Andrew Hagen

Tonight, in his national address from the Oval Office, President Bush cynically offers a few milquetoast items to create the illusion that his “border security initiative” will protect the border. (*) The sad truth is that a few motion sensors and a couple of thousand National Guard troops with orders to stand around for the benefit of the news cameras will have no effect on the billions of people who would love to walk into America and become one of President Bush’s new guest workers.

The first problem with Bush’s proposed “guest worker” program is that it irrevocably puts “guest workers” onto the path of “earned citizenship,” which is amnesty, which Bush strenuously opposes.

The second problem is larger. Guest workers would be the equivalent of second-class citizens, a concept which suggests dubious constitutionality at best and another blow to the heart of America by replacing the middle class with an exploited class at worst.

The biggest winners from Bush’s plan would be financial interests, the rich, drug dealers, terrorists, human smugglers, and to a lesser extent, illegal aliens and the country of Mexico. The biggest losers are the American people, the rule of law, and would-be legal immigrants who have been obediently standing in line for legal citizenship and, 20 years of playing by the rules later, along comes Bush and his sycophants in Washington to spit in their face. What has become of fairness? What has become of right and wrong?

Meanwhile, the Senate is expediting its plan to increase America’s population by 103 million over the next 20 years, on top of all the illegal immigration. (†) Apparently, a higher estimate of the Senate’s compassionate plan places the increased population at 217.1 million, according to Senator Jeff Sessions, or roughly 517 million total Americans by the year 2026. (‡)

The only conclusion to be drawn from this is that the Washington elites do not care what happens to this country anymore. All they care about is supporting big business, international trade, financial interests and their other cronies.

Illegal aliens have worked very hard and many want to become American citizens. Most would make fine American citizens. The problem is not the people. Some of the world’s best people are illegal aliens in America.

At this point, however, illegal aliens and American citizens are all just differently-situated targets for exploitation by the corporate elites. They would like us all to become their mute, ill-paid servants happy enough with videogames and entertainment, deprived of real wealth and the power of free citizens.

The illegal alien problem is not about the people. Complaining about the quality of the people who have been coming to America illegally is like getting a gold, diamond-encrusted ring and tossing it out like a circus trinket.

The illegal alien problem is the problem of numbers. Sheer, overwhelming numbers. You can get too much of anything. In America, we value open spaces. We value a clean, pristine environment unclouded with smog. We value a sense of ‘uncrowdedness.’ We do not like traffic jams. We do not like long lines at stores. We like opportunities and flexibility in business, jobs and careers and educational slots. We like what we have, we like our way of life, and we have a right to keep it.

Yes, America has a major educational deficit for a variety of reasons. We need more scientists, engineers, and mathematicians. Desperately. We need to better prepare for the retirement of the baby boom generation, and automated services, such as robotic vacuum cleaners and lawn mowers will be parts of the solution.

What we do not want, however, is for caviar-snacking billionaires to steer the course of our country. President Bush and the other self-proclaimed leaders of the world would love for average American wages and incomes to be cut in half or more. They will be cutting a lion’s share of the pie for their own miserable, greedy, Napoleanic selves. With their guest worker/amnesty plan, they want to impoverish us, ruin our country and wreck the middle class once and for all.

Additionally, with increased immigration comes increased social chaos and consequent decreased societal security. The only way to keep order is to impose it by brute force. We can accept masses of new people into America only at the cost of cutting out massive amounts of civil rights and privacy, starting with a national ID card, and continuing on until the Bill of Rights is illegal to read out loud in public.

We do not want a huge number of people coming into America simply because we have enough Americans as it is. Most regions of America are full enough with people. America is not crowded as compared to the standards of Calcutta, Cairo, Sao Paulo, and Paris, and that is exactly the point.

There are workable solutions. First, you implement real border security. Second, you do not have any “round-up” but you do deport illegal aliens who are caught breaking the law. Third, you promote democracy and the rule of law in Mexico, other parts of Latin America, and developing countries around the world. Fourth, employers of 50 or more employees who hire illegal aliens are made felons and sent to the slammer, smaller employers face fines. Fifth, the U.S. enters into negotiations with Mexico to upgrade the US-Mexico relationship from mere “friends” to “strategic partners.” Mexico is a wonderful country blessed with an incredible culture and inspiring people. Mexico just needs to root out the corruption to unlock its destiny. Washington’s immigration policy encourages Mexican corruption, the exact opposite of the desired result. By making a few minor changes, we can achieve much and have positive effects.

