In answer to Jay DelDotto’s letter to the editor on June 21, I think it would be best to first point out the problems the right has talking to the left.
The right seems to have learned well from their president how to debate. First, and most importantly, a Trump disciple makes up a good name to label and belittle the subject — in this case, “socialist lefties.” Second, a Trump disciple will state the left’s positions for them. According to the right, the left is for “open borders,” flaunting of laws and general chaos. Not true. Third, a Trump disciple will inflate the urgency and impact of issues — like the trouble in River City ploy in “The Music Man.”
The fact is (and Barack Obama was always pointing it out) that the left and the right are truly much closer on most issues than the rhetoric seems to indicate. We on the left are not for open borders. In fact, the previous administration set new records for providing resources at the U.S.-Mexico border and for interdiction of illegal crossings.
Yes, under the prior administration, children were separated at the border from either criminal/dangerous parents or from people posing as parents. Children were not separated from parents simply for the action of crossing the border in search of asylum or a better life.
Most of the rest of Jay’s letter is ranting against illegal immigrants — not illegal immigration. Yes, illegal immigrants steal the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and the ground we walk on — but, like all the rest of us, illegal immigrants are people who contribute, overall much more than they take.
The only differences between the right and left are the means of achieving our common goals. In short, most issues are complex. The right typically likes to oversimplify and take harsh stances. Putting up a wall will not solve illegal crossings. Jailing parents and confiscating their children is not moral or constitutional. We don’t have a border wall with Canada — let’s find a way to create that kind of border. There is need for hard work and intelligent solutions. We are not at war, we are working on a problem together.
Duane Mooring
Castaic
