sdraoul wrote on Apr 17, 2008 7:48 PM:Gary Walker continues his racist rants with: "tens of thousands of contemptful, lawless illegal aliens living in and destabilizing our cities' schools and neighborhoods."

Well, Gary, if 90 percent of California prisoners in state prison are native-born Americans, who is destabilizing anything? And, "tens of thosuands?" seems to me the last time I looked, 40 percent of Escondido are "Hispanic" or about 45,000. Are you declaring that every single one of them is an "illegal?" How per4ceptive of you to label peopel illegal because they aren't blonde and blue-eyed.

Patricia Walker writes: "Americans are angry about NAFTA, and we want our jobs back. We want people to enter the country the correct/legal way. Mexico secures its southern border with troops and we have the right to do the same thing to our southern border."

Dear Patricia, there has not been any net loss of jobs because of NAFTA, on the other hand, 16-20 million jobs have been created under NAFTA while fewer than 500,000 have been "lost." Meanwhile, our manufacturing has actually increased because of technology. It now takes far fewer workers to produce more goods because of silly little things litke laptop computers. Fewer bookeepers are needed, for example, or tax preparers because of silly little things like personal computers and software that is sometimes free but in any event costs but a few dollars, if at all. One last note, before NAFTA U.s. unemployment averaged almsot 7 percent, it is now 5 percent or lower. In places liek Texas or San Diego County, both places with heavy NAFTA produced trade and jobs, unemployment is usually less than 4 percent.

Martin Giavelli writes: "I have a very old dictionary and a fairly new one. They both say that a criminal is a person who commits a crime. I think that most rational people accept the fact that someone who knowingly and willingly enters the United States in an illegal manner has knowingly and willingly committed a crime."

Martin, most rational people know that crossing the border without being interviewed by a federal officer is not a crime but an administrative violation like a parking ticket. It is not a criminal matter unless one is a convicted felon who has been deported already. First times are like parking tickets. Don't rely on "dictionaries" sir, for they cannot define crimes. If youw ant a definition, go to the United States Code or the California Penal Code, but stay away from dictionaries for they are useful to people only to corerct spelling, not to define "crime."

OH PLEASE! wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:06 PM:Patricia Walker: Just what armed force would you use to secure the entire border?
Our army is in Iraq. We do not have a regular army forces capable of meeting another foreign or domestic emergency.
What all the minutemen and the anti illegals should realize with all their rhetoric is that horrible deeds what have to be done. The only way to STOP the border crossings is to mine the border and have troops on the line with order to shoot to kill. I do not think the our government or our people are ready to take that drastic action. At least, they are unwilling now.

Ron wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:10 PM:Robert Jones says: "A war hero is not necessarily a good president."
He maybe right.
Selling your Iraq War Vote to save your Senate seat as did Max Cleland.
Secret Cambodian Christmas missions & John Kerry should have taught us something about war heroes. A war hero is just a war hero nothing less and nothing more.

Focal Point wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:11 PM:Robert Jones: Are you wrong! Cunningham, a war hero, betrayed his office and the people whom he represented. He dishonored himself. McCain, a war hero, has never betrayed his office or the people that he represents. So there is a difference. They are not just lumped together war heroes.
And all this from an independent who is registered as a Democrat in support of Obama.

To: Patricia Walker wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:14 PM:Yes we want our laws respected and the Constitution upheld. So give those people the rights they are entitled to under the U.S. Constitution. I agree with Ivan Morales that the minutemen are useless and have been ineffective in any attempt to curb the flow of illegals into this country. I might extend the same invitation to you....."If Walker doesn't like it, she can leave. Thank you, Ivan Morales.

Ron wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:25 PM:And you know what, Ken Guerrero? This whole ceasing of personal private property would not have happened had not the Supreme Court been filled up with leftist activists posing a justices.
And "blighting" of entire neighborhoods is how they do it. They come in, schedule it for a redevelopment plan, effectively locking out any possiblity of receiving a reasonable price on it, then they buy it on the cheap, and sell it to the highest bidder.
So when they come for you, just say: Thank you Lib's on the Supreme Court for violating my rights to private property. I mean.. what the heck right?
Private property right went out the window with the 16th Amendment when the "Progressives" {ah, there's that word again!} wanted to reach their sticky little fingers into your paycheck and take from your labor, "from the sweat of your brow." As my socialist friend would say.
Pretty soon, it'll all be State Owned. think I'm exaggerating? How much do they leave you after their done with your paycheck? Only now, it's your house. What's next?

Ron wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:38 PM:Just like a lib... this.. Robert de Georges.
"McCain's war financing." Ah Ha, very funny.
How about your put those two marbles in your head together while I enlighten you, ok Rob?
This Federal Government anit going broke on Iraq. K? You Get it now?
It's going broke because we have HUGE & MASSIVE entitlements where nearly 60% of our entire $3 Trillion budget goes to pay. By the end of the next President's term, that percentage will be 70%. That is THE fastest growing portion of all government spending.
Not Afganistan, not Iraq!
And what you really should be concerned about, and I doubt that you are, but what should really concern you is that YOU have placed this debt onto the backs of your unborn children, grandchildren, and perhaps great grandchildren. It is this Inter-Generational Ponzi Scheme that has done this, not Iraq, and not the war.
The total debt just between Social Security & Medi-Care is now $45 trillion.
But.. in your little mind, that must have been George Bush too? Right?
And McCain will add to that?
I swear, where do we get these people?

Bitter U.S. citizen wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:55 PM:Perhaps if our valiant leaders would move our southern border to Guatemala we could solve the illegal immigration problem. Then everyone would become a U.S. citizen entitled to rights under the U.S. constitution.

War hero wrote on Apr 17, 2008 9:13 PM:Robert Jones calls John McCain a war hero.
What makes him a war hero?
He went to war and served like many brave military men and tried to do his duty.
For that he deserves honor, as all military personnel do (not having their benefits cut or denied).
But why is he any more of a hero than any other military person?
He failed his mission and got captured.
All he did was manage to survive brutal conditions.
How does this make him qualified to be president?

