I am not accusing the writer here of concealing that fact that they’re talking about illegals, but the headline just calls them “Immigrants”, and the whole tone of the piece seems to say that the illegality is just a product of bigotry, somehow. I’ve added a couple of [illegal]’s where it would do the most good–someone needs to devise a browser plug-in that will do that for MSM immigration stories.

By the way, I’m not sure how they got to the US illegally from Brazil, the traditional way to come if you’re not Mexican is to come legally and overstay, but Brasileiros are frequently encountered by the Border Patrol coming across the Rio Grande. The good news is that they’re leaving because of fear of stepped up enforcement. At least part of the stepped-up enforcement is the ending of the catch and release program for “Other than Mexicans,” exposed here on VDARE.com.

Worried, frustrated [Illegal]immigrants headed back home to Brazil -

By Liz Mineo, Framingham MetroWest Daily News
July 29, 2007

The 51-year-old Brazilian man came [illegally]with plans to stay here for up to six years to save enough money to buy a house in Brazil, two cars for his daughters and secure a life back home.

But after three years of calling Framingham home, the man has decided to go back to Brazil with only part of his dreams fulfilled mainly because, he said, living as an illegal immigrant doesn’t pay off anymore.

“It’s not worth it,” said the man, who doesn’t want to be identified for fear of deportation. “It was good when I first got here, when the money I made here had more value back home. Now it’s not worth all the suffering. That’s why I’m leaving.”

He is not the only one.

Across MetroWest and the Milford area, many Brazilian [illegal]immigrants are packing their belongings and leaving for good as they grow tired of immigration crackdowns, increasing demands from employers to produce working papers, and the worsening exchange rate between the dollar and Brazil’s currency, the real.

For years, illegal immigrants from Brazil have coped with the uncertainty of life here and the threat of deportation because of a favorable exchange rate. When the dollar hit its lowest level in three years this month compared to the Brazilian real, a result of the real’s strengthening due to Brazil’s export boom, many people decided to take the plane home.

A minor victory for common sense in (legal) immigration occurred today at an unlikely place: the Bank of the West tennis championships at the Stanford University courts in Palo Alto, CA.

In a match-up between two twenty-year-olds, Russian Anna Chakvetadze defeated Indian Sania Mirza, 6-3, 6-2.

Two years ago, when Mirza–a Muslim from a predominantly non-Muslim Hindu country–came onto the U.S. tennis scene, she was the target of Islamic Jihadist death threats because she wore short pants and (somewhat) revealing tops.

Extremists wanted her to play in a dress that covers her whole body and face.

Said Siddiqullah Chowdhry, leader of Jamaat-e-Ulema-e-Hind:

“What she wears offends Islam. She will be stopped from playing if she doesn’t adhere to it.”

Police were deployed to protect Mirza in case the threats against her were carried out.[Sania Mirza Will Not Change Dress--Ready to Face Islamic Threats, Kiran Chacube, India Daily, September 16, 2005]

But during the two-week long Bank of the West tournament, not a mention was made of Mirza’s tennis outfits.

Good for Mirza for not backing down. Let’s hope she serves as a model for other Muslim women to adopt traditional western clothing.

A story from CBS News has an item about the death of an African-American soldier in a gang initiation in Germany. Gangs are getting to be a bigger problem in the military with the upsurge in recruiting caused by the war.

wcbstv.com - FBI Report: Gangs Spreading In The Military
Called A Threat To Law Enforcement, National Security
Jul 28, 2007
(CBS) BAGHDAD U.S. Army Sgt. Juwan Johnson got a hero’s welcome while home on leave in June of 2004.

“Not only did I love my son - but my god - I liked the man he was becoming,” his mother, Stephanie Cockrell, remembers.

But that trip home was the last time his family saw him alive.

When Johnson died, he wasn’t in a war zone, he was in Germany.

Sgt. Johnston was beaten to death during a “jump-in”–a gang initiation where the new member allows himself to be beaten half to death to prove he’s tough. Unfortunately, the gang members weren’t very good at beating people half to death, and killed him instead.

The Stars and Stripes has good coverage of this story [Gangs in the Military] and Michelle Malkin did a story in 2005called The Truth About That Cop-Killing Mexican Anti-War Marine, about a Hispanic gangster who was affiliated with the Nuestra Familia prison gang.

Part of the problem is that the need for more soldiers has led to lower standards–CBS says that “The rise in gang activity coincides with the increase in recruits with records. Since 2003, 125,000 recruits with criminal histories have been granted what are known as “moral waivers” for felonies including robbery and assault.”

But they still have some standards:

Military regulations disqualify members of hate groups from enlisting, but there is no specific ban on members of street gangs.

The Fred Thompson “Campaign”s stupid decision to appoint as senior advisor the execrable Spencer Abraham (which completely destroys Thompson’s pretensions to be on the patriotic side in the immigration battle) looks like it is shaping up to be another case study in the power of the Internet to outflank the MSM.

Google News as of Saturday night showed little sign of meaningful comment by traditional conduits on the significance of this insertion of an open-borders enthusiast into the Thompson operation. However, Bloggers have got the message, and are responding.

I will not support Fred Thompson says And Rightly So!

The fact that Thompson has some questionable votes on his record…along with this hiring of Mr. Abraham, tells me all I need to know. He doesn’t get my support. And he shouldn’t get the support of anyone who has a problem with the current immigration status: If Thompson is willing to hire such open border advocates for his campaign, imagine who he’d place into important government positions in charge of borders and national security.

‘Conservatives beware…’ says Vanishing American:

Although we read Thompson’s comments on the appalling Hazleton decision, and we see that he is essentially saying the ‘right’ thing, (though he carefully refers to illegal immigration only), talk is cheap, and actions speak louder than words. So despite his saying what a prudent candidate would say about the court decision on Hazleton, his choice of Abraham speaks louder than his comments about illegal immigration.

VA goes on to discuss and link to a devastating analysis of Thompson by Richard Viguerie.

Bloggin on down the Rogue also gets straight to the point:

Spencer Abraham, no way in Hell, Fred Thompson

and links to several other blogs.

A like-minded internet faction, with different priorites than VDARE.com, is denouncing Abraham because of his Arab heritage and sympathies. Examples are The Gates of Vienna and debbieschlussell.com.

Left to the MSM Inside-the-Beltway crowd Abraham’s appointment would be a ripple. But with facts and arguments circulating so rapidly, my guess is it will prove to be a lethal event.