Who is looking out for the blue collar worker?

Of course I think she knows the answer and that no one is really looking out for them.

Remember, DC is a city almost devoid of blue collar whites. Only only native born Americans who do blue collar work in DC are blacks. Thus, in Karl Rove’s world, all blue collar is the work of minorities. In Nancy Pelosi’s world, blue collar whites just do not exist (remember her Congressional District is also lacking in blue collar whites.

Both Karl Rove and Nancy Pelosi are hit up every day by white upper middle class families for jobs as underpaid interns in DC. Why would people who live in such a world believe that there are whites who would be willing to work in beef packing, brick laying, or hotel room cleaning.

I guarantee that when Karl Rove visits a place like Davenport, Iowa he is shocked to see whites cleaning rooms, bussing tables, and eotkinh in construction.

I’m shocked – shocked! – to hear Karl Rove say something like this, when it simply reflects what most of those who support massive immigration and immigration “reform” really think. (Others, of course, support “reform” because they also want race-based political power).

The same is true for many construction trades that used to pay a living wage. That’s what bothers me about so much of the debate. It’s presented dishonestly in several ways. There are jobs that Americans used to get to do that are much harder for them to get today because of competition from low wage illegal immigration. In addition some of the jobs are low paying when you consider what they are. The number of illegal immigrants employed in the meat packing industry is huge. Why? It’s bloody dangerous work as well as being difficult. It’s full of serious work-related accidents as well as repetitive motion injuries. Has the industry ever looked at ways to improve the nature of what they do with better technology? Somewhat, but how much of an effort do they have to put into it while they have a ready pool of cheap labor desperate for work? These are some of the aspects of this debate that you hear very little about.

I have visions in my head of a inquisition type screaming “do you want your kid to end up flipping burgers???” and when the victim says the inevitable “no” scream even louder “You snobbish prick! Do you think people who do those jobs are inferior????!!!!”. Gimme a break. I don’t like Rove, I don’t like the administrations+democrats immigration policy, I don’t need these sorts of red herrings to feel that way, either.

Our youth seem to have a special spirit of entitlement from their 175$ athletic shoes to their $150 ipods. Almost every teen we know has their own cell phone and laptop, yet few parents insist that they get part-time or summer jobs to pay for these things.

But there is also a large amount of American non-immigrant youth whose parents can’t afford $175 athletic shoes and $150 ipods. And their parents are working as cashiers, waiters/waitresses, stockers, etc. And sometimes doing more than one job to make ends meet. For every illegal immigrant that has to “pick tomatoes or make beds in Las Vegas”, there’s a poor American citizen who’s doing it also or wants to do it. I see it everyday in my other line of work as a Salvation Army volunteer.

As far as Rove’s comment, I agree with the thoughts of few of you, we all think it. A non-issue as Grey said.

It does me.

Face it. At some level, we’re all pretty snobbish.

Rove’s speaking for a lot of people here, and it’s not just republicans. Most of us have this same idea in our heads. I don’t know if it’s good or bad in the big picture, but definitely is there.

I’m torn between congratulating him for having the balls to say it, or slapping my head for being silly enough to stop mouthing the whole “honorable work” platitude knowing he’ll be stepped on for it (and I am happy to see him stepped on…). Almost no one seems to believe that anymore, unless it’s a temporary situation on the way up.

I actually see nothing wrong with young people taking jobs where they might have to “gasp!� make beds or pick tomatoes (even, Republican young people). Our youth seem to have a special spirit of entitlement from their 175$ athletic shoes to their $150 ipods. Almost every teen we know has their own cell phone and laptop, yet few parents insist that they get part-time or summer jobs to pay for these things. Imo, its called building character, and teaches our young the value of education. After a summer of making beds, what 19 year old would want to drop out of college?

I pretty much agree with you, Kim. My husband dug ditches during his summer vacations (digging foundation footings) and I cleaned up dog crap in order to get experience working with animals (planning for my veterinary career). I not only don’t have a problem with my kids doing these kinds of jobs, I will encourage it.

I think if the statement attributed to Rove had been along the lines that no one wants to aspire to such entry level, menial jobs as their career goals, and no one wants their kids to set the bar there for their goals, it would have been a fairly uncontroversial statement. And nothing wrong either, IMO, with noting that kids can’t fill all such jobs and that there probably is a labor shortage for this sector of the economy. And, noting that if immigrants wish to fill those jobs because they can at least survive rather than staying in the country of their birth where the jobs are nonexistent, then we should acknoweldge that and create a guest worker program or other immigration system which allows for this to happen.

We are creating a permanent underclass, and giving business an unfair advantage by allowing illegal immigrants to come and work for less than the employers would have to pay Americans. What happened to the Republicans belief in the laws of supply and demand???