Vietnam Vet wrote on Apr 17, 2008 9:42 PM: - Not only does a war hero not necessarily make a good president, as pointed out by letter writer Robert Jones today, but McCain was not even a war hero. He was a prisoner of war, and deserves respect for that. But being captured by the enemy does not make one a hero automatically. It all depends on how a POW conducts himself, and what he does in prison specifically that is heroic. There is no record of any such heroism by McCain, either before or after he became a POW. Ask some of the old Vietnam Vets, and they have scorn for McCain conduct in prison.
A former Vietnam veteran with top secret clearance, Jack McLamb, says he has personally spoken to numerous POW's who dispute John McCain's claim that he refused to provide information after he was captured and tortured in Hanoi, saying that in fact McCain's code-name was "Songbird" because of his willingness to tell all to avoid torture.
McLamb served nine years in secret operations in Cambodia and other nations before going on to become one of the most highly decorated police officer's in Phoenix history, winning police officer of the year twice before taking a role as a hostage negotiator for the FBI.
"I know a lot of Vietnam veterans and a few POW's and all the POW's that I've talked to over the years say that John McCain is a lying skunk," McLamb told the Alex Jones Show.

Vietnam Vet wrote on Apr 17, 2008 9:53 PM: - Perhaps readers do not know that John McCain’s father was the commanding Admiral during the Vietnam War. The Viet Cong enemy certainly knew this. It is commonly accepted that McCain was treated better than other POW's and afforded medical care immediately after the North Vietnamese discovered that his father was a top admiral.

The other American POW's in the Vietnam War compound said that McCain made 32 propaganda videos for the communist North Vietnamese in which he denounced America for what they were doing in Vietnam.
According to Jack McLamb, "They have these sealed now, our government has these sealed, we can't get to it, they have it classified. The POW's hated John McCain."
The media is so lazy they will not research McCain’s history. The man was NOT a war hero. He does deserve sympathy as does any American POW, many of whom were indeed heroes.

Sheehan report wrote on Apr 17, 2008 11:23 PM:I saw Cindy Sheehan tonite. Never seen her before. From what the media and bloggers say about her, I was expecting a wacko nut job. Sorry, that would not describe the woman I saw. She was an ordinary person who has done some extraordinary things and won't stop. I'm kind of amused at how, even right here, Americans go on and on about how the government, Dem or Rep, is a closed society, is unaffected by the needs or wants of people, doesn't deserve reelection, etc etc. So along comes a Sheehan who pretty much refuses to compromise on what she and those who agree with her insist on, and she's immediately labeled all kinds of things that make her seem utterly irrelevant, crazy, evil. Are you guys all simply shills for the leadership you pretend to despise? I'll say one thing: many students and others in the audience treated her like she was a hero, and you don't see that happen very often in 21st C America any longer. Tell you what: should McCain be elected, and should McCain persuade Congress to install a draft again (our military being that needy for bodies to send to McCain's wars), you'll see millions in the streets again. The only thing Bush has had going for him in Iraq has been his absurd success in keeping the whole matter far from the eyes and ears and hearts of the public. If the media were truly liberal, we'd be seeing every coffin arriving in the dark of night, every VA ward with the wounded. We'd also have crack investigative reporters with unlimited budgets hounding the administration over every claim and memo and email. Of course, none of these things happen. The "liberal media" is too busy following the exploits of Brittney Spears and the tension over which candidates wear lapel flags. Ooops, gotta go! Lots of shopping to do tomorrow.

VET for PEACE - wrote on Apr 17, 2008 11:26 PM: = I’ve heard of these reports about McCain disreputable behavior as a prisoner of war, but I take them with a grain of salt. That was over 40 years ago, and perhaps the reason McCain made those propaganda videos was because he was actually tortured. Men will do most anything when tortured. And most will confess to anything. I give him the benefit of the doubt. I cannot condemn this man for that. War is a terrifying hell, and a soldier does what he has to to stay alive.

Yokozuna wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:45 AM:Now the real sleaze items are beginning to come forth (all sides, all candidates). Can't we wait until we get closer to the election? No wonder the citizenry gets turned off.

Thanks, vet, but... wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:55 AM:I completely agree with you about judging McCain. I would guess that more than 99% would do what they had to do under those conditions. My beef is not with what McCain did back then. It's with the press and McCain supporters (and McCain himself) that glorify him as a "hero". They know that when you say, "John McCain, war hero", you insulate him from all sorts of scrutiny and criticism, as if questioning the man's judgment and behavior as a Senator and as a candidate is possibly treasonous and certainly unpatriotic. Of course, these same glorifiers had NO trouble tossing John Kerry under the bus, so respect for the uniform or for service clearly has nothing to do with anything. McCain's "hero" label is, like everything else in our virtual, marketing world, just another ploy to gain power. Well, I don't buy it. Let's all try to look through and past the ploys...have we learned nothing from the selling to us of GW Bush? Will we just watch the commercials and buy the same product over and over again? Not me.

Alf wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:56 AM:From yesterday, "Reardon" at 9:12PM, the quote that I remember is "You come to me with minds of mush...". Regards, Alf.

Focal Point/Veitnam Vet wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:18 AM:VET for PEACE -[-] wrote on Apr 17, 2008 11:26 PM: Well said. Everyone has their breaking point. John McCain can not even raise his arms to chest level. McCane was repeatedly tortured before breaking. I hate these people making judgment calls about some one else when they have no credentials, back ground or experience to do so. Vietnam Vet comes on this blog and spews the crapola from the likes of Jack McLamb, a militia type leader and advocate. What an absolute joke.

Focal Point/Vietnam Vet wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:24 AM:Jack McLamb: "He is part of a small, nationwide movement hell-bent on convincing the rest of us that in spite of glowing accounts of McCain's valor as a POW, Arizona's senior senator betrayed his country by collaborating with the North Vietnamese, and has been trying to cover up that fact ever since."

