What Dave Loves: Part II (Television)

Dear Readers,

It's round two of "What Dave Loves." I've jazzed it up a bit by adding a neat-o banner at the top of these special edition blogs to give it some pizazz. This edition of "What Dave Loves" will be focused on my favorite television shows! This one took my enormous brain quite a bit longer to categorize because I truly love them all. Well, here it goes. If you don't like my choices, follow the following steps in order:

1. Stand up and walk towards the front door.
2. Remove all clothing, including underwear. *NOTE* If you are a female on her period, leave the underwear on.
3. Walk outside, fully nude, and continue walking until you are arrested by an officer of the law.

My favorite Television shows:
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10."Grey's Anatomy"- I have no problem putting this on my list because I have been watching 'Grey's' since it first starting airing. With the vast amount of doctor dramas, it is clear after watching a few episodes why this drama is unique and can provide season after season of good TV.
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9. "Weeds"- This is one of two Showtime series' that have made my list. It is hard for me to get into shows that are aired on subscription television channels because I refuse to buy them. I'm not going to say I watch episodes illegally online, instead I will say that I take advantage of websites that illegally post the episodes (BOOM...suck it lawsuits). I like weeds because it is not your average "stoner" series; it is a great story of a woman who took an unorthodox approach to maintaining her expensive life after the death of her wealthy husband.
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8. "SNL"- If you have not watched at least one episode of SNL, you are probably an illegal immigrant or a person who supports the Taliban. There is something to be said about a TV series running longer than my life and is still hilarious. My favorite part of the SNL following is that every five or so years there are people who claim that SNL isn't funny anymore since "insert name here" left. I think this is funny because even when Will Farrell was on it, people were saying that the show has lost its funniness; however now that he's off the show he is seen as one of the greatest skit comedians to ever grace his presence on the show. On a side note, I'm not feeling well...I think I have a fever. Anyone have any ideas of a prescription I could take?
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7. "House MD"- I didn't start getting into this series until early last summer and I have definitely made up for lost time. Like I said earlier, there are no shortage of medical shows out there, but I must say that House takes the cake. Between Greggory House's addiction to Vicodin and the never ending mystery diagnoses in every episode, House's storyline never misses a beat. On a side note (I LOVE SIDE NOTES), for the first month watching House, I was convinced that the character playing Greggory House was the same guy who played Stewart in MadTV. Maybe I'm wrong:

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6. "COPS"- What is better than seeing the scum of the Earth getting tackled, tazed, and arrested in front of your TV? Think about it, you see Police Officers all over the place and you may have had interactions with them from time-to-time, but watching this really gives you an in depth image of what they have to deal with daily. Next time you wonder why an officer is on guard when you get pulled over, think about this show.
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5. "The Office"- A BIG thank you goes out to my buddy, Kevin Perry, for introducing me to the mayhem that is this series. We've all seen documentaries where they take you behind the scenes of a company, but The Office takes this idea, magnifies it into a comedy, and does it brilliantly. I'm interested to see where this mocumentary will go after Steve Carell leaves!
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4. "Dexter"- Brilliant. One word describes this Showtime TV series. Again, I make great use of websites illegally providing episodes to enjoy it and I have no problem morally doing so. After the first episode, I was hooked. What makes Dexter intriguing is the fact that Dexter is an "average" acting person working for law enforcement who commits murders in a vigilante style in order to control his mental obsession with killing. In the wake of the second season, there have been reports of Americans inspired by him and replicating his murders, which is degrading the integrity of the program. It is no lie that everything depicted in the drama is easily relateable and it seems to show a step-by-step guide on getting away with murder, but it is JUST A TV SHOW! Get a grip.
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3. "Law and Order"- "In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the police who investigate crime and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders. These are their stories." What a classic! This past summer, my roommate and I literally watched Law and Order and Law and Order: SVU non-stop. I believe we counted 45 episodes in a row throughout a few weeks that were not repeats! I don't have much more to say about it other than am addicted to it and will never stop watching as long as it is still syndicated on the 4,000 networks it already is on.
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2. "Family Guy"- When Family Guy first aired, it wasn't the hit it was today; in fact, many Simpsons fans pooped their pants, hit their wives, and yelled at FOX for the seemingly similar program they were creating. Even with the multiple cancellations, Family Guy hasn't missed a beat. What makes them different than The Simpsons is their cut-a-way scenes showing hilarious and relevant material that makes Family Guy unique. What I love is that creator, Seth MacFarlane, never sees a limit to his humor. Activists for certain groups have hated on the show for years, but the reason why FOX sticks with Family Guy is because the show brings in HUGE numbers, and more importantly, they don't make fun of just ONE group; they make jokes about every stereotype that the World has come up with. Keep going, Seth, and please please please keep making Meg feel like she has nothing going for her.
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1. "How I Met Your Mother"- Biiiiiiig surprise that I would pick HIMYM as my number one choice, right? The show follows Ted as he tells his children the story of how he met their mother. Seems pretty boring right? It is not and if you don't believe me, watch the damn show and then talk to me. If you know me at all, you know that I watch this show religiously and have even adopted a few of their "isms" to my every day life. For instance, my roommates and I have slap bets. What is a slap bet, you ask? Basically, you make a bet about something and the winner gets to slap the loser in the face at ANY TIME. Brilliant. There is so much more I could write about it, but I think I will end up writing an entire post about the God-like qualities of the show at a later date.

