Please excuse the posts below that will appear in a backward order by airfredd22 Because of the last post appearing firts

If we pay attention to the ramblings of our congress and by that I mean members of both parties, then it is clear that few if any of them have the slightest understanding of that revered document. In your reference to Sen. Patrick Leahy and his attempts to rush through immigration legiskation, please allow me to add that perhaps we need to have a law requiring all legislation to have a minimum of 90 days of public disclosure of any legislative proposal with a waiver of such time limit only available for specific emergency legislation. Even such legislation would have public disclosure requirements that would assure widespread disclosure of said legislative proposals. Fred Speckmann commonsenseforamericans@yahoo.com

The similarity between these immigrant “leaders” and the “race hustlers” like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and many others has led to terrible situation we now have for the many. Your statement “Today, virtually every group has its own "leaders" promoting its minority groups living on the edge of poverty and ignorance. We need to return to the days of common sense and granting the opportunity of immigration to only those people who truly want to become Americans and can truly appreciate the history and culture of America. A basic understanding of the Constitution should be mandatory of these immigrants and for that matter should also be a mandatory class for members of Congress.

I realize that in earlier times many immigrants would come to the U.S. and live in ethnic neighborhoods, but their economic progress usually only came to them once they were forced to learn proper English and their economic advancement within the community became much easier. Your statement, “Today, virtually every group has its own "leaders" promoting its separate identity and different way of life, backed up by zealots for multiculturalism and bilingualism in the general population,” could not be more accurate. An entire industry has grown to serve these people and the result is more poverty and stagnant economic results.

Each immigrant had to have a sponsor that agreed to be financially responsible for the immigrants he or she sponsored. Of course few of the welfare benefits were available in those days. In general, immigrants made efforts to learn the language of the country so that they had a greater opportunity for employment. It’s a simple fact that if you can’t speak the language of the people in the country you live in then you employment opportunities are limited to jobs that involve a broom or a shovel.

My apologies for my following long comment appearing in several sections. I believe that it will appear with the last section first due to the way these comments are posted. Mr. Sowell, once again you have hit the nail on the head. You continuously write columns that are rooted not only in common sense, but show a deep understanding of the realities of today’s world. I am a 65-year-old immigrant from the former East Germany and arrived in the U.S. in 1959 after having escaped from the former East Germany with my parents and sibling in 1957. One of the things I have said to many people over the years is that in those days immigrants came to the United States for the purpose of becoming Americans.

Re: dreadnaught/13, It's a real shame that you came to the conclusion that Mitt Romney lost the election because he was a Mormon. It gives very little credit to the so called "3 million bible Christians," for any intelligence. Of course the question of how you define "3 million Bible Christians" isn't clear in your comment. What is clear is that you do seem to have a prejudice against Mormons. Could you please enlighten the readers of this web site as what your problem with Mormons is? I am of the belief that Christians can't possibly have an objection to Mormons as they are Christians as well and if anything tend to practice what they preach to a greater degree than many members of other denominations. Fred Speckmann

Re: New JAL; well said and to the point, it is the attitude of the people who raise the children and instill a desire for knowledge and teach them that achievement through hard work is the route to success. Dr. Ben Carson's mom should be enshrined as a stirring example of what a mother should be. Fred Speckmann commonsenseforamericans@yahoo.com

Re: RD5, What's your point? If you want to live without electricity or natural gas, the move into the wilderness and do so. No one is stopping you. There are people in this country who choose to live the simple life and do so happily. You too can do so by choice. The ridiculous part of your comment are the words "... that we live on a isolated Island or in a wilderness area where we didn't have to be dependent on electricity or natural gas when they became unavailable." Fred Speckmann commonsenseforamericans@yahoo.com

Re: Francis97, I'm afraid you missed Mr. Sowell's point, he's not talking about intellectual prowess, but physical development. One could add cultural differences as well that exposes athletes to various sports. Tennis and golf are examples where black athletes are not as plentiful as their population percentage, yet basketball is dominated by black athletes because it is played by a higher percentage of black kids from an early age compared to white kids. To acknowledge these differences is simply acknowledging facts as opposed to making claims based on other factors. Fred Speckmann commonsenseforamericans@yahoo.com