No Smoking, Las Vegas, Immigrants

A weekend in Las Vegas with one of my brothers and my cuzbro Ronnie and his wife Pam has been in the works for a while. I told them a couple of weeks ago that I would not be able to join them. I know it will be a great time because each one of them is fun and a blast to be around, but as a group, think laughing headaches.

Tomorrow marks my six week mark of not smoking! Six weeks already. 42 days. I am afraid if I go to Vegas with two people who smoke and all who drink, that I will be drinking and smoking within minutes of being with them. I would be upset to mess up for a night or two, but that would not be the end of the world. What the real problem would be, is that I would begin all over again. I would think that I smoked for a day or two, I may as well smoke for a few more days and then start all over. It could be a very long time before I go six weeks without smoking again. So, I will stay home and miss the fun. As hard as that is, I think it is the best option for me right now.

On another subject, I just heard on NPR that students in North San Diego County have begun waving American flags, wearing red white and blue clothing and make-up. They are making their statement about the border issue. They seem uneducated to me and should remain in class. Where do these students think our ancestors came from? Some families may have been escorted off the Mayflower, but they still didn't originate here. I highly suspect that a huge percentage of them are not Native Americans.

There is a local organization that goes to the day labor sites and photographs people who hire the workers. They then put the photos on their website, to try and shame them. Not all of the day laborers are illegal. Even if they are, so what? They want to work and will stay there all day, day after day, to get a job. I don't see Americans hanging out in the hot sun waiting for somebody to pick them up. Americans do not want the jobs these people are willing to take. So, what is all the fuss? Leave them alone and allow them to feed their families without being a drain on our government.

I think the Latino and Latina students have made their point. Leaving school and protesting in mass has been noted and now is just an excuse to get out of class. I applaud their attempts to get the government to do the humane thing and let these people work here. All I see is hard working people who want a better life. That is supposed to be what America stands for right? The American Dream and all that!