This concludes another edition of "What Dave Loves." I must say that categorizing these things are not easy at all; In fact, I'd like to provide some honorable mentions below:
1: The Colbert Report
2: The Daily Show
3: Sports Center
4: Talk Sex with Sue
5: Campus PD

Goodnight, Readers!

What Dave Loves: Part I (Movies)

Dear Readers,

I am launching my new series "What Dave Loves" which, over the next 2 weeks, will give you an idea of everything I love in the world. I know you don't care but I'm going to do it anyways because I do what I want. To kick it off, I'm going to start with my favorite movies of all time.

Side note:
If you spell it "favourite," I sincerely don't want you to continue
reading. I don't want your eyes polluting my BLOG. Seriously...Stop reading.

I realize there are amazing movies that didn't make my list; I just put together a list of movies I never get tired of watching. It is a tough determination due to the vast genres there are but I'm just going to make one comprehensive list for your reading pleasure.

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10. "O"- Lets kick this list with a movie you have probably never seen. I come to this conclusion based on the many times I get blank looks when I ask a person, "Have you ever seen the movie, 'O'?" The movie is a modern twist on Shakespeare's, Othello, which is set in a high school and centered around basketball player Odin. It is all about jealousy, love, and betrayal-all the workings of a great movie. The ending makes me tear up every time and I highly encourage that you check it out.
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9. "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington"- Yet another movie I'm sure you have never heard of or will care to watch after reading this. I first came across this movie in my 12th grade Participation in Government class when the topic of discussion was government corruption. The movie is a Jimmy Stewart classic that follows a freshman, naive man that is appointed to fill a vacancy in the US Senate. He is bullied by a fellow Senator to vote "Yes" on a bill that is corrupt and filled with earmarks that hurt the very land he is from. I believe our country would benefit from a mandatory screening to all elected officials in the Unites States.
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8. "American Beauty"- Ahhh, I remember this was the first movie I watched as a young adult that had nudity (my parents were strict about the movies I watched-haha). Besides the two topless scenes, I must say that there are some extreme elements of reality that make it easy to relate to. For instance, we all know the creepy guy that video tapes everything, we all know the closet homosexual that portrays an image of homophobia, and we all know the school-aged girl who had a crush on a dad. I also have another theory as to why "American Beauty" is great: Anything that is referenced in "Family Guy" must be great (see below).