Are we seeing the continued weakening of the nation-state system, as the so-called “superpower” pathetically cannot even control one of its borders? That may be part of the story. The real story, however, is that President Bush and the Washington establishment are selling out American citizens for the benefit of their rich cronies and people in other countries.

Third party options currently are uninteresting. The far-right Constitution Party, for example, would like to enact a theocracy. There are precious few politicians who have the guts to stand up to big business and put the American people first. There is a possibility that an interesting politically moderate third party could grow out of the Minuteman Project, but that is far from a sure bet.

Let your Senators and Congressman know where you stand, and that your vote depends on them acting appropriately. Then, in November, vote. Free people who yet have courage do not give up on their country.

Democratic Party chairman Howard Dean claimed on Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) that the 2004 Democratic Party platform states that marriage is between a man and a woman. It does not state that at all. Dean’s lie resulted in a gay rights group demanding its money back from the Democratic Party, even after the false nature of the statement was made known. (*) (†)

The lives of millions of Americans are altered for the worse by chronic pain, especially in the back and neck. A significant population suffers pain due to motor vehicle accidents. Regardless of the cause, however, a lifetime of terrible pain debilitates people’s lives. Doctors commonly prescribe pain pills. With chronic pain, however, any solution to the problem must be lifelong, not merely temporary. Whether the pain is extreme or less than extreme, people can become addicted to pain pills. Thus a great controversy over access to pain medication exists.

Richard Paey was injured in a car accident. After an unsuccessful surgery, Richard had chronic pain that he compared to being in a blast furnace. 60 Minutes told his story. (*) He and his family moved to Florida. There he couldn’t find a doctor willing to prescribe enough pain pills for him to make it through. He went back to his doctor in another state for the prescriptions, which he filled in Florida. Eventually, in desperation for more pain medication, authorities say, Richard forged prescriptions for himself. Now he will sit in prison for decades. Ironically, his prison doctor prescribed him a morphine pump and a wheelchair. Now Richard has the pain relief he needs.

The outlines of Richard’s story, from chronic pain to being accused of drug dependency, addiction, or even out-of-control behavior, is far from unique.

To allow doctors to prescribe the huge amounts of pain drugs necessary for chronic pain patients without fear of prosecution, the DEA drafted guidelines. In 2004, however, the DEA took back the guidelines. (†) Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute for Drug Abuse, is a strong advocate for fighting prescription drug abuse and addiction. She claims two million Americans abuse prescription drugs. (‡) Democrat Patrick Kennedy (chronic back pain) (§) and conservative Rush Limbaugh (ear pain) (**) are two prominent Americans who have faced a glaring public spotlight on their addictive behaviors and their pain problems.

The other side is represented by Pain Relief Network, a group of patients, doctors, and others who see the grave harm that is done when palliative drugs are denied people who do suffer from debilitating chronic pain. (††) PRN aims to not let those who suffer such pain be forgotten.

As the debate goes forward, we should bear in mind the basic facts of pain. First, medicine has not yet devised a useful objective test for pain. There is no machine that they can hook you up to get a reading on a “pain-ometer.” Pain is felt internally. We get the impression that another person is in pain when they cry out, complain, wince, or otherwise act as if they were in pain. This inability to directly experience another’s pain gives rise to many suspicions and accusations of faking. Indeed, faking pain is a problem. If a medical scientist came up with a device for measuring pain, it would be one of history’s great medical advances.

If technology remains unable to sense pain, as many believe, we will have to find ways to match our national goals with our actions. We want to defeat drug addiction, and we want to defeat chronic pain. Both are highly important national priorities. At this point, there might not be any obvious solution. Dialogue is called for. Those who experience the problem of pain and those who experience the problem of addiction need to share their experiences so that society can grow wiser. If citizens don’t get involved and tell their stories, all the important decisions will be made by bureaucrats.

Above all, however, all possible steps must be taken to prevent the onset of chronic pain. For example, in your car, don’t keep the headrest in the lowest position unless you are short. For most people, the headrest should be adjusted upward to help prevent a neck injury in the event you are rear-ended or in another collision. Perhaps auto manufacturers should be forced to increase the size of seatbacks to prevent this problem altogether. (‡‡) Post-market products (§§) might help.

Let’s hope Congress wakes up and takes action to prevent chronic pain relief, and that a dialogue can begin on the topic of chronic pain and its treatment.