Editorials Posted on Thu, Nov. 29, 2007 10:15 PMreprint or license print email Digg it del.icio.us AIM
As France riots show, immigrants need hope
Two years after immigrant communities in France exploded in frustration and violence, the rioters are back in the streets — this time with shotguns. A police spokesman calls it “a real guerrilla war.”

The shootings, assaults and property destruction are deplorable, and President Nicolas Sarkozy has properly promised a tough response to the criminals.

But the chaotic environment should not blind him or the French public to the economic and social problems that set the stage for such spasms of violence.

There is an important lesson there for other Western countries, including the United States: If their economies rely on immigrant labor, it is in everyone’s interest that those workers and their families feel a stake in the society around them.

French leaders must do more to fight discrimination and help integrate Arab and African communities into the larger culture. Other European countries such as Germany, England and the Netherlands face similar challenges with immigrant populations.

Americans who seek to harass and isolate immigrants in the United States should take note as well. The French experience illustrates the folly of policies that leave large groups of people filled with resentment and devoid of hope.

Racist Mexican Gangs "Ethnic Cleansing" Blacks In L.A.
Latino thugs indiscriminately murder blacks regardless of gang membership, genocidal purge aligns with radical Aztlan theology

Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Monday, January 22, 2007

Racist Mexican gangs are indiscriminately targeting blacks who aren't even involved in gang culture, as part of an orchestrated ethnic cleansing program that is forcing black people to flee Los Angeles. The culprit of the carnage is the radical Neo-Nazi liberation theology known as La Raza, which calls for the extermination of all races in America besides Latinos, and is being bankrolled by some of the biggest Globalists in the U.S.

A story carried on the liberal website Alternet, charts an explosion in brutal murders of blacks by Hispanic street gangs in L.A. Far from being gang on gang violence, the Latinos are targeting innocent blacks in accordance with a concerted ethnic cleansing campaign that seeks to eradicate all blacks from Hispanic neighborhoods.

In one instance, 21-year-old Anthony Prudhomme was shot in the face with a .25-caliber semi-automatic while lying on a futon inside his apartment, slain by a Latino gang known as the Avenues as part of a racist terror campaign in which gang members earn "stripes" for each black person they kill.

In one typical case," writes journalist Brentin Mock, "Three members of the Pomona 12 attacked an African-American teenager, Kareem Williams, in his front yard in 2002. When his uncle, Roy Williams, ran to help his nephew, gang member Richard Diaz told him, "******s have no business living in Pomona because this is 12th Street territory." According to witnesses, Diaz then told the other gang members, "Pull out the gun! Shoot the ******s! Shoot the ******s!"

The fatwah against blacks began in the mid-nineties, with a 1995 LAPD report concluding that Latinos had vowed to "Eradicate black citizens from the gang neighborhood." In a follow up report on the situation in east Los Angeles, the LAPD warned that "Local gangs will attack any black person that comes into the city."

The author notes that since 1990 the African-American population of Los Angeles has halved, partly as a result of rampant illegal immigration and that there are noticeably fewer blacks walking the streets because many have been forced to relocate in fear of the racist gangs.



"The LAPD estimates there are now 22,000 Latino gang members in the city of Los Angeles alone. That's not only more than all the Crips and the Bloods; it's more than all black, Asian, and white gang members combined. Almost all of those Latino gang members in L.A. -- let alone those in other California cities -- are loyal to the Mexican Mafia. Most have been thoroughly indoctrinated with the Mexican Mafia's violent racism during stints in prison, where most gangs are racially based," writes Mock.

Mock blames the "Mexican Mafia" for ordering the campaign of ethnic cleansing from prison, as part of a turf war with the Black Guerilla family, another prison gang, but fails to pinpoint the racist creed from which the Mexican kingpins draw their inspiration - the long standing Aztlan invasion agenda.

Aztlan's goal, known as La reconquista, is to cede and take over the entirety of the southern and western states by any means necessary and impose a Communist militant dictatorship. President Bush's blanket amnesty program goes a long way to helping the extremists achieve their aim.

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Despite the fact that the majority of documented hispanics oppose illegal immigration, as do the majority of Americans, Aztlan and La Raza race hate groups have become the self-appointed voice for a separatist movement that threatens a violent overthrow of the Constitutional system and a barbaric program of ethnic cleansing. This is held up by the media as 'diversity' and to vociferously oppose it is scorned as racism.

Aztlan and Mecha groups advocate killing all whites and blacks and driving them out of the southern states by means of brutal ethnic cleansing. Flags and placards carried at marches depict white people having their heads cut off, as seen in the picture below.



