to get into this country now than it was 100 years ago.  Do you think that the requirements weren't stringent back then?  Do you think the paperwork wasn't costly back then?  Do you think it wasn't time-consuming back then?  People who TRULY want to be American citizens will do what it takes legally, not matter the cost, the time, the restrictions.

Sermon complete!