Vista Granny wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:35 AM:Ron:Quit going on about the payments made to Social Security and Medicare -- The taxes collected for this purpose exceed the amount paid out. (The poorest part time or causal laborer pays these taxes, which of course, the wealthy may not because their income comes comes from sources other than direct labor.) Since more is collected than paid out, it is shabby for you and others to complain about these payments. This money and what is borrowed also pays for other budget items, like military salaries, retired military medical expenses, hundreds of thousands of retirement checks to former military and civil workers, etc. etc. etc., plus the war in Iraq!!!! Stop picking on the old, ill, infirm and poor!!

Alf wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:46 AM:McCain is not a hero, he was a P.O.W. and he survived. What makes him unfit for the job of President of the U.S. is his insistance that he will continue the insane, military-wrecking, economy-wrecking occupation of Iraq ala GWB. That alone, notwithstanding his "memory problems", is sufficient to vote for someone else. Regards, Alf.

Artsyrat wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:58 AM:Regarding Vista's redevelopment plan...I have some questions that I want answered by the City of Vista. My neighbors and I have had 4 informal meetings with the City trying to find out how this truly affects us. Answers come back to us vague or not at all.

I am in the proposed area, IF THE REDEVELOPMENT PLAN IS APPROVED...
1.How will it affect my ability to remodel my home?

2.How exactly does it affect my ability to sell my home?

3.If the City of Vista never comes in and fixes the infrastructure like they promise us, how long are we considered blighted? Is it until the redev plan is no longer in effect...till 2038?

4.If the City of Vista never comes in and fixes the infrastructure, why do we need to be in the redev plan.

5. If the City of Vista does come into my hood and fixes the infrastructure, how long are we in the redevelopment area or blighted, till 2038?

6.When the commercial redevelopment surrounding my neighborhood is finished and it negatively affects my neighborhood with eccessive traffic, crime, polution/trash, noise how will the city of Vista deal with that?

7.Does the polution of the Carlsbad Buena Vista Lagoon have anything to do with this proposed plan? Vista is accused of poluting the lagoon, owning about 90 percent of the pipe where the breach occurred, it would be hit hardest by a fine.

8.I ask the City of Vista to take my neighborhood out of the redev proposed plan.

9.Why did the City of Vista approach my residential neighbor two years ago asking to make his driveway a through street?

Ron wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:59 AM:Of all Barack Obama's problematic relationships, Wright, Resko, and now Bill Ayers. The most troubling would be Bill Ayers in my book.
William Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn were both members of a radical 1960's terrorist group, The Weather Underground. And the fact that the next possible president of the United States is on a first name basis with a self-confessed bomber of the Pentagon, who not only has no regrets for his terrorism but wishes he could do it all over again. And more.
There's more to this relationship than Ayers simply being a "guy who lives in my nieghborhood." The two met back in 1995 when Obama was introduced by state senator Alice Palmer. Ayers and other far left activists were present at the meeting of the University Chicago neighborhood of Hyde Park.
Ayers, Dohrn, and Obama have appeared together at a numberous gatherings and academic events since 1997.
Still want to buy the "I was only 8 at the time" answer?
Or perhaps you really know the truth about this radical, and you sympathize with his radicalism?

Ron wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:22 AM:Vista Granny @7:35 AM says I'm picking on the old, ill, infirm and poor.
You really think I'm picking on them Granny? Re-Read what I said, I said your placing this huge burden on your own children, born or unborn, and grandchildren, born or unborn.
And please do thinking about the amounts of money you personally have paid in. If your an older American, why you had the luxury of paying the lower tax rates, on less money. You take a good look at the history of Social Security and in almost every generation the cost and the burden of caring for those receiving has gone up. That means that each generation has paid a higher share for the same benefit. You call that fair? You call that picking on people?
And the fact that you know the truth that these programs take in far more than what it takes to pay the benefits to existing recipients tells me your part of the problem. That You've said nothing and allowed this scheme to grow more monsterous each passing year.
And that you would place people in office that would continue to run this ponzi scheme exactly the way it has been run, instead of in a financially responsible one, tells me everything I'll ever need to know about you.
I've said before, I have no problem paying for people who through not fault of their own can not take care of themselves. I'm more than willing to pay for those people. I even have a heart for those who have been sucked into this scheme, believing.. trusting that this government would own up to it's own word. But, when you know the facts, as you apparently do, then you have knownly done this to yourself.
Social Security was never... I repeat NEVER designed to be a complete retirement program. It was to be 1/3 of your total retirement income. But this creeping of liberal institutionalism has sold far too many Americans on this idea that "The Government" will always be there to "care for me."
And also as I recall, you want free government run healthcare too? Right?
And now your retired, right? Now, who do you think will pay for that, Granny?
You? Hardly. If your retired, might I suggest, kick back, collect your check, and be happy. Be happy that your getting way more than you ever paid in.
Leave the future to those who will pay for the future. Do you really think that if an unborn child could vote, they'd vote for themselves to have this $45,000 debt on top of their head just to come into the world? Would you?

Getting sicker of it every day wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:24 AM:Here comes Ron again. Seems like Rev Wright has about run out of gas as a story, as did Rezko before him. So now it's Ayers. The pattern is always the same. Find someone that did bad things. Go on and on and on and on about how bad they were, how bad the person must be, how much worse the person MIGHT be. Then say, "and Obama knows that person". Shabby. Dishonest. Boring.

Randy wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:25 AM:I am bone-tired of all the criticism of Obama because of the company he keeps. He is running for President. Surely you can come up with something more direct than the company he keeps!

Two reasons to stay the course wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:31 AM:(1) From McClatchy QUOTE WASHINGTON— The war in Iraq has become "a major debacle" and the outcome "is in doubt" despite improvements in security from the buildup in U.S. forces, according to a highly critical study published Thursday by the Pentagon's premier military educational institute. ENDQUOTE

From AP QUOTE WASHINGTON - Roughly one in every five U.S. troops who have survived the bombs and other dangers of Iraq and Afghanistan now suffers from major depression or post-traumatic stress, an independent study said Thursday. It estimated the toll at 300,000 or more. ENDQUOTE Perhaps you aren't moved by these developments or think that the Pentagon's opinion is just that of a bunch of liberal pantywaists. Maybe you don't even want to think about the longer term consequences of having hundreds of thousands of mentally disordered combat veterans in the workforce if they ever get out of Iraq alive. Or maybe you think this is all part of a larger, rosier picture. If so, then McCain is your man. (Notice that this opinion is not based on someone McCain might've known at one time, or on what is or isn't pinned on his lapel. It's about the policies he is offering as the bedrock of his campaign. Call me silly, but I think that's more important.)