Those that protest such groups are then attacked by the establishment media and labeled as racists, despite the fact that the Plan of San Diego, a rallying cry for the hispanic Klan groups, advocates total eradication of any race but hispanics.

Mecha's own slogan reads, "For the race everything. For those outside the race, nothing."

TV stations owned by rich white industrialists erect giant billboards in Los Angeles claiming the city belongs to Mexico, as seen below.



Mainstream hispanics who love America abhor the virulent racism that the Mexican klan groups embrace.

And who bankrolls these pocket radicals? Billionaire tax-exempt foundations and NGO's owned by white men. Organizations like the Ford Foundation, groups who are zealous in their quest to eliminate the middle class and destroy America, turning it into a cashless society, compact city, surveillance control grid where only two tiers of society exist - the elite and the poor slaves.

During the May immigration protests, The Aztlanwebsite carried the following statement.

"If the racist "Sensenbrenner Legislation" passes the US Senate, there is no doubt that a massive civil disobedience movement will emerge. Eventually labor union power can merge with the immigrant civil rights and "Immigrant Sanctuary" movements to enable us to either form a new political party or to do heavy duty reforming of the existing Democratic Party. The next and final steps would follow and that is to elect our own governors of all the states within Aztlan."

Here is the open call for violent separatism and the overthrow of existing state government structures.



During the immigration demonstrations, which were orchestrated by Rob Allyn of Rob Allyn & Co. who is closely tied with George W. Bush, alarming reports of illegals carrying out violent beatings began to surface. In Santa Ana California, illegal aliens swarmed around in mobs invading schools, carrying out violent beatings and in one incident a county worker had a Mexican flag plunged into his chest.

The violent protests that began on May 1 last year were characterized by throngs marching under Mexican flags, many of which were illegal aliens, as a "day without gringos."

Imagine what the reaction would be if white middle class Americans marched in their millions and called the event "a day without blacks."

The media continues to run defense for a violent militant movement that seeks nothing less than the eradication of blacks and whites through ethnic cleansing and the takeover of the southern and western states. This is a separatist junta that has over 30,000 ruthless gang members at its disposal once the call for mobilization is heard, along with millions of illegal aliens pouring across the border.



These thugs have the temerity to call Latinos, blacks and whites who are opposed to uncontrolled illegal immigration racists when it is their own La reconquista philosophy that has spawned target hits in Los Angeles as part of a virulently racist ethnic cleansing rampage. It's a bloodlust that can only spread to other cities as the realization of Aztlan is generously aided by billionaire Globalists who wish to see America balkanized, plundered and destroyed.


http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/january2007/220107mexicangangs.htm

By Amber Arnold, Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader via Gannett News Service
Mexican immigrant Mariana Diaz Acosta who works on a temporary visa for at the Grand Oaks Hotel in Branson, Mo. Seventeen of the hotel's 51 employees are temporary foreign workers, according to Grand Oaks' general manager.

Legal foreign workers caught in immigration stalemate

By Pamela Brogan, Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON — Foreign workers like software expert Vikas Chowdhry from India and Roberto Villarauz, a janitor from Mexico, abide by the nation's immigration laws.
They have skills their employers say are necessary to meet industry demands for highly skilled workers or for jobs Americans don't want.

Yet both are among hundreds of thousands of legal foreign workers, including software engineers, hotel employees, seafood processors, landscapers and vegetable pickers, who are in the U.S. temporarily but are caught in the polarizing debate over illegal immigration that casts uncertainty over their livelihood and future.

Legal foreign workers like Chowdhry and Villarauz might not get help until after next year's elections because Congress is deadlocked on any changes to the nation's immigration laws.

Congress defeated legislation this year to overhaul the immigration system, which would have extended and improved seasonal, high-tech and agriculture guest worker programs. About 575,000 legal foreign workers are currently in the U.S. under these guest worker programs, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: Congress | Mexico | Mo | Department of Homeland Security | Branson | H-1b
These temporary workers hold U.S. government-issued "H-visas" that proponents argue should be revised by Congress to help legal foreign workers and their employers.

For example, tens of thousands of seasonal workers at hotels, resorts and other small businesses could lose their jobs unless Congress renews a separate law that allows the government to issue more than the 66,000 H-2B visas it is supposed to be limited to. The exemption expired Sept. 30.

High-tech workers and their employers want improvements in the H-1B program, which has an annual cap of 65,000 visas. For the 2008 fiscal year, which began Oct. 1, the limit would drop to 58,200 unless Congress says otherwise.