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7. "Full Metal Jacket"- I absolutely love movies about the military and nothing captures the raw reality of basic training like Full Metal Jacket does. Of course there are a lot of dramatics used to enhance the pleasure of the viewers, but this movie is easily Stanley Kubrick's best. FACT: I once watched this movie 4 times in one weekend because it was played over and over on AMC.
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6. "Fight Club"- In my opinion, this was one of the smartest films ever written. The multiple personalities of Tyler (which you don't realize until the end) that force him to create a gang of Fight Club members that carry out "Project Mayhem" in the most amazing of fashions. Edward Norton, who plays Tyler, successfully found a way to vent male aggression. Who wants to start a fight cub?
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5. "Top Gun"- I have expressed in previous BLOGS about how I cannot stand when people make assumptions that Top Gun has homosexual tendencies. I have compiled a comprehensive analysis of around twelve reasons why it's not-I will not post it on here because it it horrifyingly offensive to at least 2 races, the female gender, and the GLTB community. Off of that topic, Top Gun is an amazing story of friendship and is a non-stop thriller that I can watch over and over again.
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4. "The Godfather Trilogy"- I have added the entire trilogy to this because while I think Part I is the best, followed by Part III, and finally Part II, I have to concede that they all wouldn't be as good if they didn't have the entire trilogy to back it up. My favorite theme of the movie is family; as you know I'm a family man and I can respect the kind loyalty, no matter the level of felonies being committed, that the Corleone family has as they fight their rightful place as the top mafia family.
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3. "Casino"- The top three were the hardest to position because they are the three best movies ever made. If you dare to disagree, I'll strangle you. The first time I saw Casino, admittedly, I hated it. Mind you, I was ten years old and I didn't know what the hell was going on. The next time I watched it, I was a fourteen year old home sick from school and I have been hooked ever since. The plot is simple, a mob oriented man, played by Robert De Niro, is given a casino to manage (without the proper permits) and funnels money back to his bosses. He deals with a drug addicted wife, a best friend who sleeps with said wife, and the gaming commission hammering down on his illegal activities all while maintaining his Robert De Niro bad assness (not a word).
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2. "Saving Private Ryan"- Full Metal Jacket was mentioned earlier, but I have to say that it doesn't even deserve to be on the same list as SPR. Tom Hanks plays his role as a Captain in the Army, tasked out to find Pvt. James Francis Ryan who had all his brothers KIA after the drop into Normandy, like the pro he is. His laid back demeanor is a testament to his troop's loyalty as they follow him into a mission none of them ever wanted to take part in. I need to watch this again, it's been too long.
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1. "The Shawshank Redemption"- This is the one movie I will watch over and over again until my eyes bleed from the lack of sleep and my body decomposes due to lack of nutrition. Where do I even begin? Let me quote IMDb's description: "Two imprisoned men bond over a number of years, finding solace and eventual redemption through acts of common decency." This is a perfect representation of what this film is all about. Get past the fact that most of the other men in the prison were guilty of a crime; "acts of common decency" is where it's at. Think about the friendship that Andy and Red developed throughout the movie and think about the friendship you have with your best friend. Yeah, you suck. "Get busy living, or get busy dying."

That wraps up the first edition of "What Dave Loves" so I hope you enjoyed it. If you didn't, then I offer no apologies, instead if you are a Windows user, I offer you the option of clicking the red X at the top right hand corner of your screen, if you are a Mac user, I probably don't like you anyways. But seriously, I probably don't.

Goodnight, Readers

Return

Dear Readers,

It has been a little while since my last post but I offer no apologies; in fact, I literally had nothing to write about for the last month. Some might call this a writer's block but I'm hardly a writer, so I like to call it a sabbatical. Take it or leave it, I do what I want, write when I want, about whatever I want.

An idiot at a recent campus mandated seminar sparked my writing juices yesterday. While listening to the Alpha Chi Rho member make a presentation on professionalism in the Greek Community, a member of another organization decided it would be professional to bring along her 2 year old child. I'll add that it WAS 9:30pm, prime time for someone to be able to baby sit a kid for an hour and a half.

