"My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the
Orange County Register which, of course, was not printed. So, I
decided to "print" it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass
it along if you feel so inclined.
Dave LaBonte (signed)

Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the
Orange County Register:





Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this
land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we
should tear down the Statute of Liberty because the people now in
question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through
Ellis Island and other ports of entry.

Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like
Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind
of immigrant any longer.

Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come
to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long
line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on
their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to
uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times.
They made learning English a primary rule in their new American
households and some even changed their names to blend in with their
new home.

They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a
new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate
into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare,
no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship
they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their
children came of age when World War II broke out.

My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from
Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans
ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They
were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were
defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated
France, no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the
German-American or the Irish-American. The people of France saw only Americans.

And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those
immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's
flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace
to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants
truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into
one red, white and blue bowl.

And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same
rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different
set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being
faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American
is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early
1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising
future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those
legally searching for a better life.

I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by
those waving foreign country flags.

And for that suggestion about taking down the Statute of Liberty, it happens
to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't
start talking about dismantling the United States just yet.

(signed)
Rosemary LaBonte"

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