Agriculture workers, growers, and farmers are pushing to streamline the H-2A visa program by supporting yet another bill that would offer legal status and possible U.S. citizenship for 1.5 million farm workers.

Four members of Roberto Villarauz's family from Veracruz, Mexico, who work at the Grand Oaks Hotel in Branson, Mo., are affected by the H-2B impasse.

"I don't want to go back to Veracruz, but I (might) have to," said Roberto Villarauz, 33, a janitor who makes $7.75 an hour.

In May, he arrived with his wife, Mayra Hernandez, and cousin, Alonso Villarauz, and Alonso's wife, Cristel Hernandez — all janitors or housekeepers making the same wage. In Mexico, janitors earn $9 per day, Alonso said. The family would have to return to Mexico on Dec. 15 when their visa expires.

Lee Thomas, general manager of the Grand Oaks Hotel, said 17 of his 51 employees are temporary foreign workers.

"If I don't have enough housekeepers and workers, I can't expand and I might have to scale back my services." Thomas said. "There is not enough (of a) workforce in this area."

Last year, there were 97,279 seasonal H-2B workers, according the Department of Homeland Security. Unless Congress acts, all of them would have to compete for 66,000 H-2B visas that would be allowed next year.

Other foreign workers like Chowdhry say they are frustrated by Congress' unwillingness to improve the H-1B visa program for high-tech workers.

It's like a "sword hanging around our necks," said Chowdhry, who works in Madison, Wis., and has lived in the U.S. six years as a worker and student.

Under current rules, H-1B workers cannot change jobs easily. They are free to work anywhere once they receive a green card granting permanent legal status, which Chowdhry has applied for. Meanwhile, he said, he can't accept a promotion or start a business and hire Americans. He also could be deported within weeks if he is laid off.

Nearly 80% of H-visa holders are employed in 16 states, with California, Florida and New York containing the largest numbers.

High-tech workers are concentrated in California, New Jersey, New York and other states. Seasonal workers operate ski lifts in Colorado, are housekeepers at hotels in the national parks and work at coastal resorts from Delaware to Florida. Agriculture foreign workers are found throughout the country. For example, they pick lettuce in California and milk cows in Missouri.

Employers and lawmakers who support the H-visa programs say the workers are needed because they take jobs Americans don't want and fill critical labor shortages.

"The mania in Congress over illegal immigrants has spread into the area of legal immigration," said Maryland immigration lawyer Donald Mooers. He represents Save Small Business, whose 1,000 members employ foreign workers. The group is lobbying Congress to extend the exemption for the H-2B visa caps.

Some Democrats and Republicans, including members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, don't want to renew or improve any temporary worker programs until lawmakers address broader immigration reform to resolve the status of the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants now living and working in the United States.

Supporters of the guest worker programs acknowledge the stalemate in Congress.

"I would say that Congress is skittish" about any immigration bills said Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, whose California district includes Silicon Valley and its many high-tech firms.

Lofgren, chairwoman of the Judiciary Committee's immigration panel, is pushing for reforms to improve legal immigration and guest worker programs but faces an uphill battle.

Critics of guest worker programs say they bring in cheap foreign labor that keeps U.S wages low. Others say there is insufficient enforcement of the laws to ensure workers return home after their visas expire. Some unions oppose these programs because they say there are not enough protections for workers.

"There is no doubt in my mind that some of these workers are abused because there is not enough enforcement," said Eliseo Medina, executive vice president for the Service Employees International Union. "The workers are powerless and the employers want a captive workforce."

Immigration group: Huckabee a 'disaster'

The Washington Times
By Stephen Dinan
November 30, 2007

Groups that support a crackdown on illegal aliens haven't settled on their champion in the race for the White House, but there's little doubt which Republican scares them most — former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

"He was an absolute disaster on immigration as governor," said Roy Beck, president of NumbersUSA, a group that played a major role in rallying the phone calls that helped defeat this year's Senate immigration bill. "Every time there was any enforcement in his state, he took the side of the illegal aliens."

As Mr. Huckabee rises in the polls, his opponents are beginning to take shots at him on immigration. Just as problematic for the former Arkansas governor, however, is that the independent interest groups that track the issue are also giving him the once-over, and don't like what they see.

"Huckabee is the guy who scares the **** out of me," said Peter Gadiel, president of 9-11 Families for a Secure America, a group instrumental in fighting for the REAL ID Act that sets federal standards for driver's licenses.