To Patricia Walker wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:57 AM: If you don't like it, you can leave.

OBSERVATION wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:59 AM:OBAMA AND AYERS:
"Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf knew Ayers in the 1960s and re-met Ayers and Dohrn decades later. In the 1960s Wolf said he and Ayers were on opposite sides of the use of violence to effect social change. Then, Ayers thought it useful. Wolf came out of the school of nonviolence.

Wolf now is rabbi emeritus at KAM Isaiah Israel, coincidentally located across the street from the Obamas' Kenwood home. (The synagogue welcomes Obama's Secret Service agents inside to use the facilities.)

Ayers is "wonderful, compassionate, thoughtful, serious," Wolf said. I asked him to help reconcile the past and the present. "What we want is not to let bygones be bygones, but to transform ourselves into the kind of people we want to be and ought to be," Wolf said.

Mike wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:14 AM:Does anybody actually read ron's posts?

Why?

Nick wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:19 AM:Mr Ed, where's my post with my question for "SD Raoul"? What seems to be your problem this time?

sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:22 AM:Here we go again, you anti-Iraq war people are huffing and puffing and accomplishing absolutely nothing. ...

Calling the war insane is really dumb.

The war has accomplished a great deal and will continue to do so with the continued putting down of the Shiite Mahdi army by Iraqis with out help. Al Qaeda is now dying and striking out like a mortally wounded animal using "suicide bombers" because they can't mount offensive actions that are meaningful.

I stated that this was their last resort and is proof the surge has worked and a number of you responded without even understanding what I said. So, what else is new?

Now you rely on a study that claims "one in five" of our troops over there have post-action problems. Wow! That also happened in Vietnam, in Korea and WWII. There is nothing new in that study, nothing. That's like the NY Times publishing an article about the suicide rate among Army personnel that forgot to mention that the rate was lower than among civilians.

Quote all the little articles you want by anti-war reporters. The real story is in the high reenlistment rates of soldiers and Marines in country over there. Those rates are the highest in modern history. They know the story; they live it there, not on this page.

Reardon wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:44 AM:I have a non-rhetorical question: If the “Super-Delegates” at the Democratic Party Convention are supposed to vote for the winner of the popular vote, or the delegate vote – or even the vote in their state – are they not superfluous? If they are a rubber stamp for previously made votes, what is their worth? “Super-Delegates” are the people in the party who have successfully withstood the voting process, and are the “gray-beards” – the “adults” of the party. Should they not vote their best experience and knowledge?

To Reardon wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:01 AM:Interesting you would ask about the Super Delagates and how they are supposed to vote. Yesterday Howard Dean clarified for the media that the Super Delagates are asked to "vote their conscience". Does that answer your question?

to Martin Giavelli wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:01 AM: Dictionaries are of limited usefulness. That's why law schools use law books. Immigration law is very complex. Most people in this country illegally have not committed a crime, and are not criminals. As for rushing to your defense if you break the law, it depends on what law you break. I'll defend you if you park on the street in front of your Escondido home in violation of the new ordinance. Yes, I discriminate against stupid laws. BTW, your illegal parking won't be a crime in any case. Lots of things are illegal but not crimes.

LOL wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:01 AM:sdraul: You should work for GWB. You lie as much as often as their News Secretaries.

Vista Granny wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:04 AM:Ron - you were so angry, you made no sense in your reply to me. If the present recipients of SS get less than is being paid in, that makes me guilty of something? I think you got mixed up a bit. (Also your is a possessive pronoun and you are is abbreviated as you're.) Actually, SS was proposed and put in place so that the elderly would have something to live on, so they could eat, etc. No one said it should be 1/3, 1/2, 5/16ths or whatever of the retired person's income. That's what the Wall Street know-it-alls preach today. It was and is meant to be insurance against starvation and homelessness for those who DID work hard during their lives. I am old enough to remember poor men, who slept in cardboard shacks, coming to our back door and asking for work so they could eat. Mother always gave them a plate of food, a chore to do, and a few coins for the next meal. Most of these men had worked hard their whole lives, but inflation and then the great depression left them with nothing. Did you ever read "The Grapes of Wrath"?

Victory in Iraq per sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:05 AM:Pentagon institute calls Iraq war 'a major debacle' with outcome 'in doubt'
By Jonathan S. Landay and John Walcott
WASHINGTON — The war in Iraq has become "a major debacle" and the outcome "is in doubt" despite improvements in security from the buildup in U.S. forces, according to a highly critical study published Thursday by the Pentagon's premier military educational institute.

The report released by the National Defense University raises fresh doubts about President Bush's projections of a U.S. victory in Iraq just a week after Bush announced that he was suspending U.S. troop reductions.

The report carries considerable weight because it was written by Joseph Collins, a former senior Pentagon official, and was based in part on interviews with other former senior defense and intelligence officials who played roles in prewar preparations.

It was published by the university's National Institute for Strategic Studies, a Defense Department research center.

"Measured in blood and treasure, the war in Iraq has achieved the status of a major war and a major debacle," says the report's opening line.

Apollo wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:09 AM:Re: Ron (8:25 p.m.)
What a surprise to see Ron ridicule those who make their living "by the sweat of their brow."
For Ron, anyone who doesn't make their living by investing in oil companies or from defense contracts is a socialist. Even common laborers.

Cluck wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:09 AM:Nope. wRONg again. The entitlement programs are not what is breaking this country. This war is. All the slick marketing and packaging in the world won't change that. Imagine it on a smaller scale; a family budget. If 70% of your budget went to things that were needed and then you spent more on things that weren't like booze and fancy clothes and cars and boats etc what is causing the budget to be thrown out of whack? A lot of these programs help a lot of people and in turn make this country stronger. Period. Your failure to understand that is typical. You don't want to support these folks, well that's your perogative. But as Americans we are a family. I know that burns a lot of people because of their elitist hatred of a huge portion of Americans, but it is what it is. Typical conservative "personal repsonsibility". You want to turn off the lights so you can drive your fancy car. Your pig is out of lipstick.

