Baltimorei

[JaneV2.0]

It's not that easy to emigrate, unless you're young and well-educated, or able to buy your way in. I considered moving to Canada after I retired, but I missed the cut by a few points on their numerical scoring system. Maybe I should have put some effort into raising my score, but it didn't seem that important at the time.

The old sixties provocation "America: love it or leave it" was lame then, and it's lame now. You can "love" it while working to change what's wrong with it, as patriots have done since the Founding Fathers.

[iris lilies]

It's not that easy to emigrate, unless you're young and well-educated, or able to buy your way in. I considered moving to Canada after I retired, but I missed the cut by a few points on their numerical scoring system. Maybe I should have put some effort into raising my score, but it didn't seem that important at the time.

The old sixties provocation "America: love it or leave it" was lame then, and it's lame now. You can "love" it while working to change what's wrong with it, as patriots have done since the Founding Fathers.

But Mexico welcomes those with Amerian dinero, as residents anyway. Don't know about citizenship.

my friend just sold his Mexico property for around $300,000 and was required to turn over $50,000.00 to the government and attorneys. This was a surprise to him. He says that there really are no standards for property sales as far as how much the scoundrels get, depends on the lawyer and the local gubmnt officials and the level of corruption. They do love silly and "rich" Americans.

[flowerseverywhere]

Jane, I never said love it or leave it. I am interested in Rob's answer.

by the way, we would not be here today if people had not risked all immigrate.

[bae]

I am however hoping that such drama repeats itself this summer ...

That's a vile evil hope. You hope that this summer someone gets killed by police, and before there is even a trial of the officers involved, citizens of a neighborhood burn down old folks' homes, their pharmacy, cars, and endanger the lives of the firefighters and medics who respond?

However, if your hope comes true, perhaps you'll be lucky enough to see it happen in your own neighborhood, so you can witness the society you hoped for first-hand, and enjoy its consequences personally.

[LDAHL]

That's a vile evil hope. You hope that this summer someone gets killed by police, and before there is even a trial of the officers involved, citizens of a neighborhood burn down old folks' homes, their pharmacy, cars, and endanger the lives of the firefighters and medics who respond?

However, if your hope comes true, perhaps you'll be lucky enough to see it happen in your own neighborhood, so you can witness the society you hoped for first-hand, and enjoy its consequences personally.

It does seem to take schadenfreude to an unwholesome extreme to wish for something like that. Nor is it all that realistic in terms of Rob's vision for social change. The great conflagrations of the sixties made little difference, and we seem unlikely to generate a bloodbath today that would be sufficient for his hopes.

[bae]

Maybe we should take away the pensions of looters and rioters and arsonists? And sue them for big settlements!

[catherine]

Here's something I found interesting - apparently the US is not the only country in the developed world with police brutality issues - in yesterday's (05/05) USA Today there was an article about police brutality in Tel Aviv, Israeli. Apparently some police officers in Tel Aviv beat an Ethiopian Israeli. Israel being the developed country it is, of course most people have smartphones and of course video was taken and used much the same way it would be used here. I will keep up with this story online if I can find more information - I want to see if Israel handles this better than the US does. Rob

I am so tired of CNN/MSNBC/FOX and all the other myopic "news" outlets, so I tuned into BBC World the other day. Between news reports of what's happening in Libya's human trafficking, ISIS on the road to Baghdad forcing thousands out of their homes, and Nepal's earthquake, it was an exercise in recalling how much greener the grass is on our side of the fence, even if that fence is in need of repair.

[JaneV2.0]

Here's something I found interesting - apparently the US is not the only country in the developed world with police brutality issues - in yesterday's (05/05) USA Today there was an article about police brutality in Tel Aviv, Israeli. Apparently some police officers in Tel Aviv beat an Ethiopian Israeli. Israel being the developed country it is, of course most people have smartphones and of course video was taken and used much the same way it would be used here. I will keep up with this story online if I can find more information - I want to see if Israel handles this better than the US does. Rob

I worked with a Chinese woman who taught in Israel for awhile. Her summation of the situation was that Palestinians in Israel were treated "worse than Americans treat African-Americans." Maybe that's the case with Ethiopian Jews, also.

[CathyA]

I am so tired of CNN/MSNBC/FOX and all the other myopic "news" outlets, so I tuned into BBC World the other day. Between news reports of what's happening in Libya's human trafficking, ISIS on the road to Baghdad forcing thousands out of their homes, and Nepal's earthquake, it was an exercise in recalling how much greener the grass is on our side of the fence, even if that fence is in need of repair.

This is very true catherine!

[JaneV2.0]

I am so tired of CNN/MSNBC/FOX and all the other myopic "news" outlets, so I tuned into BBC World the other day. Between news reports of what's happening in Libya's human trafficking, ISIS on the road to Baghdad forcing thousands out of their homes, and Nepal's earthquake, it was an exercise in recalling how much greener the grass is on our side of the fence, even if that fence is in need of repair.

I like Al Jazeera. They are good at covering world news, have fewer commercial interruptions, and appear freer of corporate/government influence than other news channels.