Which Came First....
Michelle Malkin has a report from Senator McCain's private meeting with Chicago area Hispanics. What caught my eye in her correspondents report was this particular quote.
I'm wondering if the Senator (and his audience) really want to go down that particular road. Because if they WERE to go down that particular road, then we need to talk to the Mexican people about who was really there "first".
I am an American of Mexican decent. As best as I know from the genealogical research that has been done this far, my Mexican ancestors were actually Mayan or of a similar native tribe. Spain (where the Spanish language comes from) were the first oppressors of the Native Mexican people....especially "my" people. So, Senator McCain, if we are to go down that particular road, then you need to talk about the Hopi Indians and the Hopi language - they were in Arizona "first"....as were the Cocopa tribe and the Halchidhoma and the Halyikwamai and the Havasupai and the Kohuana and the Maricopa and the Mohave tribes (there are many more). They were all there LONG before the Spaniards gathered that territory FOR SPAIN (not Mexico BTW). All of these tribes (if there are any of their decedents left) have more of a historical claim on the land that the Spaniards and THEIR Mexican decedents do!
Look - a refresher course in history is obviously needed here. The territories that became the states of New Mexico, Arizona, California, Colorado Nevada and Utah were PURCHASED by the United States of America for $15MILLION ($313million in 2006 dollars) under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo that was signed in 1848 to end the Mexican American War....a war that was started when MEXICO invaded the sovereign territory of Texas (in response to their declaration of independence and subsequent annexation into the United States). Nothing was "stolen" from Mexico...as a matter of fact, numerous attempts were made by the French, British AND American governments to avoid conflict and to resolve the dispute between the US and Mexico. The Mexican Government had stated that the annexation of Texas would be considered an "act of war" but the citizens of Texas had made it quite clear that they wanted to be part of the United States....not part of Mexico (remember the Alamo?) .
If we are going to use history (Spanish was spoken in Arizona before English was) Senator McCain, let's give a complete telling of that history. Yes, the Mexican influence in the Western United States was an important influence. However, this is not Mexico....it has not been part of Mexico for 160 years. It is NOW a part of the United States of America. English is now spoken here and while it is vitally important to remember where we came from (the Yucatan Peninsula in my case) it is just as important to remember where we are and where we are going. We are never going to move forward AS A WHOLE COUNTRY if we are continuing to divide ourselves up (that is yet another post for the day). The Great Seal of the United States has a phrase on it that we need to remember - E Pluribus Unum.....our of many ONE. This nation must become one again - with common laws, goals and a common language - if we are ever going to move forward as a nation.
If you really want to lead a great American resurgence Senator McCain...quit dividing us!
He said ” My state has been enriched by the Hispanic culture in Arizona.”
Then John McCain asked a question “Did you know this? I bet some of you did not know that Spanish was spoken in Arizona before English” …Loud cheers from the audience.
I'm wondering if the Senator (and his audience) really want to go down that particular road. Because if they WERE to go down that particular road, then we need to talk to the Mexican people about who was really there "first".
I am an American of Mexican decent. As best as I know from the genealogical research that has been done this far, my Mexican ancestors were actually Mayan or of a similar native tribe. Spain (where the Spanish language comes from) were the first oppressors of the Native Mexican people....especially "my" people. So, Senator McCain, if we are to go down that particular road, then you need to talk about the Hopi Indians and the Hopi language - they were in Arizona "first"....as were the Cocopa tribe and the Halchidhoma and the Halyikwamai and the Havasupai and the Kohuana and the Maricopa and the Mohave tribes (there are many more). They were all there LONG before the Spaniards gathered that territory FOR SPAIN (not Mexico BTW). All of these tribes (if there are any of their decedents left) have more of a historical claim on the land that the Spaniards and THEIR Mexican decedents do!
Look - a refresher course in history is obviously needed here. The territories that became the states of New Mexico, Arizona, California, Colorado Nevada and Utah were PURCHASED by the United States of America for $15MILLION ($313million in 2006 dollars) under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo that was signed in 1848 to end the Mexican American War....a war that was started when MEXICO invaded the sovereign territory of Texas (in response to their declaration of independence and subsequent annexation into the United States). Nothing was "stolen" from Mexico...as a matter of fact, numerous attempts were made by the French, British AND American governments to avoid conflict and to resolve the dispute between the US and Mexico. The Mexican Government had stated that the annexation of Texas would be considered an "act of war" but the citizens of Texas had made it quite clear that they wanted to be part of the United States....not part of Mexico (remember the Alamo?) .
If we are going to use history (Spanish was spoken in Arizona before English was) Senator McCain, let's give a complete telling of that history. Yes, the Mexican influence in the Western United States was an important influence. However, this is not Mexico....it has not been part of Mexico for 160 years. It is NOW a part of the United States of America. English is now spoken here and while it is vitally important to remember where we came from (the Yucatan Peninsula in my case) it is just as important to remember where we are and where we are going. We are never going to move forward AS A WHOLE COUNTRY if we are continuing to divide ourselves up (that is yet another post for the day). The Great Seal of the United States has a phrase on it that we need to remember - E Pluribus Unum.....our of many ONE. This nation must become one again - with common laws, goals and a common language - if we are ever going to move forward as a nation.
If you really want to lead a great American resurgence Senator McCain...quit dividing us!
Labels: Senator Barack Obama, Senator John McCain
posted by The Lady Logician at
1:25 PM
3 Comments:
A hearty Amen to this post. LL, keep fighting for a united and consistent voice for us conservatives.
I thoroughly enjoyed the perspective and history lesson. Thanks again!
By
tsh, at 4:49 PM
I, too, appreciate your history lesson. I don't believe that there was anything inaccurate in Senator McCain's statement -- perhaps it was incomplete. I think your perspective is that Senator McCain is promoting division when considering his public service record is uncharitable at best.
By
Anonymous, at 5:47 AM
It was VERY incomplete Anonymous and that was the entire point of the post. Sen. McCain, like every other politician is pandering for votes by telling the audience what they WANT to hear. The problem is that the audience has no sense of history other than the history that they want which is that the Western US "belongs" to Mexico.
If you know anything about history you know that the Spaniards and the Mexicans that joined them were responsible for genocide just as bad as that which Americans are accused of. Let's face it....immigration was no friend to the REAL Native Americans. We need to learn that lesson here and now.
By
The Lady Logician, at 7:53 AM
Post a Comment
<< Home