Simple Question wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:11 AM:If reenlistments are at record rates then why has the Pentagon had to order a stop/loss? Because of these series of stop-loss orders, the Army alone has blocked the retirements and departures of more than 40,000 soldiers, about 16,000 of them National Guard and reservists who were eligible to leave the service this year.

OBAMACAN wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:14 AM:Newsflash for Ron at 7:59 a.m.:
People who run for president meet a lot of people.
Both Hillary and McCain have had interactions with some pretty sleazy characters over the years themselves.
Obama was 8 years old when Ayers committed his despicable acts. Their relationship since has been extremely remote; like hundreds, maybe thousands of others, the guy held a fundraiser and served on a civic board at the same time.
Once again, thanks to Ron for proving that the only thing Obama detractors have to offer is making fun of his unusual name or citing flaws in others, but nothing directly related to the candidate himself.

To sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:16 AM:How does your position on high re-enlistments apply to the tens of thousands who are currently in forced servitude by stoploss or any of the other "back door draft" tricks currently in play to shore up the manpower shortage?

VET FOR PEACE - wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:17 AM:-- What you said (6:55 AM) is certainly true. You can always detect instantly a mind poisoned by political partisanship when a person condemns John Kerry but upholds McCain as a hero. Like you, “I don’t buy it” either. Minds have been poisoned by the media and partisan propaganda. These “Swiftboaters” are the most un-American people in our country.

Our duty today is to those vets who have been run through the war meat grinder in the Bush War. A major study that just came out this week revealed that 300,000 of our troops suffer from sever depression and PTSD, and many of them from TBI traumatic brain injury. The study said 320,00 suffer from TBI, and unless they get proper medical help soon, they will become dysfunctional, susceptible to drugs, alcohol, violence and criminal behavior. Many are already homeless after being discharged and undiagnosed. In our faltering economy they cannot get decent jobs - or any kind of jobs. Yet this administration totally ignored this coming psychic tsunami until a few reporters and people like Rep. Bob Filner began to turn things around. But it is going to be with us for at least two full generations.

Alf wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:18 AM:Well, "sdraoul" at 9:22AM, proves, once again, that he listens to the one or two voices that emit non-truths (just like GWB does), refuses to listen to the overwhelming truth and continues to revise history as well as current truths to fit his view. If he was a picture, I'm not sure that there are enough "tools" in Photoshop CS3 to remove the distortions that he shows. Mine is not to try, mine is to be entertained by his delusions and distortions. Regards, Alf.

FOCAL POINT wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:20 AM:Reardon[-] wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:44 AM:
They are free to vote anyway that they choose.

Vietnam Vet wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:21 AM:McCain is certainly a “hero” based on all the medals he was given for being a POW. He got all of them, even more than Audie Murphy in WW II. McCain's valor awards are based on what happened in 1967, when during his 23d mission over Vietnam, he was shot down, seriously injured, captured and then spent 5 1/2 brutal years as a POW. He didn’t actually DO ANYTHING. He just got captured and tried to survive.
There are written records of McCain’s own statements after he was released.
Just four days after being captured, he admits he violated the U.S. Code of Conduct by telling his captors "O.K, I'll give you military information if you will take me to the hospital."
Maybe I would have done the same. But this does not make McCain a hero.

Ms M wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:21 AM:Ron I was listening to Hannity the other day and Dick Morris was on. Hannity stated your laundry list of items, Rezko, Rev. Wright, Ayers and said this will make Obama unelectable. Morris then told Hannity that you CANNOT win an election on Rev. Wright etc. The American people are tired of this type of politics. Dick Morris is not a liberal commentator.

Theotis wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:27 AM:About Ken's letter concerning the plans that Vista's city council has...BRAVO! Brother...you should run for Mayor!

to "To Patricia Walker" wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:28 AM:Most people don't like it... Get used to it.

Karl wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:34 AM:To "Mike[-] wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:14 AM:"

I do because I listen to all sides and am not brainwashed by one party or the other. Can you say that? Do you ever read anything from the right or are you happy reading only things that your party agrees with?

SOLON … wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:46 AM:… Does anybody actually read ron’s posts, asked Mike (9:14 AM). Not I -- unless somebody like Alf or DD wiz makes a positive reference or reply. Then I may go back and make a quick scan of the specific comment. Otherwise, no. I’ve heard all his stuff already.

Reardon wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:30 AM:No, it really does not answer my question. Obamamaniacs demand that Superdelegates vote to confirm his lead in popular votes, women demand that women show solidarity with their first candidate, and Blacks are pushing for racial solidarity. There are political and economic pressures being placed on those who are supposed to, like judges, exhibit their independent thought to put before the public the candidate most likely to win in November. The Supers were designed to avoid another Eugene McCarthy debacle -- to keep the Democratic Party from nominating someone so far from the mainstream as to consign the party to oblivion for decades. I understand the concept, I just don't understand the execution of the concept

Re Ups wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:35 AM:sdraoul: Highest reenlistment rates? You are absolutely correct. The bonus is $20,000 to $35,000 depending on your MOS.
That could be an influence. But, I would get out and go to work for Black Water where the big bucks are.

WHEW! wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:35 AM:John McNeal: Do you pay property tax on the street in front of your house? No, I didn't think so.

Jamie wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:38 AM:Hooray to the Waldrons! I agree Steve and Marie care about the city they live in and want to make it better. Steve turned his passion into an enjoyable time for everyone. Also, Marie on the counsel has had to be thick-skinned and do what is right in spite of all the opposition. Way to go! Great letter Gary!