Some leaders said Mr. Huckabee reminds them of President Bush, who pushed for legalization of illegal aliens and a new supply of foreign guest workers, despite his base calling for better border security and enforcement.

"I would say that Huckabee comes from the same perspective on the issue that George W. Bush came from — that out of a strong sense of compassion, he tries to identify with someone who comes to the United States, even if they came illegally," said Steven A. Camarota, research director for the Center for Immigration Studies.

Mr. Huckabee yesterday defended his record, but he said if voters are looking for the toughest guy, he's not their man.

"Is my answer satisfactory to all the Republicans? The answer's 'no.' " he said. "Some people want me to be a lot harsher. I think my answer is the honest and the right one."

The former governor said the borders should be secured and said he opposes sanctuary cities shielding illegal aliens and opposes amnesty, though he does think illegal aliens can be put on a path to citizenship — something many conservatives equate to amnesty.

But he said he finds a lot of anger and frustration directed at immigrants who don't speak English.

"Unfortunately, instead of being angry at the federal government for totally failing us in this, they sometimes get angry at the people themselves," he said.

He also said he's willing to take the heat for pushing for illegal alien students to be able to get taxpayer-funded financial aid and college scholarships.

"Our country is better than that, to punish children for what their parents did in breaking the law. If that costs me the election, it costs me the election, but somewhere along the line we cannot just pander to the anger and hostility without challenging it," he said.

Mr. Huckabee said he will produce a full plan to address illegal entry at some point, and he said he hasn't worked out specifics yet for who would get a path to citizenship and how.

"At some point, they do have to go back and start, they do have to pay a monetary fine, there has to be some type of restitution made for the law that has been broken, but it has to be reasonable and commensurate with the violation," he said.

As Mr. Huckabee's campaign gains attention — he is polling in first place in Iowa, the site of the first nominating contest — his immigration stance is getting a closer look. Fellow candidate Mitt Romney questioned him about his financial aid plan during Wednesday night's debate, and the video of that made the rounds of the immigration-control groups yesterday.

None of the groups has endorsed any candidates in the Democratic or Republican races, and they are divided on who the best candidate is.

On Thanksgiving, Mr. Beck wrote an e-mail to his supporters praising the immigration plan of Fred Thompson, a former senator who is running for the Republican nomination and who has called for attrition through enforcement.

"I really was blown away. I said, my gosh, this is an incredible platform," Mr. Beck said in an interview this week.

James J. Boulet Jr., executive director of English First, which wants to make English the official language of the government, said Mr. Romney had the best official record on that issue, opposing bilingual education during his term as Massachusetts governor.

Both Mr. Romney and Mr. Thompson have said they wouldn't create a new pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens, and Mr. Romney also has hinted he wants illegal aliens to go home through attrition. But Mr. Beck said Mr. Thompson's plan is the most detailed at this point, and he praised Mr. Thompson's call to even end some immigration programs such as the diversity visa lottery.

"The fact that he has OK'd these positions on such a volatile topic shows he really takes voters' concerns seriously and he believes there ought to be more than just sound bites about it," Mr. Beck said.

Reps. Ron Paul of Texas, Tom Tancredo of Colorado and Duncan Hunter of California all win near universal praise from the group leaders, but the leaders question whether any of the three have a shot at winning the nomination. Most of the leaders dismissed Arizona Sen. John McCain, a longtime advocate of legalizing illegal aliens, saying he appears to have little shot of winning the nomination.

As for Rudolph W. Giuliani, several leaders said his record as New York mayor was worrisome — he ran a sanctuary city, which means the identity of illegal aliens was kept from authorities in some cases — but they are impressed with his tough border-security position.

US immigration curbs cut Mexican remittances

Fri Nov 30, 2007 6:23pm EST

WASHINGTON, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Growing anti-immigration sentiment, tighter border controls and a weaker job market in the United States slowed the flow of money sent home by Mexican migrant workers this year, the World Bank said on Friday.

While Mexico ranks third in the world after India and China when it comes to remittance flows, the World Bank said in 2007 transfers to Mexico grew by only 1.4 percent in the first nine months compared to those months last year, to around $25 billion. This compares to over 20 percent annual growth from 2002 to 2006.

Overall, migrant workers sent more than $240 billion home to developing countries this year, more than last year's $221 billion, the World Bank said in its annual report on global remittance trends.

This is twice the amount wealthy nations give poor countries in development aid and nearly two-thirds the size of foreign direct investment flows into developing states.

The actual size of the transfers could be much much larger since not all remittances were recorded, the bank said.