What irritated me most wasn't the fact that she brought the kid to the seminar (because I LOVE kids and I usually would never rant about them), it was the fact that half way through, she lets the tot walk around the room, creating a distraction and taking attention away from the presenter.

Being the guy who always finds the need to see the humor in things, I must add that the only thing that made up for the wandering of the child was when he walked up to one of my brothers, Eric Streebel, and stood in front of him staring, as if he was in awe of what was in front of him. Below is a dramatic recreation of what transpired:


As humorous as this is, let's get to my point: It is assumed once you get out of High School and make the decision to enter higher education that you have a certain amount of common sense. With that being said, I firmly believe that my 15 year old cousin would know not to bring a child into a professional environment. I might be a little harsh on my criticism because I'm not aware of the circumstances behind it, but the fact that she let the little guy walk around by himself during the lecture shown her immaturity as a parent and her lack of discipline in a professional environment.

I'll close with a few No-No's that come with parenting, that I have found through my years of watching parents:

1) Don't put your kid on a leash: Are you kidding me, America? hold your child's hand when you're walking around the mall. He's not an animal.
2) When your kid cries, don't yell: Nothing pissed me off more than last week when I saw a child fall on the ground and start crying, only to have his mom say, "Shut up, you're fine."
3) Movie theater's aren't for kids: The only time it is OK is when it's a movie made for kid's. They aren't going to have a good time watching The Hangover: 2, and we will all hear about it.
4) If they mess up, hold them accountable: This is more for the school aged kids. If your child punches out another kid, don't go to the school administration and tell them how to do their job; if they do something wrong, punish them.
5) Don't bring them to a professional environment. Period.

I'm not a parent, so these are only observations of mine throughout my wise years wandering Earth. The list is only five deep so you can see I'm not ready to be a parent but at least when I do, I'll use common sense to raise the little baby PiKapp.

That's it. Not the best Blog, but I'm back and get ready for some good ones.

Good night, Readers

Christmas Memories

Dear Readers,

Christmas Day is over. We, Americans, have been preparing for this one day since October, all for it to be over in one day and sometimes in less than a half hour. Don't worry your pretty little face, though, because the next 2 weeks marks what I like to call "Post Christmas Bliss" which consists of the inevitable weekends of family parties. These extravaganzas are due in large part to divorced families, travel arrangements, or other circumstances and have made the Holiday season drag on just a little longer which, in my opinion, makes maxing out my Mastercard just a little more justified. Just a little.

Tonight, I find myself thinking back to a time where Christmas was more exciting. Come on, I know you all have that feeling where you think to when you were little, when Santa was real, and falling asleep was a delight on the 24th. I, personally, have a lot of great memories from my Christmas past which is due in large part to my Mom's over-the-top Christmas Spirit.

Around the Thanksgiving time, my Dad would drag the decorations out of the garage and painstakingly check each bulb for proper wattage. I'll take this moment to say that if my Mom wasn't so genuinely excited about the lights, my Dad would NEVER even put a single bulb up. Anyone who has ever driven down Maple Ridge Road during the month of December can attest to the enormity of our decorations. With the exception to this year (house remodeling), we have had upwards of 25 light-up reindeer piercing the eyes of motorists in our front yard. The layout is simple: Santa and his sleigh being the focal point of the lawn with his 9 reindeer towing, and the other 16 reindeer were "in training" for future voyages.

On Christmas Eve, my Mom's side of the family would come over to play games, eat food, and "enjoy" each others company. At the conclusion of the night, we could all open one gift from the Grandparents which, for my brother and I, consisted of the second half of our birthday gift (both December babies). Once they all left, my sister and I would go to sleep and my brother would go back to Albion where his Mom lived.

