This week’s Saturday Night Live Weekend Update segment briefly discussed Arizona’s new immigration law. The law has been declared “divisive” by the left because it actually enforces the law. Here is Seth Myers take on the law:
Seth Meyers: This week, Arizona signed the toughest illegal immigration law in the country which will allow police to demand identification papers from anyone they suspect is in the country illegally.
I know there’s some people in Arizona worried that Obama is acting like Hitler, but could we all agree that there’s nothing more Nazi than saying “Show me your papers”? There’s never been a World War II movie that didn’t include the line “show me your papers”. It’s their catchphrase. Every time someone says “show me your papers”, Hitler’s family gets a residual check.
So heads up, Arizona; that’s fascism. I know, I know, it’s a dry fascism, but it’s still fascism.
Obviously this is satire, but comparing this law to fascism isn’t funny or even logical. Requiring every driver in the United States to carry papers (a.k.a., a Driver’s License) must be a dry fascism. Requiring every worker to have a Social Security number must also fascist. Every time Club Soda is stopped for speeding, the local Gestapo asks for his “papers”. Every time I get a new job the Gestapo asks for my “papers”. This whole time, apparently, I’ve been living in a police state!
The left’s indifference to illegal immigration continues to puzzle me. Or maybe not. The Democrats seem most excited by the prospect that these illegals will become a voting bloc.
There will also be political repercussions. While Republicans may pick up a few more percent of the angry white vote in November 2010, they can kiss the Hispanic vote goodbye — and not just in Arizona. That may not have meant much in 1935, but in the years to come, it could seal the Republicans’ fate as a minority party. That’s at least one price they’ll pay for being mean and crazy.
According to John B. Judis, enforcing the law is crazy and mean. Forcing healthy citizens to get health insurance against their will, however, is perfectly fine. This is how the illogical progressive thinks. Judis would rather give illegal immigrants amnesty and free health care so they vote for Democrats forever. The law wouldn’t even be necessary if Democrats would get off this amnesty train and commit to common-sense reform. There’s nothing remotely fascist about enforcing immigration laws.
It’s odd that Saturday Night Live would highlight this piece of news and ignore what happened on South Park this week. Comedy Central’s capitulation to death threats from Islamic fundamentalists was easily the most disgusting development this week. When it comes to satire everything is fair game except Mohammad.
I believe what Seth was saying is that this new law is basically legalized racism. No police officer is going to be asking a white man for his papers, only the darker skinned people. I’m Mexican American, and have lived in the US my entire life, and I’ll be damned if a white officer is going to ask me for proof that I’m a legal citizen. It’s called racial profiling by the way. This is not about left and right it’s about white and non white really, but you seem to ignorant to understand that. It’s funny that the people who keep calling President Obama names like fascist are the ones who support bills like this. It’s so ironic that it would be funny if it wasn’t such a tragedy at the same time.
For decades people who “look Irish” (which I do) have been profiled because of the IRA. This isn’t racist and I’m not offended for common sense law enforcement. Perhaps if you had a better understanding of history, facism, and racism you wouldn’t be so prone to making emotional arguments.
And maybe if you knew how to elaborate logical arguments you wouldnt need to make an ad hominen falacy to stress your point.
In theory the new law will not allow the police to racially profile the suspects. In practice I dont think white people are going to be much worried.
“The law has been declared “divisive” by the left because it actually enforces the law.”
oops
I agree that it’s fascist to ask for papers, which is exactly my point to the officer who asks me for my driver’s license when he pulls me over. I suppose if I were an illegal alien he’d let me go, particularly since I live in a sanctuary city, but in my case (white male) I get a ticket. Freaking fascists!
Profiling by law enforcement is used in determining potential behavior. Police officers are legally allowed to profile in order to prevent and solve crimes. They are not allowed to racially profile.
Analogy: A police officer cannot legally pull someone over on the assumption that the driver is impaired just because it’s 2:30 AM and he’s pulling out of Pack’s Tavern in a riced-up Gran Torino. That would fall into the category of a hunch. Now speeding, swerving, running red lights, and stopping at green ones would provoke reasonable suspicion / probable cause to conclude that the driver may be shitfaced on something.
The problem is that many confuse the probable cause standard with the lesser standard of a hunch and then make ill-informed decisions as a result. Racial profiling, by it’s own admission, is based on hunches. Sure, it may be proven correct on occasion, but in the longterm racial profiling isn’t based on any objective criteria. Just subjective, self-reinforced speculation.
I’m not saying that racial profiling = racist. Sometimes it is what it is. But that doesn’t mean I should turn the other cheek when a few Mecham-bots decide to take a glorified dump on the 4th amendment just to better themselves for a lousy midterm. Just sayin.
btw, i’m digging the new layout.
Amazing to me, as a former 45 year Arizonan, the true ignorance in this country of past history, and our Constitution. Actually, when I was growing up in Arizona there was always racial profiling in that these were foreigners the police were deporting, as Mexican Nationals not Americans. And during the 1970′s and before that, every time you crossed from Arizona to California or vice versa, they asked at the border your travel plans, searched cars, and asked for driver’s licenses due to the citrus crop failures and also in order to enforce the immigration laws.
Difference was, back then they were not given “due process” trials but simply handed over the U.S. Marshall’s office (who is over the local Sheriff’s) and then bused back every Saturday after getting their one call for a ride at the border.
Meyers is a totally ignorance, and since he is less than 40 I would assume he is unaware of prior history, and would simply love if these New York comics before making such idiotic remarks would commit to living in Arizona for 10 years or more, outside of a gated community.
Then let’s see how the tone of the jokes change.
Also, I’m hoping they actually also get the Canadians that overstay their visas there, since there is a ton of them with second homes.
And they are actually the ones making the most stink, next to the Californians, New Yorkers (such as Seth) and those from Chicago.