"The slowdown in Mexico is partly due to the weak job market in the United States, especially in the construction sector," the World Bank said.

"Perhaps more importantly, the slowdown may be attributable to tighter border controls and increased anti-immigration sentiment in the United States," the Washington-based development institution added.

It said arrests along the U.S.-Mexico border fell by nearly 50 percent from 2000, showing fewer migrants were trying to enter the United States without proper documents.

Recent actions in the United States to curb illegal immigrants coming into the country also reduced the number of seasonal migrants and their ability to send money home, especially through formal channels, the bank added.

While Mexico appears to be affected by the tougher immigration stance in the United States, the World Bank said elsewhere in Latin America and the Caribbean remittances grew.

For example, money sent to El Salvador rose by 7.7 percent year-on-year; flows grew by 11 percent to Honduras and by 14.4 percent to Guatemala this year.

More money being sent to El Salvador could be due to the Temporary Protected Status of more than 200,000 Salvadoran migrants in the United States, the World Bank said.

It said while most migrants from Latin America preferred to go to the United States, other destinations, especially in Europe, such as Spain, were becoming popular.

The World Bank also said remittances were not only flowing from migrants to poor countries. Richer countries such as France, Spain and Britain were among the world's 10 top recipients of the $318 billion in global remittance flows in 2007, mainly from migrants working in other wealthier European countries.

(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; editing by Vicki Allen) (lesley.wroughton@reuters.com; +1-202-898-8317; Reuters Messaging: lesley.wroughton.reuters.com@reuters.net))

© Reuters2007All rights reserved

Poll: 90 Pct in Mexico Buy Pirated Goods

By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO
Posted 29 November 2007 @ 09:32 pm

MEXICO CITY (AP) - At least 90 percent of the residents of Mexico's three largest cities say they buy pirated goods, especially music CDs, according to a poll released Thursday.

The most common buyers of pirated goods are between the ages of 16 and 24, according to the Ipsos-Bimsa poll, conducted for the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico.

Of those surveyed in Mexico City, Monterrey and Guadalajara, 60 percent said they buy pirated goods occasionally, 31 percent almost always, and 9 percent always. Seventy-five percent said the reason they buy the illegal products is lower prices.

The most popular pirated goods are music CDs, followed by DVD movies, clothing and shoes.

The poll estimated that pirated goods in Mexico cost industry $226 million in the past 12 months, and it said the government lost about $110 million in missed sales and income taxes.

Although they acknowledged buying pirated goods during the past six months, 43 percent of poll respondents said they recognize piracy as an illegal practice, while more than 70 percent said they believe it generates crime and affects public safety and the Mexican economy.

The three surveyed cities represent 40 percent of Mexico's consumer market, Ipsos-Bimsa Marketing Director Enrique Bledl said.

Pollsters interviewed 916 people in September for the survey, which has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. They did not release the exact dates during which the survey was conducted.

US Seeks Alleged Drug Leader in Mexico

By MARK STEVENSON
The Associated Press
November 30, 2007

The United States has formally filed a request for the extradition of a reputed drug cartel leader called 'The Queen of the Pacific,' a U.S. official and the Mexican government said Friday.

In a news statement, Mexico's attorney general's office said the U.S. wants Sandra Avila Beltran on drug and organized crime charges, but did not say whether she would be sent north before facing charges pending against her in Mexico.

A U.S. official who has knowledge of the extradition request alleged that Avila Beltran, who was arrested in late September in an upscale Mexico City neighborhood, arranged cocaine shipments for the Sinaloa cartel, handled millions of dollars in payments and even commanded a team of enforcers to punish gang members and rivals.

'She was making decisions, serious decisions, setting up shipments, approving payoffs for the shipments, transfers of millions of dollars to Colombian suppliers,' the official said on condition of anonymity. The official was not authorized to speak on the record.

Avila Beltran projected refined manners and an elegant style, but the U.S. alleges that she was in fact a senior decision-maker for the cartel who also played a role in calling gang members and rivals to account for lost loads, the official said.

'People were brought in talk to her about lost loads and debts owed,' the official said. 'She had enforcers. ... She kept a gaggle of enforcers.'

The extradition request is related to the seizure of more than 9 tons of cocaine aboard a fishing vessel in 2001 near the Mexican Pacific coast port of Manzanillo. The drugs were allegedly headed for the U.S. market.

A 'temporary extradition' arrangement with the United States allows suspects convicted in Mexico to be sent north for trial before serving their sentences here, but it was unclear whether that agreement would be applied in Avila Beltran's case.