The morning is where the magic was, my friends. I know the next few lines are going to leave you saying, "seriously, Dave? You didn't pick up on this after 6+ years?" but I am going to risk the laughs and tell it anyway. My Dad, being a police officer, naturally has access to handcuffs. For most of my early childhood, I would wake up to find one handcuff securely fastened to a chair or something, and the other open, laying on the floor. Year, after year, my Dad would look at it in disgust and say, "Ugh, he got out again. I thought this was the year." It got to the point where, on Christmas Eve, I would watch dad lay out his pepper-spray, handcuffs, and badge to prepare for his hostile take down. Sure, now it seems kind-of selfish that I wanted my beloved Santa to be captured, but come on, what kid doesn't want to see Santa at his doorway? Exactly.

This year, Christmas was still exciting, though. As I have gotten older, spending time with my family has been the best part of the Holidays. In fact, this year my parents made an addition onto our house and my Grandma has her own mini-apartment right in our house. My Mom had a great idea to surprise her on Christmas morning. We decided to make her a stocking and stuff it with sugar free candy and other goodies to make her smile. The plan was to wait until midnight, sneak into her side of the house, and leave her stocking-complete with a letter from Santa-on her table so she would see it in the morning. At midnight on the dot, Mom came down to my cave of a room and told me it was time to initiate "Operation Christmas Cheer." I did a quick cough outside of the door to make sure I didn't have a coughing fit before entering, and slowly opened the sliding wooden door that led to her side. With stealth comparable to the Army Special Forces, I entered the dark abyss and felt around for her table. This mission didn't come without complications, though; I ran into her dining room chair and made a loud noise. Of course, I laughed and made it worse, but Grandma sleeps in a mini coma, so I knew it would still be a successful militaristic mission. Sure enough, in the morning, her cute voice rattled through our house. "Santa came," she said with a childish gleam. "The note says I made the nice list!"

Family is what it's all about.

I sincerely hope that you had a great Holiday Season. I am proud to say I have friends who celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa, and I hope, regardless of your religion, that you have enjoyed time with your family and loved ones. Just remember to keep them close because you never know what may happen down the road. Make memorable experiences now, so you can smile and laugh about them later.

Goodnight Readers,

A few more gripes

Dear Readers,

It seems like every day I come across some things that irritate me and I don't express them enough to you, my beautiful/handsome/sexy reader. It's not that there's not anything substantial to write about these days, I mean DADT is about to be repealed, there was a plane crash today, Israel and Turkey are mending their recent rift, and Snookie and The Situation made an appearance on VH1; I just think there are some less substantial things to be thinking about on this day, the five day eve of my twenty first birthday.

Gripe 1: Napkins
Some form of a napkin has been used to wipe away tears, food, and fecal matter from the faces and hands of humans for centuries. From handkerchief to the paper napkin enjoyed by us daily, there are a cornucopia of different forms of them readily available for our cleaning pleasure. My issue is the design on them. Just sit back and remember the last time you cared about the pink flowers that were obviously hand drawn on your napkin. If you can honestly say, with the exception of holiday gatherings (that was for you, mom), that you buy napkins specifically for the design, then I sincerely dislike you to a point where you're going to have to make some significant strides to improve our tarnished relationship.

Gripe 2: Disrespect
I'm going to start this one by stating a positive: every student at SUNY Brockport is ridiculously good about holding the door for you. It is almost sick. I can be 7 strides away and the nice girl with the Vera Bradley purse will hold the door so I don't have to expend my precious energy opening the door again. Now for the negative: Is it so hard to say "Hi" back? When I'm walking by myself and another person is walking towards me about to pass inches from me, I am going to say hi or "hey how's it going?" At least fifty percent of the time I get eye contact but not even a head nod acknowledging my existence back. Come on, people, sleep well knowing you dodged a hello.