Reardon wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:39 AM:The efforts to cause self-deportation through work-place ID checks are the best thing that can happen to Mexico. It will eventually cause perhaps tens of millions to return to their homes with a knowledge of how a first-world society looks and feels, a skill or the improvement of a skill, and the returnees will take back with them children with some knowledge of English as a language and some amount of education -- far better than they would have received in their own country of origin.

These returnees will not easily be satisfied with an outhouse, a village well, occasional electricity (or none at all), burros for transportation, a village telephone, etc. and they will demand more for their children. They will have learned sanitation procedures far beyond their neighbors, unless they move back to a metropolitan area. They will not be satisfied with police corruption. Their children will immediately suffer culture shock if they live in a remote village, as most do, and immediately demand more.

Demanding more is what drives economies.

OBAMACAN wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:41 AM:Newsflash for Ron at 7:59 a.m.:
People who run for president meet a lot of people.
Both Hillary and McCain have had interactions with some pretty sleazy characters over the years themselves.
Obama was 8 years old when Ayers committed his despicable acts. Their relationship since has been extremely remote; like hundreds, maybe thousands of others, the guy held a fundraiser and served on a civic board at the same time.
Once again, thanks to Ron for proving that the only thing Obama detractors have to offer is making fun of his unusual name or citing flaws in others, but nothing directly related to the candidate himself.
Submitted 10:14 a.m.; re-submitted 11:41 a.m.

FOCAL POINT/VIETNAM VIET wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:43 AM:Vietnam Vet[-] wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:21 AM: You have stated a quote from McCain.
Please reference it with documentation.
Anything you post is suspect since you ally yourself with Jack McLamb.

To Karl wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:47 AM:I am happy to read the right wing point of view but it is pretty much "Liberals Bad" and nothing else. There are some mighty smart Conservatives but they don't happen blog here. And, as much you like to think of yourself as open minded, your posts here indicate you are of a Conservative bent.

For the Record wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:50 AM:McCain's Decorations:Military decorations include the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross. Author.

Floyd wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:56 AM:You are contradicting yourself when you say "most people illegally in the country haven't committed a crime" since it is a crime to illegally enter the country. With thinking like that, you can do us all a favor by staying home on election day!

Alf wrote on Apr 18, 2008 12:41 PM:You were right, "Reardon", it is "skull(s) full of mush". The quote, per IMDB, is "You come in here with a skull full of mush and you leave thinking like a lawyer". It's amazing how my memory wants to make it "minds of mush", but that's because I believe it sounds better as alliteration. Regards, Alf.

Ron wrote on Apr 18, 2008 12:58 PM:I suppose.. "Vista Granny" @10:04 AM,
Maybe I'm just bitter and clinging to my guns & religion. Now, after you've given me that "Grapes of Wrath" comment I'm hoping none of your SS money ends up at the Indian casino. OK?

McCain Dispute wrote on Apr 18, 2008 12:59 PM:Sure McCain got shot down and was a POW. However, did you know that prior to that shootdown day he was on the Forrestal during the massive fire in 1967 killing 134 Sailors, jumped from his turning/burning jet, into burning fuel. With shortage of pilots on the Oriskany and not wanting to go back with the Forrestal for repairs, he volunteered for duty to the Big "O". Then he was shot down. Broken legs, arms and other injuries. Dragged, beaten and stabbed by villagers until Vietnam regulars got him. Was afforded freedom (because the North Viet knew his dad was CINPAC) but he denied them to stay with his comrades. As far as the movies, 32 of them, not too sure about that one. If Vietnam has/had reference story or documentation, please submit it. On a lighter note, how many people here actually write letters to the Editor or just sit here and blast others? I do write letters but never have I have written here. Peace with you all.

Ron wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:21 PM:You know? It is "Getting sicker every day" when a Presidential candidate on the Democratic side has had known linkages to these nutters, and it simply makes no difference to the OBS suffer'ers. It's truly telling.
But William "Bill" Ayers is a whole different can of worms, my friend.
And let me tell you why.
Bill Ayers is an unrepentant terrorist bomber. In fact, as late as 2001, the day of 9/11, he said they had not done enough!??? Does the name Timothy McVeigh have any meaning to you? Causes that's what Bill Ayers & the Underground did back then.
The Obamaman is more than a simple aquaintance, more than a neighbor. You simply won't own up to that.
So the guy takes dirty money from Resko.. You say: No Problem!
The guy sits in a church for 20 years preaching white hatred... and you say:
Well, he didn't say it.
Now, the guy is linked to an unrepentant bomber who wished he'd done more bombing... and you say: I'm dishonest.
Talk about intellectual dishonesty, and bankruptcy. You own it!
And I got news for you my friend, it anit over!
Resko is still in trial, Wright just got himself a big house with a 10 million credit line attached to the church.
Remember what the Obamaman said himself:
Judgement, it's all about judgement, judgement about who you surround yourself with. By the way, did you see my post yesterday about all the lobbyists in his campaign? LOL

Vietnam Vet wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:25 PM:Say, Focal Point (11:43 AM) Don’t be so lazy. Find the quote yourself. That is what Google is for. The quote from McCain did appear in a 1973 issue of U.S. News & World Report. I found at least a dozen sources for this quote. Try the one for archive NewsMax. If you can’t find it, I will help you. But you already made a false assumption in your comment of 11:43am.

Ron wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:27 PM:OK "Randy" @8:25 AM, then try this one on.
The othernight, the Obamaman said he wanted to raise capital gains taxes because it was "fair", not because it was economically sound, or the fiscally right thing to do, NO... because it was "fair."
In that venue, it's not about the company he keep's, cause he anit got any. No economist would ever state it was necessary to raise the capital gains rate out of fairness.
Unless that economist was say.... Karl Marx? Just guessing....

Pffffft! wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:35 PM:Wow! Seems like the story about Cindy Sheehan's appearance at CSUSM has disappeared from the on-line NCT. Must be that liberal bias acting up again.

