The Daily Reveille
Opinion
page 8
Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2010
SHOW ALL COMMENTS
Burns interviews Vieira: Do immigrants enrich or endanger American culture? Burns: Ever since the inception of the American republic, immigration has been one of our nation’s most controversial issues. Today, the debate has taken to a whole new level with increasingly divisive issues like illegal immigration taking center stage after the controversial passing of SB 1070 in Arizona. But before we can talk about more complex Scott Burns topics, like border protection Columnist and amnesty, it is important we have a fundamental understanding of what immigration truly is, why immigrants still choose to come to the U.S. and whether or not their presence truly benefits American society. As a red-state born and bred, freedom fighting, culturally myopic, Lou Dobbs-loving American, I’ve been taught America is a Godordained “city on a hill,” and all foreigners are a group of unshaven socialistic sociopaths with subversive motives and bad hygiene. That being the case, do immigrants really have anything valuable to offer to American culture? Or are they all just a bunch of freedom-haters trying to infiltrate our society? Vieira: I think that before immigration became a feverishly disputed issue in particular border states, it was, and still is, the basis on which this country was built. If we are looking for a fundamental understanding of immigration we should realize that immigrants are not only Latin Americans, Indians, Chinese, and other cultures that are today asked why they come to the U.S., but also Irish, British, Germans and many other European cultures who were the first immigrants that came to this land in search of a new life. To someone like you, anyone who comes from a non-Anglo Saxon background would be considered part of a marginal layer of the American society when in reality they are just as part of American culture as any other ethnic or national group. The question: “Do immigrants have any value to offer to American culture?” should really be rephrased: “Should immigrants be called immigrants at all?” Clearly, there is
an incoherence between what a group of poorly informed and undereducated people think about immigration and the number of “immigrants” that are a legal and functioning part of this nation. Burns: That’s all fine and well. But what about all the jobs foreigners are taking from hardworking Americans? One of the reasons you personally came to this country was to get your degree in jazz studies as a cello player. How does it make you feel knowing your presence in this country is potentially taking away a job from a hardworking American cello player? Vieira: Are foreigners taking jobs from Americans? Is the American workforce willing to deal with labor that involves bad hygiene? There’s a lot of service in this country that is done by foreigners because many of them come here seeking an “opportunity” for which they have no education or instruction. They end up in jobs that require little education and instruction. In the case of coming to study in academia, the presence of international students and the fostering of a culturally diverse community is within the interests of most universities, and in fact is often part of their educational purpose. By the way, there are very few cellists in the U.S. or in the world that would be interested in a jazz studies major, so in this case, job demand is still much greater than supply.
Robert Stewart Steven Powell Andrew Robertson
Vieira: No problem. As an immigrant to the U.S., I’m used to scrutinous questions. Burns: First Question: On a scale of 9.9 to 10, how much would you say you hate freedom? Vieira: I don’t hate freedom. I do hate having to buy freedom, though. Burns: Tough luck. Everyone who’s seen Team American knows
Vieira: As far as I’m concerned, I have a Christian background, until proven guilty. But who knows? I have Spanish ancestors, and we both know that what today is Spain used to be part of the Moorish Empire. Burns: Do you have connections to George Soros or any other Jewish banksters trying to systematically destroy America’s capitalist system? Vieira: No, I unfortunately don’t have connections to George Soros. I wish I had, though. Maybe then I could turn America’s capitalist system into a big party full of filthy South Americans shaking their booties. Burns: So let me get this straight: Foreigners not only want to take our jobs and erode our culture — they also want us all to wear string-laced thongs and shake our booties with them in a grotesque international orgy on American soil?
40 How does the governor propose to protect higher education during budget cuts? Would the governor put pressure on the Legislature for constitutional amendments to protect higher education and allow for more “across the board” cuts? known Ricky Martin and Shakira were terrorist operatives trying to fundamentally transform American pop culture. Vieira: Yes, indeed. But I’d be more concerned about Justin Bieber and Ke$ha. Scott Burns is a 21-year old economics and history senior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter@ TDR_sburns. Marcelo Vieira is a 32-year-old jazz cello graduate student from Brazil. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_ MVieira.
Vieira: Precisely. Burns: Well slap my scrotum and call me Shirley. I should’ve
Contact The Daily Reveille’s opinion staff at opinion@lsureveille.com
BEST AND WITTIEST
Vieira: Right. Why talk about diversity when you can live it? And I’m also happy to realize that the very Tea Party movement has its own diversity going on. That’s what
Editorial Board Stephanie Giglio
Burns: I don’t like your tone, comrade, so let’s skip the foreplay and get down to brass tacks. You’re officially on the hot seat.
freedom costs a buck o’ five. Moving on: Are you sure you’re not a secret Muslim looking to undermine America’s Christian heritage?
Days Bobby Jindal has ignored our concerns:
Burns: Enough with the diversity spiel. Our president is rumored to be a Muslim and to be from Kenya, for Allah’s sake. What more “diversity” do you think we really need? Besides, the Tea Party movement contains all the true diversity this country needs. Bill O’Reilly is our beloved Irish Papa Bear, Sarah Palin is our sexy Alaskan Mama Bear who can see Russia from her house, and Glenn Beck is our alcoholic and overly emotional uncle from the planet Inept-tune. So you can take your “diversity” shtick and shove it right up your Brazilian bikini-waxed ass.
The Daily Reveille Sarah Lawson
America is, a “melting pot.” Or maybe it’s more like a tossed salad, where you have a multitude of different flavors scattered all over the plate, making a nutritious whole. It surprises me that you don’t want to add a Brazilian bikini-waxed ass to that plate, since this kind of image is exactly what figures like your Tea Party family can seize better from Latina American beMarcelo Vieira cultures, sides the coffee Columnist you drink every morning at Starbucks.
Jindal Count
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Quote of the Day “A child miseducated is a child lost.”
John F. Kennedy 35th U.S. President May 29, 1917 — Nov. 22, 1963