-Caveat Lector- http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/jarvis3.html Not Hate Crimes, Of Course by Gail Jarvis The South Carolina Lowcountry is experiencing a rash of late night attacks on Hispanic migrant workers. Local black males perpetrate these attacks and the migrant workers make perfect targets. They don't use bank accounts but carry their cash with them; they live in secluded migrant camps usually without telephones or other means of communication; to get to their living quarters they must often walk for miles after dark either alone or with one other companion; typically they don't carry weapons to defend themselves and many do not report being robbed and beaten because they fear possible deportation. These Hispanics are filling low wage manual labor positions, primarily working in farm fields from sunup to sundown. As one newspaper put it, "They wake, they work, they eat, they work, they eat, they sleep and work again." And they must continue to work to be able to send money to support their families in Mexico, Central, and South America. At first local newspapers only briefly mentioned these attacks, but now they are treating them as the serious problem they are. Their coverage is more in-depth and includes pictures of the victims as well as the perpetrators. Also victims are becoming less reluctant to report attacks. Many of the workers were left destitute. One victim gave this description of his encounter; "I was sleeping when they came in with guns and they wanted my money. I moved out of the way and gave them the money under the mattress. They took the wallet and all my documents in it. Now I have nothing. Nothing." Although all victims are Hispanic and all attackers are black, no one has been charged with a "Hate Crime." Instead we read about "robbery and possession of a firearm," "strong-armed robbery," "robbery with a deadly weapon," and "assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature." The migrant workers cooperated with their attackers and did exactly as they were told. What else could they do with guns pointed at them? But after their money and other possessions had been taken, without resistance, they were often beaten, kicked, and pistol-whipped, and some were even shot, though luckily there have been no fatalities yet. Don't these acts of brutality, unwarranted by the circumstances and which targeted a particular cultural group, indicate an unreasonable prejudice toward Hispanics? Shouldn't these attacks be treated as Hate Crimes? The contrast is interesting. One side takes responsibility for its behavior, the other side doesn't. One side resorts to hard work for its sustenance, the other chooses theft. The Hispanics were happy to get work that many disdain, referring to these low-paying jobs as "chump change." Why should they toil in the hot sun eight hours a day when they can make periodic trips to an air- conditioned social services office and walk away with money from the myriad of government entitlement programs? The largess of snared American taxpayers has enabled the government to create entitlement programs that have, in effect, made many wards of the state. But these social programs ignore a basic fact of human nature; if you continue to help someone, they will begin to behave in ways that require additional help. So help, if it is absolutely necessary, should be temporary, not permanent and certainly not cradle-to-grave and generation to generation. And it should be private. Government social programs prevent recipients from developing habits of self-reliance. When people don't have to "earn their keep" they do not develop a work ethic. They take from society but do not contribute. And, with the vocal support of do-gooders, they try to rationalize their behavior using the "cruel society excuse." But our society is not cruel. On the contrary it is permissive to a fault and it doesn't pass judgment on behavior. So why are we surprised that some people have no qualms about stealing the earnings another person has worked so hard to obtain? June 31, 2001 Copyright © 2001 LewRockwell.com <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. 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