Gripe 3: More Disrespect
Yep, more disrespect will be discussed now because I think this one deserves its own paragraph. Stop being disrespectful towards police officers. It is ridiculous to listen to someone complain about getting a speeding ticket. I understand that NO ONE wants to get a citation of any form, but to follow up your displeasure with "he has nothing else to do" or "the cop was an asshole" is just asinine. Are there some sworn police officers who aren't nice to deal with or inquire about things that you have nothing to do with? Yes, absolutely, but you have to think about the person wearing the uniform for a second; this cop deals with nine people who are rude and disrespectful for every ten people they talk to. I believe that police officers deserve to be given the same respect and dignity that we give to US troops.

Gripe 4: People who hate Top Gun
This one is short, if you hate Top Gun because you think the underlying meaning is that Maverick and Goose had a subtle homosexual relationship, you're an idiot. It is a piece of cinematic gold!

Gripe 5: Peanut M&M's
If you like peanut M&M's more than regular M&M's you need to lay low because you are going to be recruited by a cult that is planning to overtake the government and make America a communist nation. Also, come on they are awful! I love peanuts and I obviously love M&M's but nothing that delicious should ever be altered in any way and if you disagree then you are one step away from the girl who chose to eat the dried raisins for dessert instead of the apple crisp.

Gripe 6: Spiders
Can't we just get rid of them all? They are the creepiest insect on the planet and they need to go. For all of you Environmental Science junkies, you're saying to yourself (or out loud), "But Dave, Spiders help manage insect populations by eating lots of insects and medical research using spider venom has yielded several chemicals that may be useful to control or treat diseases in human!" Well, my good friend who has researched "positives of spiders" on Google, in my professional opinion, we can find better ways to manage the insect populations, and we will use stem cell research to produce artificial venom. Quick thought: do spiders have stem cells? Look it up, I won't.

That's all the gripes I have for you today. I'm off to bed to enjoy dreams of napkins, M&Ms, and a clean living-room (it is gross in my house right now). Sleep well and buy me M&Ms for my 21st birthday.

In the news

Dear Readers,

I fell asleep at around midnight but woke up randomly and I cannot seem to get to sleep. I feel like an overdue blog is in order.

Life changes are in the works left and right, my friends. I have chosen to take my life in a different direction that should bring me more out of my life but still provide me with the necessities of life. The details on these changes will be explained in the future because I wouldn't want to jinx the direction my luck is going in.

As the insomnia was charging through my body like Heroine shoots through Courtney Love's, I surfed the interweb on a search for some news.

First stop: CNN, where one of the top stories is "Alcoholic Whipped cream selling fast." This is obviously something that would make the news during the recent debate over the legality of Four Loko. The very thought of delicious whipped cream being mixed with "the equivalent of 3 beers" makes my lips tingle with excitement.

Second stop: Fox News, where a story reads, "Armed Wis. Student Frees Hostages, Shoots Self." Apparently, a 15 year old got pissed about his terrible life and decided he wanted to scar an entire school district for life. You can put as many "experts" on Nancy Grace and have them explain the reasoning behind school shootings, but for someone to actually acquire the necessary weapons-not to mention, BALLS- to pull a stunt like this, there is something seriously wrong with the upbringing of this demented soul.

Third stop: MSNBC, where their top story says, "U.S. looks for way to prosecute over leaks." All I can say about this is, why wouldn't the U.S. charge someone for leaking these documents? It is simple, people, national security is our top priority. Our economy is going to keep going up and down, our kids are going to keep getting fatter and fatter, but we have a security problem in our country that goes beyond border protection. To have a snot nosed person leak sensitive documents about what goes on in the inter-workings of the department that keeps us safe every day, makes me physically ill. Whomever keeps leaking these items to Wiki Leaks has an obvious financial gain or has been wronged by our government in one way or another; I just hope we figure it out and make him/her pay.

I popped some Advil PM about a half hour ago and it is starting to kick in, so I'm going to wrap it up. I'll leave you with these two quotes:

"The Constitution only guarantees the American people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself."
-Benjamin Franklin

"Even if happiness forgets you a little bit, never completely forget about it."
-Jacques Prévert

Goodnight, readers. Next blog, which is in the works, will be an epic one.

