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.MEXIFORNIA Victor Davis Hanson 156postheroic West.The immigrant, baffled by the strange new world with itsunlimited freedom of expression, gender equality and competitiveeconomy, is not baffled by this remorse on the part of his host.In fact, he is ready to exploit it.The result is that he often makeslittle effort to assimilate, and then blames the ensuing failure onprecisely those whose sense of shame is assuaged by such hostil-ity.The relationship for both is parasitic.The sophisticated whiteprofessor allays his fears and anxieties about race on the cheap bychampioning ethnic studies and bilingualism.(Yet he rarely wishesto live beside, marry among or spend the day with Mexican aliensand their offspring.) In turn, the opportunistic immigrant taps thehost’s guilt to explain his own easier choice of ethnic separatismand pride.“We owe these people/You people owe us” is now thenew symbiosis, replacing the old honesty: “Join us if you wishto be like us/We wish to be like you, so let us join you.” Whenstudents have identified themselves to me in ethnic terms as “Chi-canos” (e.g., “As a Chicano, I say” or “We Chicanos believe”), Ihave replied with the corresponding, silly racial nomenclature, oth-erwise never employed in this way (“Yes, as a white person, can Ihelp you?” or “We white people think”).In every case, the studentimmediately drops the self-identification, upset that anyone elseshould be so crude as to employ such a racial identity badge.It is within this larger, global context of population move-ment—of people trying to leave the misery of poverty in Africa,Asia and South America to find hope in Western countries—thatwe too in the American Southwest find ourselves dealing withimmigrants from Mexico.Let us also be honest about the natureof human traffic.It is not climate, natural resources or race thatentices or repels immigrants to new shores.Rather the answerlies with the capacity of Western culture to create capital, providesecurity, offer freedom and emphasize the individual rather thanthe tribe.Wealthy Westerners, who prefer low birthrates so as tosatisfy their appetites for leisure, freedom and wealth, invite in the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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