Let's round 'em up!

I read yesterday about a website based in California. The guy who runs it is tired of American companies flagrantly hiring illegal aliens. He researches the tips he receives on companies who break the law, forwards the tips to immigration authorities, and posts the names of the companies on the website: www.wehirealiens.com. I give this guy a great big "HOORAY!" A lot of us gripe about the situation, but few of us have gone to the trouble this guy has.

As predicted, immigration attorneys, companies on the website, and illegals aren't happy with this. One immigration attorney said, "If these folks really cared about America and safety and crime, why not put the public Internet finger on their relatives, friends and neighbors by creating sites like www.wespeed.com, www.wedrinkanddrive.com, www.webeatourwivesandkids.com." Number one, maybe this man has no acquaintances who speed, drink and drive, or beat their wives and kids. Number two, you'll notice the attorney does not say these companies are innocent -- he employs the old when one is guilty and has no defense, start pointing out the real or imaginary faults of the accuser tactic.

This little tidbit I found quite amusing. Among the companies listed on the site is General Aluminum Co. The personnel director of this company said that he was shocked to learn it was on the website, and he plans to contact an attorney. The personnel director's name? Juan.

"Web site accuses firms of hiring illegal immigrants." The Dallas Morning News; December 6, 2008; p. 1.

Maybe PISD should try more harder to teach English.

The Paris High School Fine Arts division is presenting a version of A Christmas Carol this weekend. From what I read, it's not quite the Dickens classic we all love. According to Jayna Shull, drama instructor, "The production has clowns in it, so it's quite different and fun." Clowns in A Christmas Carol? Sounds like a big improvement over the original, don't you think?

The student star of the play, says, "The more closer of a family you are the more fun and the more easier the show will be." More closer? More easier? Why not more funner? If he had done it once, I would call it a slip-up and think nothing of it. But twice indicates to me the poor child doesn't know any better. PISD needs to stop monkeying with the works of a master and start teaching basic English!

"Paris high to present 'A Christmas Carol.'" The Paris News; December 3, 2008; p. 1.

Harry Reid thinks you stink.

A new U.S. Capitol Visitor Center was opened this week. It is a 580,000 square foot complex underneath the east grounds of the Capitol. It cost $651 million -- $356 million over budget.

Senator Harry Reid (who says paying income tax is voluntary) defended the complex in his remarks at the opening celebration. Reid says they needed it, because American tourists stink. He says in the summertime, they could literally smell them coming down the hall. Now, they won't have to smell the nasty people who give them the privilege to sit in the U.S. Capitol and look down their noses at the people they're taxing into oblivion.

Mr. Essie May says they could have bought a lot of Glade plug-ins for $651 million!

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/12/02/capitol.visitor.center/index.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP6qeBPl_HA

Are Asians really smarter?

Have you ever noticed how Asians seem to be smarter than Americans? They have the reputation for diligent study in school, winning awards, hard work, and superior intelligence. But maybe they're not quite as smart as we think.

In Hokkaido, Japan, zoo keepers have been trying to get polar bears Tsuyoshi and Kurumi to mate. The bears have been enclosed together at the Kushiro Municipal Zoo since June. It appeared there was just no chemistry between them. Last Wednesday, zoo officials announced the reason for the lack of romance. Tsuyoshi and Kurumi are both females. Duh! Kind of throws that "Asians are smarter" myth out the window, doesn't it?

"Zoo solves mystery of why bears didn't mate." The Dallas Morning News; November 27, 2008; p. 18A.

Foreclosure Myths

Steven Malanga is an editor for RealClearMarkets and a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. He has done some study on the foreclosure crisis. His conclusion is that there are lots of foreclosure myths out there -- the stories you hear on the news are not representative of the situation as a whole.

How many news stories have you seen of the family beset by a medical crisis or a job loss who, because of the impact on their income, is losing their home? Mr. Malanga says that while instances of this happen in any economy, this is not the typical scenario in our current situation. Professor Stan J. Liebowitz of the University of Texas at Dallas says this crisis began in mid-2006 when the unemployment rate was holding steady at a low 4.6 percent. Job loss can't be blamed. So what is the typical scenario?

It is that of the investor -- the buyer who purchased properties he never intended to live in. He got caught in the "flip this house" syndrome. Liebowitz says that the number of defaults on these deals is so large that they could explain all or most of the increases in foreclosures. Many of these speculators walked away from their mortgages at the first sign of falling home prices. In March 2007, The Miami Herald ran a story about how local real estate lawyers were besieged with speculators wanting to get out of their mortgage contracts because home prices had bottomed in Florida. One lawyer said, "These are not people who have been wronged. These are flippers who wouldn't be saying anything if the market was going well." Dr. Liebowitz says the flippers are a big chunk of the nationwide problem -- defaults in only two states, California and Florida, accounted for 42% of the subprime ARM defaults nationwide in the second quarter of 2008.

So why do we have the myth that most of the people suffering the foreclosure crisis are hardworking families just like yours who happened upon hard times? Malanga's theory is that the media call social service agencies when they want to do a foreclosure story, and they naturally are steered to those people who have sought help. The speculators aren't really willing to air their dirty laundry on TV or the front page. Besides, who would want to bail out a slick flipper who risked his money in the wrong place?

"Foreclosure Myths." The Dallas Morning News; November 30, 2008; p. 6P.

Why would you care?

Larry and Yvonne Meadows are suing the Lake Travis School District. The district's security program includes screening adult visitors to the school through a registered sex offender database. Sounds like a good idea to me -- who wants registered sex offenders wandering around the halls in the public schools?

But Larry and Yvonne claim that this process violates their right to privacy and other rights. I can think of only one reason a person would care whether or not they were checked through the database. I suspect Larry's and Yvonne's photos just might pop up if you ran their names through it.

"Parents sue school over sex offender check system." The Paris News; December 1, 2008; p. 5.

This shouldn't be news!

I was quite impressed by two items I saw in the newspaper last week. It is this type of story that restores one's faith in mankind.

The first story was about Moisei Baraniuc who is 17 years old. Moisei works as a grocery bagger in Federal Way, Washington. He earns minimum wage which he uses to pay for his high school costs, gas, and other expenses. Moisei found a bag in the supermarket restroom with $10,000 in it. He turned it in, and it was restored to its owner. Moisei says, "My dad is always telling us in this life you've got to work for yourself. If you take what doesn't belong to you, it will catch up to you." Moisie, whose nickname is Moses, teaches 10-year-olds at his First Ukrainian Baptist Church. "I can't be teaching little kids not to do it if I'm doing it," he said. What a great role model for his young students!

The second story was about J. P. Hayes. Hayes is a golfer. He was just about to earn his PGA card in qualifying school. Alas, he realized that by accident, he had used an unapproved golf ball. He was the only one who knew, and he did not intentionally violate the rules. He reported himself, delaying by at least a year his chances in professional golf. Character is what you do when no one is watching!

Both of these men are to be commended. They set a wonderful example. Isn't it a shame, though, that such acts are so rare they end up in the newspaper?

"Teen's honesty pays off." The Dallas Morning News; November 28, 2008; p. 11A.
"Would the rese of us have been so honest?" The Dallas Morning News; November 29, 2008; p. 20A.