Try not to be so obtuse. The problem with the economy today was the Carter and later the Clinton administrations coming up with the nice-sounding theme “Affordable Housing for All” and then DEMANDING, under penalty of law, that lenders make housing loans available to just about anyone who applied–regardless of their income or ability to eventually repay the loan, as long as the money was used to buy a house. That artificially inflated housing prices because demand for houses went up. (I suppose you’ve heard of the law of supply and demand?) Banks did so, even though somewhat reluctantly, because they were told by Congressional Democrats like Chris Dodd and Barney Frank that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would buy up those “sub-prime” mortgages, thus reducing their risk. Of course, Fannie and Freddie eventually were swamped with worthless mortgages and would have gone under if not for a Democrat Congress bailing them out, but by then worthless mortgages were EVERYWHERE and lending institutions started to fall like ninepins…along with the speculators who’d invested in boxes of the things. It wasn’t “greedy banks,” that caused this mess. It was idiot Democrats who, as usual, never stopped to consider the consequences of what they were doing–solely to garner support for their own re-elections and without any thought for the people they were purporting to “help.”

You should ask her if the subsidizing of the underclass in Mexico by us (billions sent back over the border from illegal workers here) is going to make their plight better or worse? How can maintaining a rigid class based system of corruption coupled with drug lords taking advantage ever get better if the lowest on the totem pole continue ‘getting by’ on our subsidy? If the Mexican government ever had to actually face all those people on the internal reality, they might actually have to consider how to at least let them make a living, lest they revolt.

Those supporting illegals here damn the poor there.

This is a movie about border issues primarily focused on security and to immigration policies by association. It is not about Iraq, or the housing crash, or oil, or Darfur. The issue affects the policymakers on both sides of the aisle. Its like chastising someone telling the story of the Titanic because they didn’t bother to mention the Lusitania.

AND if you happen to take the time to watch the film, it actually DOES accuse the Administration of allocating funds that would have been better used to protect our borders, and send them and our resources off to Iraq. So, really, your accusations are ill-informed and hollow. You seem to assume that because this is on a conservative blogsite that the director absolves the sins of Republicans. Obviously both parties make mistakes — and both parties have made BIG mistakes in the history of this young country. And the border is one where they BOTH continue to make huge mistakes.

Now — to your point about whining when Chris made the movie for his kids. He did. That’s what inspired him. However, making a film for the sake of making a film is nonsense. Only liberal arts BFA candidates make art for the sake of art. Art has no meaning unless it is seen by others, and affects others. This is especially important when that piece of art can affect national policy. How would Chris help his children? And his children’ children? Try and get the country to change policy. So, how do you do that, you may ask, Mr Blifil? You probably know the answer. You have quite a vocabulary. But, I’ll tell you, just for the sake of telling you. You need to have A LOT of people express their voice on an issue — then, MAYBE, the politicians will listen. What better way to get your message, your art (and yes, film, and this film, is a piece of art — by definition), your voice…how do you get it out to the most people? uhhh… Hollywood? So, Hollywood’s infrastructure to easily broadcast to a mass audience is closed off to Chris — why? because he, and the film, are viewed as conservative. The easiest way to affect a nation, and hence affect policy, and therefore help his children — has been stripped away.

Yes — perhaps there are other methods. But the most reasonable and effective one is gone… I’d be bitching too. And you know what? In the same situation? So would you….

Watch the film before speaking. Not a huge expectation.

There are genuinely bad people in this world that do genuinely bad things, knowing they are going to cause harm to others. For them, perhaps “rape trees” may still be too harsh.

Even my wife’s parents – liberals to the core – think that the border needs even stricter controls than have been in place for the last decade or so in El Paso (since the stricter controls went into effect, El Paso’s crime rate has plummeted) or that the border should be closed entirely.

As for my position on the topic, I like to quote Father Theodore Hesburgh (another died-in-the-wool liberal), president emeritus of the University of Notre Dame: “We must close the door of illegal immigration so that we may keep the door of legal immigration open.”

There are plenty of coulda, woulda, shoulda’s in nearly every government decision. Casting the majority of blame on any one party or person, doesn’t really do justice to the complexity of the issues, or what’s needed to solve them.

I actually have done some reading on this subject, but allow me to participate in some public humiliation of my own. Those financial firms were forced by Democrats (starting with Carter right on through to Clinton) to make those loans, so nice try at trying to blame the financial meltdown on the Republicans, but the facts show otherwise. And subprime borrowers are partly to blame. Anyone with half a brain in their head knows when they sign a loan whether they can pay it back or not, so you’ll have a hard time convincing me that the majority of those borrowers got punked by their banks. Get off the Kool-Aid IV drip, and do some reading of your own on the subject. Facts are stubborn things.