Wall Street Journal Wrap-up

Here are some of the relevant parts of a recent Wall Street Journal wrap-up of the Semler Story . . . The only obvious error is that once again the media falls for the notion that the Minutemen are some widespread national movement instead of a bunch of wackos. Example: Do you any other important national "movement" where you can send in a check for 50 bucks and then a few weeks later become the Grand Poobah of your area?

Still, a good article and here's an excerpt:

An elderly woman's appointment to a local parks board doesn't normally generate controversy. But in Kansas City, Mo., Frances Semler's new position on the city's Parks and Recreation board has unexpectedly fanned the flames of the debate over illegal immigration.

The 73-year-old Mrs. Semler is an activist in the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, a controversial volunteer civilian patrol formed two years ago to secure U.S. borders and crack down on illegal immigrants. While President Bush has denounced the Minutemen as "vigilantes," and human-rights organizations express concern that a group they consider extremist and bent on taking the law into its own hands is winning over ordinary Americans, the group itself is legal -- and growing. And as the stir over Mrs. Semler's appointment shows, the Minutemen's influence has spread deep into Middle America, far from the U.S.-Mexico borders where the anti-illegal-immigrant group originated.

The controversy began on June 11, when Kansas City's new mayor, Mark Funkhouser, announced he was replacing a Parks and Recreation board that he said was rooted in a "culture of elitism and community divisiveness" with new commissioners representing a "wealth of experience, perspective and diversity." Mrs. Semler was one of five new commissioners.

The next day, her connection to the local Minutemen chapter was made public by the daily Kansas City Star. The city's National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Coalition of Hispanic Organizations, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Jewish Community Relations Bureau held a news conference on June 14 to condemn the appointment. Later that day, the city council, voting 9 to 3, adopted a resolution calling for Mrs. Semler's removal from the parks board.

Hispanic leaders who say they rallied their community to back the mayor -- he won a narrow victory over his African-American opponent -- now say they feel betrayed by Mrs. Semler's appointment. "This is a slap in our face," said Cris Medina, a local Latino leader who is also a third-generation Mexican-American. He said the appointment generates concerns about racial profiling and discomfort among low-income immigrants for whom parks provide free diversion.

"This is about racism and divisiveness -- everything we are not supposed to be about," said council member Beth Gottstein, who voted for Mrs. Semler's removal.

Mrs. Semler, a former president of the county rose society, said in an interview that she had joined the anti-illegal immigrant group late last year because "I believe very strongly in obeying the law." She denies being a racist.

The mayor says he didn't know of Mrs. Semler's affiliation with the Minutemen but doesn't believe it will interfere with her performance. "As long as her personal behavior is good ... I don't see why I should remove her," Mr. Funkhouser said in an interview. The mayor said he chose Mrs. Semler because she is "smart, creative and caring. She is not a racist."

He noted that he had appointed a Hispanic as president of the board and two black men to be commissioners. "Diversity is also about diversity of views," he says.

This last bit is the probably the most laughable part of the whole thing . . . For all of those folks who claim that "Funkhouser isn't a politician" this is proof that in fact HE IS A NOTHING BUT A RUN OF THE MILL POLITICIAN because this is a milquetoast, political answer.

If Funkhouser is vehemently against illegal immigration and wants to join up with a vigilante group . . . FINE. Be a man, stop hiding under your wife's skirt and say so . . . However, talking in nothing but qualifiers and taking a position that defies logic just doesn't look good.

If you follow the logic of this line that only Mayor Funky supporters at The Pitch have picked up on then why not appoint some representatives of NAMBLA to be part of the Mayor's committees? The Mayor's defense is political speak, it means nothing and once again it shows that he's just another politico who had some good marketing that's now starting to fall apart under th light of day.