Questing for Atlantis

Who do these people think we are? I mean, come on, the law is the law and if people break the law then we shouldn’t sugarcoat what they’re doing and what they are.

Just look at what they’ve done:

• Not paying taxes even though they enjoyed benefits from government spending programs.
• Destroyed property and polluted the environment with their litter.
• Disrespected their government, burning its flag and putting up their own in its stead.
• Published a manifesto claiming all sorts of rights and privileges they’re entitled to.

If that doesn’t make them all illegals, then I don’t know what does. Except the people I’m talking about didn’t come from Mexico nor are they illegal immigrants – they’re the Founding Fathers.

On multiple different taxes the Founding Fathers and other American colonists didn’t pay taxes to England, either through direct resistance or by resort to smuggling to avoid tariffs.

That property destruction and littering we now call the Boston Tea Party.

I don’t think I need to go into detail on revolutionary burning of the flag of England or the burning of King George and other Crown officials in effigy.

Finally, that manifesto with its claims of rights, that’s the Declaration of Independence.

Now lest people get confused, I’m not seriously suggesting that we should scorn and reject the Founders for violating the law. In fact, I think it is good that we praise them, just as we recognize the heroism of the people in the Civil Rights movement and others who have dared to disobey the law in pursuit of just causes.

The simple fact is that there is no virtue in obeying the law simply because it is the law. Laws are only morally binding when they further the cause of justice and when they go against that, it is not only not wrong to oppose them, it is in fact the virtuous thing to do.

Our Founding Fathers understood that. The illegal immigration hawks of today’s debates would do well to remember it. Laws limiting migration have no place in a just and free society. The Founding Fathers understood that too.

I posted this as a Facebook status earlier today:

Happy 4th everyone. A brief civics lesson. Among the offenses of the King cited in the Declaration is:

“He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither”

Jefferson & co. valued open migration & knew stopping it violates our inalienable rights. Sad how much we’ve forgotten