Three years ago, when Dan and I were returning from our 25th Anniversary cruise, we had a few over-limit items to declare upon our wee-hours arrival to Miami airport.  It took the customs agent quite a while to figure out what we owed for which purchase (apparently there being different customs taxes for various types of purchases from various countries).  The agent had to look up what we owed in a "Pep-Boys" style of loose leaf books.

As is my habit during such situations, I made a small joke.  I said something like, "At least we're spending all this time to help pay your salary."  The agent looked at me with a completely blank face and said, "Oh, no ma'am.  Your duty payment goes to Washington.  We're paid by the Customs Agency."

I'm not sure if my equally blank look conveyed to him on any level that the Customs Department is funded by "Washington."  I hope the coin has had a chance to drop in the last three years.

Probably not if he's listening to Rush.  I just got home from a scan and was listening to Senor Limbaugh on my way.  He was taking a call from a man who is incensed over the idea that if we have "public health care" (something that's not really on the table right now, but we'll let that pass), then someone else will decided which services you can receive in terms of treatment.

Gasp!  As if his insurance company doesn't do so now?

Rush egged this guy on with horror stories loosely connected to his diatribe of the day which is limiting bonuses for senior management where their companies have accepted bailout monies.  Imagine, said Rush, what would happen if the government started deciding how much to pay police or firemen?  What happenes if government were suddenly to decide which crimes to prosecute and which to let go.

Hello?  The government does decide how much to pay these folks.  The adminstrative arms of these branches of local government do decide how to prosecute fire protection, suppression, which crimes to focus on and which they don't have the manpower to fight despite the law.

Sheesh.  A little intellectual integrity would be nice...a sort of through line of reasoning.

Now I'm going to go get disconnected from my chemo.  I'll have to watch some good ol' trash tv to get the Rush taste out of my brain.

What a great morning for gardening...and that's what I did.  I am happy to report that my pots in the front are all respectably trimmed back and replanted as need be.

I treat myself to music and (to the dismay of neighbors) off-key singing during gardening.  One of this morning's songs, World by Five for Fighting, had me singing especially loud. The key lyric in the refrain is:

"What kind of world do you want?"  The song invites you to imagine what you might do if you could start it "at the start" and "build a masterpiece."

So that's today's question.  What kind of world do you want?

(Be careful what you wish for...history starts now.)

Tim Rutten wrote an interesting op-ed in the LA Times today about what he called the Obama administration's immigration policies.  I have to quibble a bit with his labelling.  It's actually Bush administration policies being enforced (as they are still the law of the land) by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

Rutten's main beef seems to be that rather than deporting improperly documented workers at a local LA garment maker, ICE required the company to fire the workers.  I find his position interesting because it seems to be inconsistent with his liberal positions on immigration reform (in the same op-ed piece).

(If the investigation had concluded under Bush, the undocumented workers would have been deported in addition to losing their jobs...somehow that's "better" to Rutten than the milder penalty.)

I was also interested on my own reaction to the article.  In my former life with a Food Pantry, we regularly provided assistance to folks who were likely undocumented workers.  We also provided the same food to folks who were clearly American citizens.  My friend, Pat's explanation was always the one that convinced me.  She said when she had someone question our policies, she offered to line up the children we helped feed and then she would allow the offended party to choose which ones would go hungry.

I would still do the same thing at the Pantry.  I am still in favor of a more reasonable policy for immigration and for seasonal workers/non-American workers.  And I don't agree at all with Rutten or the folks he quotes that this situation is a horror.  If anything, ICE chose the middle road.  Deportation would have been worse for those families affected.

Conservatives and antii-immigration folks will no doubt be upset that there weren't any deportations.  But will they agree that it's better for these folks to be employed, paying taxes, buying goods and services than to be jobless and still here?

Liberal and pro-immigration forces are clearly outraged that prosecution of this case continued after Obama took over as President...but are they willing to do what it takes to get the law changed to match their views...or are they just content to carp about "the Administration?"

And me?  I wonder how many of our 9.8% unemployed citizens will be applying for the 1,800 garment worker positions that are now open.