...I'm asking...no actually, respectfully imploring...that you stop for a moment and think about and consider this before you boycott our state.
People before politics.
The ones who will actually suffer from your boycott are the citizens, us the everyday people like me, of Arizona. The media and the other politicians across the nation keep focusing on the Arizona politicians who voted this bill in but what about the voice of the people here? Who in the media and in Washington is thinking about us because I can tell you from ground level that all my friends here are so against this bill. Thankfully, there are blogs and social networking sites where we the people can speak up and be heard.
So today, thank you for taking a moment to listen to a resident of Arizona and not a politician. People before politics.
Because my heart is in such pain over this, for the first time in my 5 year blogging career, I'm talking politics on my blog not because I care about politics but because I care very much in fact about the people of Arizona and how we are going to suffer the financial and economic fallout of the very narrow minded and self-serving actions of certain politicians who currently have power in office.
The politicians who voted this unwise bill in will continue to pound their chests and keep fighting their position to the nation while in the meantime, the people and our families of Arizona will suffer economically as a result.
Who actually voted this bill into law?
The media has focused on the politicians and whatever inciting information they can get their hands on to make our state and everyone who lives here look evil. In your decision to boycott our state or not, please consider this information too:
The people, the citizens of Arizona, did not vote this bill into law. The politicians did. And when I say politicians, I'm not talking about leaders who think of the higher good for all concerned, I'm talking about politicians who are focused on agenda...and their own agenda to be specific. In this case, it was politics before people.
What this bill is actually about
In my opinion, and you can disagree with me, this bill is not about what is best for the people or state of Arizona, it is about frustration and a fight of power and control with the Obama administration. This is about politics and power not people. This is about ego not heart.
Yes, we have serious problems with the border, Yes, there were promises made to make immigration a priority. And yes, this is the best solution the current politicians of Arizona could come up with. Yes, it is all bad and frustrating, but this bill and boycotting the state are not the solutions to make a bad problem become better.
Gandhi fought a war with no guns. He's proven that humans can find peaceful solutions to really bad situations. I believe we can evolve and stop fighting ego against ego. I believe we can stop doing the same old thing and making this about who's right and who's wrong, and simply focus on what is the right thing to do for all concerned. No one will get everything they want and this immigration situation may never be ideal but I believe we can be rational and compromise.
Help us rather than punish us. Compassion before combating.
Within over a week this bill passed the House, the Senate, and was signed by the Governor. What say or influence did the people have in this process? Obviously, very little. Again, the people, the voting population of Arizona did not vote this bill into law, our politicians did, and as a citizen I can tell you that these politicians absolutely do not speak for me or the many, many others who live here.
So please, do remember to separate the people of Arizona from our politicians when saying that Arizona sucks. Because in this specific situation, I agree with you, our politicians totally suck on their problem-solving ability related to immigration and problems at the border. We the people who live here are doing what we can to get this bill overturned and get back some kind of power because this bill is wrong on so many levels, but mainly it is just wrong on a human level, on a heart level.
What we the people of Arizona need is not for you to boycott our state, and combat anger with anger but for you to help us find ways or spark ideas to get this bill overturned in a way that does not make innocent everyday people suffer in the process.
I get that you're all pissed and want to do something, I'm with you! If you gotta punish someone, punish the actions of the politicians not us the people. We're struggling to live right now, and boycotting is going to make it worse for us.
Please have some compassion for the people who live in our state. People before politics. If you say you're about humanity, than also think about the humanity of the everyday people who live here and how we are supposed to eat, pay rent and mortgages, buy gas and basically just live. I gotta believe that you also can't support actions to punish the people along with the politicians. I gotta believe that we as a nation and as a world can be way more creative and smarter than to fight this bill with economic starvation of the state because again by taking that route we are putting politics before people.
Why I a minority, female, small business owner love Arizona
I can share with you personally, I am feeling enormous pain in my heart because the people here are so warm and friendly. I moved here from California, Silicon Valley to be specific, and I can tell you that my experience here has been nothing short of wonderful and amazing. Moving to Phoenix is one of the best things I've done in my life. I've made more friends here in 6 months than I have in the last 3 years living in California.
As a single, minority female, small business owner related to social media and healthy living, I have also experienced more economic opportunity here than I did in Silicon Valley. Why? Because there is less competition and more opportunity. The cost of living is 1/2 of what I was paying before so my run rate is much longer and less stressful.
The people here actually care about you the person, not who's funding you, who's your power friends, or how your agenda can facilitate their agenda. And yeah, you get to wear shorts and t-shirts on Thanksgiving and Christmas day because it's 75 degrees, and the desert is beautiful with the red rocks and rich Orange sunsets.
Don't take to heart all the statistics the news is feeding you
This statistic and similar ones like it that has been widely used in the news that says to the effect, "Arizona Voters Favor Welcoming Immigration Policy, 64% Support New Immigration Law" is sourced primarily from Rasmussen Reports, a company that does public polling. The analytics geek in me always wants to know the source and specifics of any statistic I see especially when it's an alarming stat because stats can easily be manipulated to be made much worse than in actuality.
In their polls about this immigration law, Rasmussen publicly reveals the questions asked of the respondents and how many people they polled. In the latest poll about this immigration law where the claim that 64% of Arizona voters support this bill is actually 500 "Likely Voters"...yes only 500 Arizona citizens were polled by Rasmussen on 4/27/10.
So essentially, only 320 people who live in Arizona, who may or may not vote, support this bill, according to this poll. The city of Phoenix alone is 1.5 million people, and the 5th largest city in the U.S. 320 people does not represent the entire voting population nor the voice of the people of Arizona.
Is it time to boycott?
Thank you again for taking the time to read this, just one voice of an everyday person who lives in Arizona. If you choose to boycott our state, I may not like your decision but I can accept it. We can't change people only ourselves. But before you make that decision and take action, I ask you again to think about people before politics. The great leaders and people of our generation are the ones who will be able to affect change and transform people's hearts because they have transformed their own heart. Let's seek our hearts to give us the wisdom we need to make things right.
