I returned today from yesterday's relaxing family day to find a comment from "John" on my recent post about Emperor Misha's comments on illegal aliens:

Its funny how you call fellow humans aliens. The more you isolate yourselves from the rest of the world the more alien YOU become..wait and see.

John 03.26.06 - 4:25 pm

This is just the kind of buillshit rhetoric I came into the blogosphere to counter. I responded in the coment area, but this is actually important enough to warrant an actual post. Again, let me post my comments from last week:

I just wish we would call these people what they are and cut it out with the PC bullshit. They are ILLEGAL ALIENS, not "undocumented immigrants" (implying they are legally in the country), not "undocumented workers" (implying they are American workers), but ILLEGAL ALIENS. Call a spade a spade, already.

OK, so who's right? Well, first, it's important to note that "John" somehow has this idea that by calling aliens aliens we are somehow saying they aren't human. Fair enough. Let's look at the actual dictionary definition of the word alien, first as an adjective:

1 a : belonging or relating to another person, place, or thing : STRANGE b : relating, belonging, or owing allegiance to another country or government : FOREIGN
2 : differing in nature or character typically to the point of incompatibility

Now I don't know about you, but I don't see anything there that would imply that there was any sub-human or extra-human aspect of being "alien". There is, however, another entry, as a noun ...

1 : a person of another family, race, or nation
2 : a foreign-born resident who has not been naturalized and is still a subject or citizen of a foreign country; broadly : a foreign-born citizen
3 : EXTRATERRESTRIAL

Notice how you have to get to a very broad definition (as acknowledged by Webster) to even approach anything that would suggest any legitimacy with regard to these people's presence, and only those who are actually citizens. Only the very last definition allows for the term "extraterrestrial" as a synonym. Bottom line: the term "alien" is 100% appropriate and accurate in describing these people.

As for the rest of my comments on the matter, I present the definition of the word "immigrant":

one that immigrates : as a : a person who comes to a country to take up permanent residence b : a plant or animal that becomes established in an area where it was previously unknown

Definition b does not apply. These people are not plants.

But notice that an "immigrant" is one who comes to take up permanent residence. Those who have come here illegally have no intention of taking up permanent residence as Americans, EVER. If they did, they would respect American laws and come here legally. It is unconscionable that anyone would break a country's laws to gain entry and then turn around and swear allegiance to it. They are therefore NOT immigrants.

And just in case any of you pro-illegal alien types feel like perverting the definition of "immigrate", here it is:

to enter and usually become established; especially : to come into a country of which one is not a native for permanent residence

In other words, for these people to "immigrate" to this country, they must have full intention of becoming established here. Pardon my redundance, but it is unconscionable that anyone would break a country's laws to gain entry and then turn around and swear allegiance to it.

RWR