To the editor:
In his opinion piece, Victor Davis Hanson presents a series of racist views masquerading as realism, because being openly racist is not acceptable. While the title of his piece may be defensible, its contents are not. (“Why borders matter,” Opinion, July 31)
His argument boiled down to “Western civilization and ways are the best ways, and we have to keep all the dirty brown people away from it because they will pollute our pure civilization and bring with them all of the problems that make their homes unlivable.” This was not the case for 19th century Irish, German, or Italian immigrants as Anglo and Protestant Americans once feared, and it is not the case today.
Still he claims that “political correctness” (read: being expected to not be racist) has changed the language we use to describe migration for the worse, becoming more “nebulous,” as he says, turning “illegal alien” into “undocumented immigrant,” even though the only change in the term has been to remove its dehumanization. “Undocumented immigrant” describes the same thing as “illegal alien”—that is, someone who has moved into the country without being authorized—just without adding the unnecessary layer emphasizing foreignness and criminality.
We may not be able to rid ourselves of borders anytime soon, but the reasons are not because of a need to protect “Western civilization” from those outside it joining in.
Chris Healy, Mission Viejo
Note from KBJ: Shorter Chris Healy: "If you disagree with me, you're racist." I have a question for Healy: What are the walls of a house but borders? Does he (or she) have an open-door policy for his (or her) house? If not, is he (or she) racist? If Healy is a female, I have another question: What is your skin but a border? Do you have an open-vagina policy for those who wish to enter your vagina?