Oh, Karl wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:43 PM:Reading Ron is rarely reading the view of the right or the Republicans. It's not a matter of party, it's a matter of honoring truth and integrity. Ron's posts are not skipped because he's wrong, though this is also usually true. I skip Ron's posts because there have been SO many times when what he posts prove to be fabrications, spins, half-truths, deflections. If they had an actual valid point of view, I'd give them a lot of respect and read them, but how many hundreds of times do we read replies to Ron that show his posts to be dishonest? I agree with you that people should attend to all sides, but that doesn't mean to include the phony sides! I peeked again recently. Once more, it's about Obama being "linked" to someone with disliked opinions. Puh-lease. LOL

Ron wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:53 PM:Well, what can I say... "Cluck" @
10:09 AM? I'm finding some of these self appointed user names very helpful.
As my my insistance that entitlement programs ARE breaking the back of our country, might I suggest David Walker, former Controller General's assertions about where we are heading without "Reforming" these programs.
And he don't mean: Just throwing more money at them, as we have done hsitorically.
If you think this war is, you are not imformed. Period. I strongly suggest you do some research, cause what tripe your dishing out, just anit so.
I don't know how you run your family budget, but in my family, we budget for hard times, we save. When we deplete our savings, which has never happened, then I would go to credit, short term.
This is not what this Government, or any government since FDR has done.
Your Social Security is very much like this. Let's say you want to send your kid to college, so you put aside a little every month to afford that down the road. Later, you need to buy something else, let's call it healthcare. Better yet, let's call it SCHIP. So, you take the money out of the college fund to buy SCHIP for today.
If you never put the college money back, you have a gap. In short, no college for your kid. UNTIL YOU PUT THE MONEY BACK! It's actually very easy calculating. You can not spend money at two places at the same time. UNLESS... UNLESS you leverage it against something. Now, what do you think that is? The Full Faith & Credit of the United States Government. And that is YOU. And your continuing to pay them an increasing level of taxation, to pay back the gap. It's exactly what you do when you run short, you either cut back, which they don't, or you get another job. Since they don't work, they tax... YOU. Clearer now?
Believe me, it anit rocket science.
Now there does come a point in time when you hit the wall on taxes. Too high a tax rate does not produce the revenue, and it stagnates economic growth. People hide their money, even you. It you had to work two jobs, you'd hit a wall too, not enough time, energy, whatever. The systems work the same. Like I said, it anit rocket science.
David Walker says we need to reform them so that we don't keep having to continually raising the taxes to afford them. Gore had it right: LockBox.
Bush had it right: Privatize a portion.
You have to keep the greedy hand of Congress off this money, or they will spend it!
You know what happens to most CEO's when the Fed's find out they have spent in the general fund an employee's retirement money? Prison. And that's where a bunch of these guy's need to go. In my own opinion.

Vietnam Vet wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:54 PM:- You are in very good luck. In the current April 18 issue of US NEWS & World Report is the compete 17-page reproduction of John McCain’s first hand account of his time as a POW. The article was originally published 1973.
We know McCain in given to exaggeration, but this old account is probably the best one available. He admits he traded military information for hospitalization, and that he got very special treatment because his old man was the top admiral in Vietnam.

To: Ron@8:22AM wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:55 PM:A note from future Ron to present Ron: I'm sorry me and my selfish kind felt it was "a burden" to care for the elderly back then, I should be greatful they did not feel that way about me and my generation when our diapers needed changing as babies, And I'm really grateful The kids don't feel that way housing me and changing mine now!

Thanks, for the record wrote on Apr 18, 2008 2:27 PM:My memory lapses: what were John Kerry's medals again? Just kidding. I'm puzzled why we are debating this issue. This happened over 30 years ago. What is McCain's voting record? How has he served the country as a Senator? What are his views of the economy, the constitution, the war, immigration? What can we expect from him if he were to win the White House? Does anything else matter? (I don't believe that anything that happened to him 30 years ago is evidence about his "character", by the way. I think about my behavior 30 years ago and know that it says virtually nothing about who I am now.)

Chris to pffffft wrote on Apr 18, 2008 2:46 PM:Just type in cindy sheehan in the search and the article will come up.

Ms M wrote on Apr 18, 2008 3:18 PM:Ron
[-] wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:53 PM: You know what Ron with all the corporate welfare that we have including tax breaks, billion dollar bailouts etc. I think we would have a few bones to throw at the poor folks in our nation. We used to be a country that took care of ALL it's people, not just a chosen few. A country is only as healthy as it's people. It would be nice to do away

Cluck wrote on Apr 18, 2008 3:27 PM:Nope. wRONg again. Your type reminds me of a line from the book Catch 22; "he knew a lot about a lot of books, except how to enjoy them." You support the war and not entitlement programs. Some of us don't. It aint rocket science. When you have money going in two different directions sooner or later you run out. Clearer now? Some of us think spending money on Americans is more important than spending money on a fiasco of a "war." And apparently some of you don't. You could convince yourself that a circle is a square. Your circular logic only confuses you; it amuses the rest of us.

Speaking of McCain quotes wrote on Apr 18, 2008 4:34 PM:Here's one: In 1997 on 60 Minutes John McCain said the following. "I am a war criminal; I bombed innocent women and children". He bombed innocents, and went up and bombed them some more. Then he watched as over a hundred of his compadres died from the same kind of firepower that he was dropping on those innocents, when explosives went off on his ship, and he said he was horrified to see what napalm and the rest actually did to human beings. Then he got in his plane and dropped some more bombs on the villages. I don't know how you defend that. When it was done at Nuremburg, the defense lost the argument completely. Same here. No, John, that was not noble, regardless of the medals you received. And when you come to us now and say "Bomb bomb Iran" and "We will never surrender" I see the war criminal talking proudly. Sickening.

sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 5:05 PM:Surprise! It is not a crime to be in the country illegally.

sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 5:10 PM:Whos says there are "thousands" of soldiers being held in Iraq by "stop/loss" and a "back door draft." There aren't thosuands, jsut a handful. And, there is no back door draft. There is what there has been since WWII, COG, Convenience of the Government."

Know it all anti-Bush, anti-war people don't know it at all.

sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 5:18 PM:There are over two million people int he armed Forces, stop/loss is not a major or real problem and it is a tool used even when I served 49 years ago. It was called COG then, Convenience of the Government.

