It’s the 5th of May, and if you live in Mexico, you probably don’t care as Cinco de Mayo isn’t really observed there.  However, if you live in the US , then Cinco de Mayo is a day to celebrate the culture and experiences of Americans of Mexican ancestry.  However, as your enjoying your food, music, and folkloric dancing, keep in mind the origin of the holiday.  May 5th, 1862 – The Battle of Puebla, where the outnumbered Mexicans defeated a much better-equipped French army.

Let’s talk about Mexican’s for a bit.

Like the Russian’s I wrote about on May 9th (note the temporal disorder here), most non-Mexican’s don’t know squat about Mexican’s.  So, I’ll learn you some, just about the ones you need to know though:

Mexican-American: I did some growing up in Lindsay, California.  It’s mostly populated by Mexican’s (like 95%); consequently, it’s one of the few places in California that doesn’t suck.  These people are mostly migrant workers, picking oranges and olives, and working in packing plants.  As a kid, I worked in an orange packing plant with them, and was honored when one of them said “you work like a Mexican”.  They’re proud, honorable, trust-worthy, and very hard-working.  In fact, in 1995, Lindsay was given the All-American City award by the National Civic League and was also named a California Main Street City in 1987.  They’re as American as apple pie.

Illegal Immigrant:  Unlike the Mexican-American, this usually refers to Mexican’s who illegally come into the United States.  Now, I’ve lived my entire adult life in Arizona.  I understand the Mexican’s point of view.  Imagine that you, as an American, discover that you can get a job in Canada working in restaurants, and the pay is $200k/year.  Problem is, this is the part of Canada that speaks French, and you only speak English.  Also, you can’t get into the country legally.  Ok, for $200k/year, most would illegally enter Canada, work in their French-speaking restaurants, pay off their house and support their family back in the US, and then go home after 3-years.  That’s exactly what the illegal immigrant from Mexico is doing.

But that’s not the case.  I can’t go to Canada and live off of their wealth.  In all honesty, if I could, I would NOT enter Canada in violation of the law.  Ok, some Americans go to Canada and illegally get medical benefits from their socialist heathcare system, and they should be shot; However, in their defense, Canada’s not even a real country anyway.  In Arizona, illegal immigration causes tons of social and economic problems (too many to list), as with other parts of the US.  Most importantly, I’m on this side of the fence, and this is my backyard.  I don’t want to be the welfare system for any country that can’t take care of itself.  This is MY country.  Any immigrant who enters legally, works hard, and earns their place at the table, I will welcome them with with open arms and call them my fellow American.  I consider those who enter illegally to steal from America’s wealth to be no better than thieves.

About the Author: Eric: I’m a USMC veteran, Atheist Minister, and Science Fiction Author. Commonly known as the Magnanimous and Beneficent Doctor Warthan, I disseminate the propaganda of SteamPunk through a special series of psychological formulae that I have designated Omega7Red. Website: http://omega7red.com

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 at 3:50 pm and is filed under News, Rant. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.