Can My Side Tone Down the Overheated Rhetoric Just a Little, Please?

Opponents of Arizona's new immigration law (and I am one of them) need to stop to consider whether much of the overheated rhetoric in which they have engaged is indeed (1) accurate, or unfair hyperbole and/or (2) helpful, or hindering, to their cause.

In light of the most unhelpful (and one might argue unbecoming) remarks on this subject by a certain soon-to-be-retiring Cardinal Archbishop with a large Hispanic population in his diocese, some Catholic bloggers have, understandingly, reacted strongly against the stone-throwing.

Look, I oppose the Arizona law (and wrote a fairly strongly worded blog post in opposition to it a couple of weeks ago). It is bad public policy because some provisions, namely the ones regarding harboring and transporting undocumented aliens, are extremely vague and arguably make certain acts of charity illegal. I also believe that the bill will make policing in Latino neighborhoods more difficult, as residents could be less trusting and less forthcoming with information regarding criminal activity.

That said, the most vocal opponents of this law (including that certain Cardinal Archbishop) are speaking and acting completely irresponsibly. I have long been a proponent of immigration reform that creates a pathway to citizenship for those undocumented immigrants who are already here and makes it easier to legally immigrate to the U.S. But the folks who are supposed to be on my side in this argument are completely alienating me with their overheated rhetoric and name calling.

By the way, I DARE Bud Selig to move the 2011 MLB All-Star game from Arizona, as some idiotic busy-body lefty sportswriters like Mike Lupica have suggested. Like it or not, most people support Arizona’s efforts, and they might not take kindly to Major League Baseball poking its nose in other people’s business.