Avila Beltran, whose uncle is a legendary cartel leader, claims she made her money selling clothes and renting houses.

Her Colombian boyfriend, reputed drug lord Juan Diego Espinoza Ramirez, was also arrested and is wanted on a U.S. extradition request.

Former Neb. teacher accused of fleeing to Mexico with 13-year-old student pleads not guilty

By ANNA JO BRATTON
Associated Press Writer
Thu Nov 29, 7:38 PM ET

OMAHA, Neb. - A former teacher accused of fleeing to Mexico with a 13-year-old former student pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal charges of crossing a border to have *** with a minor.

Kelsey Peterson looked nervous as deputy U.S. marshals led her into the courtroom in handcuffs, ankle chains and an orange jumpsuit. She bit her lip and started crying while flipping through court documents.

Peterson will remain in federal custody at the Cass County jail while a psychological evaluation is completed. Her attorney, James Martin Davis, said the evaluation will show Peterson is not a danger or a flight risk.

But federal prosecutor Jan Sharp told the judge that Peterson has told police she is in love with the boy and said she was not sure she would do anything differently.

Peterson took steps to avoid apprehension during the journey to Mexico, Sharp said, such as not using cell phones and paying cash.

The boy has told The Associated Press that he didn't consider Peterson his girlfriend but that they did have ***.

The 25-year-old former Lexington teacher and the eighth-grader were found Nov. 2 in Mexicali, Mexico.

The boy remains in Mexico because he was an illegal immigrant. He may be able to return to Nebraska to testify at a trial, if needed, but it is not clear whether he will be allowed to remain in the United States.

The Associated Press previously named the boy as police searched for him but stopped using his name in reports after authorities charged Peterson with a *** crime.

Davis said Peterson would consider pleading guilty to statutory rape charges if authorities can prove the boy is 13, which Davis questions.

"If she exploited some young boy and robbed him of his innocence, that's definitely a crime and she deserves to be punished," Davis said. "If she had *** with a 15-year-old boy who had lost his virginity a long time ago ... that's still against the law, but it doesn't warrant doing 10 years in the penitentiary."

A birth certificate provided by the Mexican police officer who arrested Peterson shows that the boy is 13 years old, but Davis questions the authenticity of that document.

In addition to the federal charges, Peterson faces state charges including kidnapping, child abuse and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Prosecutors have said they ultimately expect Peterson to face charges in only one jurisdiction. The federal charges carry a possible sentence of 10 years to life in prison and a $250,000 fine or both.

A judge will hear the results of the psychological evaluation on Dec. 10 to determine whether Peterson should remain in custody.

Mexico, GM Announce Hybrid Production

AP
Posted: 2007-12-01 03:33:00

MEXICO CITY (AP) - The Mexican division of General Motors Corp. on Friday unveiled the first hybrid vehicle to be manufactured here for export to the United States and possible future domestic sales.

The Saturn Vue, a medium-size sports utility vehicle operated with gasoline and electric power, has already rolled off the assembly line of a plant in the northern state of Coahuila and is being readied for export, GM officials said at a joint news conference with President Felipe Calderon.

The company will have the capacity to export about 6,500 units a year, company President Kevin Williams said.

GM will test 10 to 15 models of a slightly modified version of the vehicle in Mexico under the name Chevrolet Captiva Sport. The company expects to determine its domestic marketability by mid-2008, General Motors de Mexico spokesman Mauricio Kuri said.

Altogether, the company has invested $500 million to manufacture both the hybrid vehicles and gasoline versions of the Captiva Sport.

12/01/07 03:03 EST

MEXICO PRESIDENT SAYS 'CULTURE OF MACHISMO' STILL STRONG

ASSOCIATED PRESS
1:13 p.m. November 26, 2007

MEXICO CITY – President Felipe Calderón said Monday said that despite the passage of anti-discrimination laws, millions of women suffer from workplace bias and physical and psychological abuse due to an enduring “culture of machismo” in Mexico.

“As a citizen, as a husband, as a father, as president, I am worried and indignant over the mistreatment millions of Mexican women still receive,” Calderón said during an event on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Last year alone, the president said, more than 30 million Mexican women suffered some type of violence, while more than 80 percent of women who were murdered were killed in their own homes.
Earlier this year, Mexico enacted a law obligating federal and local authorities to prevent, punish and eradicate violence against women. Yet only a handful of states have formally adopted it, Calderón said.

At fault? A culture still dominated by “the false premise of subordination, submission and even inferiority of women with respect to men,” he said. “This is a cultural obstacle that we have to reverse.”