The numbers quoted above don't make much sense in that almost a million people have served in Iraq since 2003.
If the number was a million, or like 12-million in WWII I could see a problem. Only anti-war freaks are concenred about "stop/loss" for only a tiny number of people are affected.

sdraoul wrote on Apr 18, 2008 5:24 PM:The report by a man named Collins about Iraq being a "debacle" reflects a disgruntled former DOD employee who disagreed with his superiors. That is not new. Mr Collins will win a fiction award after the election, but for now, his report isn't worth the paper it is written on.

Huh? wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:22 PM:sdraoul assures us that the report on Bush's dirty little war prepared by the National Institute For Strategic Studies, a Defense Department research center, "...isn't worth the paper it is written on.", as they don't, apparently, agree with his insipid drivel.

Did somebody at the National Defense University frighten you as a child?

McCain Dispute wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:41 PM:For the next three or four days, I lapsed from conscious to unconsciousness. During this time, I was taken out to interrogation—which we called a "quiz"—several times. That's when I was hit with all sorts of war-criminal charges. This started on the first day. I refused to give them anything except my name, rank, serial number and date of birth. They beat me around a little bit. I was in such bad shape that when they hit me it would knock me unconscious. They kept saying, "You will not receive any medical treatment until you talk."
I thought that if I just held out, that they'd take me to the hospital. I was fed small amounts of food by the guard and also allowed to drink some water. I was able to hold the water down, but I kept vomiting the food. They called for the officer, It was the man that we came to know very well as "The Bug." He was a psychotic torturer (read more about this guy in ADM Stockdale's book).
Sometime later, "The Bug" came rushing into the room, shouting, "Your father is a big admiral; now we take you to the hospital."
After I had been there about 10 days, a "gook"—which is what we called the North Vietnamese—came in one morning. This man spoke English very well. He asked me how I was, and said, "We have a Frenchman who is here in Hanoi visiting, and would like to take a message back to your family." Being a little naive at the time—you get smarter as you go along with these people—I figured this wasn't a bad deal at all, if this guy would come to see me and go back and tell my family that I was alive. "It Looked to Many as if I Had Been Drugged" I watched the guy try to manipulate it for about an hour and a half trying to get all the bones lined up. This was without benefit of Novocain. It was an extremely painful experience, and I passed out a number of times. He finally just gave up and slapped a chest cast on me. This experience was very fatiguing, and was the reason why later, when some TV film was taken, it looked to many people as if I had been drugged.

You critics forgot to site this item: He (the cat) said, "You will say that you're grateful to the Vietnamese people, and that you're sorry for your crimes." I told him I wouldn't do that.
More to come!

Alf wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:00 PM:How soon people like "sdraoul" forget such quotes as - "And it's my view that the President [Bush 1] got it right both times, that it would have been a mistake for us to get bogged down in the quagmire inside Iraq." —Cheney at the Washington Institute's Soref Symposium, April 29, 1991. AND "And the question in my mind is how many additional American casualties is Saddam worth? And the answer is not very damned many."
—Cheney, at the Discovery Institute in Seattle, Washington, August 1992. Those quotes show a different side of "Dead-eye Dick" than what he advocates now, yet it is into this insanity that he and GWB have led us. Don't let facts get in your way "sdraoul". Words such FIASCO, QUAGMIRE, STUPID, ILL-CONCEIVED, ILL-ADVISED, ILLEGAL, IMMORAL and COUNTERPRODUCTIVE are but a few of the perfect words to describe our presence in Iraq. Regards, Alf.

Karl wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:45 PM:To "Focal Point[-] wrote on Apr 17, 2008 8:11 PM:"

Now here's a leftie I can respect. More power to you FP

Reardon wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:11 PM:I have a question of SDRAOUL and supporters of illegal aliens. There is apparently a group called TechnoPatriots, who sit at home in front of their computers and report to the Border Patrol their sightings of illegal aliens from cameras on telephone poles and a motorhome. Here is my question: Is this activity (in your mind) racist or righteous?

Focal Point wrote on Apr 19, 2008 11:56 AM:Vietnam Vet[-] wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:25 PM I am not lazy. I already know where it is. My pint is that one who offers a quote be able to site the surce in full context, Quotes can be managed to support all types of allegation when taken out of context.

Richard wrote on Apr 19, 2008 4:39 PM:
Martin Giavelli is SO smug when he asserts that breaking the immigration law makes you an illegal, and hence rightfully you should be arrested, tried and convicted/deported. But what if the law is bad policy, immoral, or unjust? And what degree of lawbreaking does a violation constitute?

For instance, would Giavelli call any Jew who failed to report to the lawful NAZI concentration/death camps an "illegal Jew"? Yes, the camps were indeed legal under Germany's interpretation of their constitution and laws.

Giavelli further asserts that he's "never run afoul of the law" in his 50 years in Escondido. Perhaps what he means is that he's never been caught -- and it's likely that he HAS been caught but ignores that fact. ALL of us are criminals in the sense that we violate the law.

If you drive, you are a serial criminal. Run a business, and count on daily criminal violations.

File an itemized tax return? Then your degree of criminality is limited only by your imagination and courage.

Ever copy a song, or software? Ever drink any liquor before reaching age 21? Ever smoke a joint? Ever drive after having two drinks? Had underage sex? Break a curfew? Played cards for money with friends? Bet in the office sports pool? Fudged a bit on a loan application?

I could go on and on. But the good news is that I'm sure that this revelation will cause Giavelli to realize he has a long criminal history, and he'll rush down to the nearest police station to turn himself in, pleading for his maximum punishment.

Uh huh.

Carl wrote on Apr 20, 2008 3:48 PM:Reardon, to your question about those reporting illegals being either "racist or righteous." Your "either or" options are too simplistic. Such monitoring of illegal indeed entry may be racially motivated, but that in itself does not make their effort wrong, immoral or anything else. Nor is enforcing the law necessarily "righteous." If you tattle to an oppressive government about undetected fugitives from unjust or unneeded laws, are you "righteous", or are you just a loyal citizen of the state.

The point is, it's not so simple as you present.