Border Wars

Dear Readers,

I'm excited to say that my Prop 19 BLOG got an insane amount of views from people from across the globe. In fact, there were two people from Denmark, ten people from England, three people from Iraq (I assume they were service members), and five people from Canada. I'm excited to see that something I write can actually get views outside from my facebook friends. Also, I was the "Featured Post" on Blogger.com for a solid fifteen minutes!

Now that my ego is inflamed, I have to say that I am aware of my flawed arguments concerning pot legalization, but it was my opinion and I stand by what I wrote. I feel like the next thing I will discuss on my quest to write about something serious at least once a week, is the war on border protection.

It is no secret to those who are close to me that my views on border protection and illegal immigration are very strong. I'll start off by just putting it out there that I strongly disagree with any form of illegal immigration regardless of the reason and I am very much in favor of a strong protection at all our borders and ports of entry.

Something I have learned in the last few years is that contrary to what most Americans believe, the Founding Fathers were skeptical of immigration. In fact, they had no objection to bringing in immigrants to specialize in jobs that Americans weren't specialized in. But, according to Thomas E. Woods, Jr., they were "convinced that mass immigration would bring social turmoil and political confusion in its wake."

“Suppose 20 millions of republican Americans thrown all of a sudden into France, what would be the condition of that kingdom?” Jefferson asked. “If it would be more turbulent, less happy, less strong, we may believe that the addition of half a million of foreigners to our present numbers would produce a similar effect here.” Alexander Hamilton was even more blunt about it. Again, I quote a piece from Woods, Jr., who found a text from Hamilton that said, the safety of a republic, according to him, depended “essentially on the energy of a common national sentiment, on a uniformity of principles and habits, on the exemption of the citizens from foreign bias and prejudice, and on that love of country which will almost invariably be found to be closely connected with birth, education and family.”

With this said, I will point out the arguments of the opposition. While I disagree with the notion that Americans should open their arms to endless immigrants with no criminal record and no trafficking motivations, I agree strongly that immigrants from other countries provide services to our country that our born Americans wouldn't do.

I have a big problem with specifically the border war on the Mexican-U.S. border. There was once a point, not so long ago, that Americans would cross the border to shop and ultimately stimulate the economy, but in the last twenty years Americans won't take the risk because of the dangerous drug cartels that have basically taken over the government. With that said, there are the people who just want to come to the country to provide for their families, but even the most innocent have the potential to have been corrupted by the drug, human, or organ trafficking that is killing our country.

In my opinion, I feel as though the increased border protection is more than neccessary to keeping our country's unstable economy in a decent state. My favorite thing to point out is that illegal immigrants do nothing for our economy except the few dollars that they put back in for food, clothes, etc. Most illegal immigrants send back upwards of 90% of the pay checks they receive from their low paying-and most of the time bad working conditions-jobs back to their loved ones back in Mexico. What happens when they get hurt? First off, a lot of the time they don't get the medical treatment they need in fear of deportation, but when it is so bad that they seek medical assistance, they go to our medical facilities. Our hospital systems in America are set up to be compassionate, and they give the immigrants medical treatment with government programs that are supposed to help out TAXPAYING Americans. This is a problem because with the "illegal" stamped on them, they never pay a dime in taxes that put these programs into work.

Readers, think what you want. Obviously I have a strong view on this and I hope it doesn't make you think less of me, or even more of me because this is a debate that has Americans at arms about. Keep your mind open, be educated about it, and try to see it from all angles. I've enjoyed writing this post, and I hope my lack of joking in this one doesn't turn you off from future posts. I promise I will have a good mix of serious and fun posts!

On a side note, do something crazy from the hours of 1:00am to 2:00am, because once 2:00am hits, you get to do that entire hour over again. One would argue that whatever you did during the first hour never happened.

Goodnight,

I quoted a text in the beginning from:
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=21626