Mexico has had some success chipping away at machismo, passing the anti-violence measure and a law allowing same-*** civil unions in Mexico City. Women have also made advances in business and politics, and on Monday, Calderón signed a law aimed at fighting the trafficking and enslavement of women and children.

But he acknowledged the country has a ways to go, saying, “There have been advances but ... there is much to be done.”

TEXAS, PARIS

Will the circus come to town?

By Bill Hankins
The Paris News
Published December 2, 2007

Imagine a nation without circuses, carnivals and with scaled down versions of state and county fairs.

It could happen in America next year if Congress does not act on legislation tied to an appropriation bill.

It’s all about immigration, a touchy subject in some circles, but it is not the immigration issue most people think of.

The dilemma facing circuses, including the four that call Hugo, Okla. home, is that they suddenly are unable to bring into this country the seasonal acts that make the circuses great.

Circuses, carnivals and other industries that hire seasonal workers have always worked under a seasonal immigration law that allows foreign workers to come into the country, work, pay their taxes and social security and then go back to their own countries after the seasonal employment is completed.

The program that allows seasonal employment is H-2B, and it provides a vital and legal source of seasonal labor for the mobile industry.

The problem is, Congress put a mandated cap of 66,000 workers per year allowed in under the program.

Ski resorts, such as in Vail, Colo., and the landscaping industry, which hires most of the seasonal workers, along with the circuses across the nation, the carnivals, the hotels and others went to Congress two years ago and said the limit of 66,000 was not adequate to fill the need for seasonal workers.

Congress voted to allow workers already on the visa program exemptions from re-applying each year.

That meant they did not fall under the 66,000 cap, allowing those workers to come back each year without counting against the cap.

But the exemption was sunsetted for one year. Congress extended it until Sept. 30 of this year but failed to renew the extension, and the exemptions died on that date.

The issue has been tied this year to an appropriation bill, that may or may not be approved by Congress, and if it is, could become a part of a presidential veto.

The need for seasonal workers for 2008 is so great, the 66,000 available spots were filled on Sept. 27, 2007, three days before the fiscal year actually began.

The big industries such as ski resorts, landscaping and hotels grabbed off most of the spots, and even then, did not get enough workers.

Vail ski resorts, which usually hire 2,500 workers for the season, fell more than 750 short of goal before the cap was reached.

The larger circuses across the nation grabbed off those workers they could before the cap closed in, but they also did not fill their need.

That left the smaller circuses such as Carson and Barnes, Kelly Miller, Culpepper Merriweather and Circus Chimera, all of Hugo, without hope for next year unless the legislation is approved.

“I have already had to announce I will shut down,” said Jim Judkins, owner of Circus Chimera. “If I am not sure I have the circus acts coming from other countries, I cannot start signing contracts for stops in cities and towns next year. If I signed the contracts and did not get the workers, I am liable. I would have to use the sites and pay the fees for them.”

Christen Parra of Carson and Barnes said: “We are trying right now with lobbyists working on it in Washington, D.C. We have asked people to write letters to Congress and ask them to take action.”

“Unfortunately we won’t be able to take the circus on the road next year as we are now,” she said. “We would have to downsize considerably. We can’t function without these guys getting the visas, and as it stands, there are no more visas available. We are not willing to close our doors, but we can’t plan next season without these workers.”

Parra said being a small family-owned circus, Carson and Barnes comes in about sixth in line behind the larger circuses and far behind such operations as ski resorts and landscaping and hotels.

The same would apply to all four circuses in Hugo, and if the circuses closed their doors or downsized, it could put a large dent in the economy of the city as well as the circuses.

“If nothing is done, I have no doubt we are going to be left out entirely,” Parra said. “We only have about 120 days to get the circus acts and set up our schedule for next year. What we are afraid of is Congress will not act in time for us.”

U.S. Ralph Hall, R-Rockwall, said he understands the problem and is pushing for the bill and the seasonal worker industry, but added that he has little say if it will come up for a vote or when.

“I am backing the extension of the H-2B exemptions, but we (the Republicans) are no longer in control of when the legislation will come down,” Texas’ Fourth District congressman said.

Christopher Shel, with Hall’s office, said the quota fix is tied up in the appropriations bill and the minority does not dictate that schedule, “but we are pushing for passage of that immigration issue.”

Judkins said he and others will travel to Washington, D.C., Tuesday and will stay the remainder of the week pushing congressmen and senators to take action on SB900 and HR1843, which contain the needed legislation.

“We are facing the problem of all this rhetoric about illegals and amnesty, and Congress is reluctant to pass anything about immigration,” Judkins said. “Those who depend on the law are out of luck.”

“These people come into the country, pay their taxes, pay their Social Security and live by the law, then they go home when the seasonal work is over,” Judkins said. “They do not have an opportunity to draw Social Security or get the benefits from the taxes they pay.”

Judkins said immigration opponents have wrongfully looked at workers in the H-2B program as cheap foreign labor, and that employers pay them next to nothing.

“We have to pay the workers the highest of the prevailing wages for any place on the entire route, and we have to provide living quarters and meals at no charge,” he said.

Judkins said almost every carnival in the country uses H-2B workers, gets reliable help, provides drug tests and has the highest safety record.

“These workers have to be incredibly good,” he said. “Can you imagine putting together those carnival rides if you had to use unskilled workers.”

If carnivals are forced to shut down because of a lack of traveling workers, that also would affect such organizations as the Red River Valley Fair and even smaller carnivals might not be able to make the stops in Mirabeau Square or other places in Paris.

Judkins said Americans do not want to leave home and travel for 10 months of the year, so there are no American acts or workers available to the circuses.

“We really have to do something with this problem and do it fast,” he said.

These H-2B visas are really non-immigrant visas and should not be considered in the regular immigration laws,” Judkins said.

Judkins handles immigration work for all the circuses in Hugo and said all of them face a dilemma if this legislation is not passed.

Jim Royal with Kelly Miller Circus said: “At this point, we are not sure of what we will do. The worst case scenario is it will put us out of business.”

Royal said Kelly Miller did well this year despite high gasoline prices, “but next year could be a whole new story. We may have to go on a massive recruiting drive.”

“Our local circuses are desperately asking people to contact their congressmen and senators and urge them to extend the H-2B by returning worker exemption,” Royal said. “These shows provide jobs, revenue and a sense of pride in calling Hugo ‘Circus City U.S.A.’ The fact that four circuses call Hugo home is a distinction that no other city can claim. It would be a crime to allow this rich American tradition to be lost forever.”

Judkins said he has just returned from one fact finding mission to Washington, D.C.

“What I found out gave me hope,” he said. “Not a single senator or congressman’s office I visited was against the H-2B program or to the fix.”

Other congressmen and senators said the appropriations bill is a hard-fought bill, and it and the H-2B extension are a wait-see issue.

For the circuses, the carnivals and others on the bottom looking for seasonal workers, the wait may take too long to salvage next year.

Miss Mexico Carolina Morán Gordillo Competes for Miss World 2007

Written by Ezekiel Zane
Friday, 30 November 2007

Carolina Morán Gordillo is the girl from across the border, who is going for Miss World 2007! The somewhat newcomer to the modeling scene seems to be a promising pick for the crown winner of Miss World 2007. The prestigious and long event of Miss World will be held on December 1st in Sanya, China. Gordillo competed in Nuestra Bel***a Mexico which was held in Tampico, Mexico, which Gordillo championed. Now she is moving on for the crown of Miss World 2007! Carolina Morán Gordillo has 15 to 1 odds the she will win the Miss World pageant for 2007

Gordillo is preceded by Karla Verónica Jiménez Amezcua. Jiménez represented her home country of Mexico back o September 30, 2006 in Warsaw, Poland. Like Gordillo, Jiménez also competed in the Nuestra Bel***a Mexico competition. Jiménez placed second to Priscila Perales, who went on to become Miss Mexico Universe and Jiménez went on to be Miss Mexico World 2006. During Miss World 2006, Jiménez did very well for her self and finished 17th in the competition. The winner of Miss World 2006 was Taťána Kuchařová from the Czech Republic. Let us see if Gordillo can do better then her predecessor and win Miss World 2007 on December 1st!

Online Sportsbook BetUS.com has posted betting odds on who will be crowned Miss World 2007:

Miss Dominican Republic 15/2
Miss Jamaica 8/1
Miss Malaysia 10/1
Miss Puerto Rico 12/1
Miss USA 15/1
Miss Mexico 15/1
Miss Philippines 18/1
Miss Angola 18/1
Miss South Africa 18/1
Miss Venezuela 18/1
Miss Northern Ireland 18/1
Miss Spain 20/1
Miss Trinidad & Tobago 20/1
Miss Brazil 25/1
Miss China 25/1
Miss Latvia 25/1
Miss Norway 25/1
Miss Grenada 25/1
Miss Peru 25/1
Miss Thailand 25/1

Check BetUS.com for current lines on the Miss World Pageant 2007