When you get stuck along Beach Road, better take the Middle Road. This is a website for those who choose to tread Saipan's off the beaten path. * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * +

Dec 8, 2009

Island Snapshocks...


A friend took this photo of a back of a DPS billboard along the Beach Road in Susupe area....

140 comments:

the teacher said...

This is disturbing, but I would suspect it is a kid espousing an ignorant sentiment they heard at home. We should just remove the sign and move on. I hope we don't use this sign as an excuse to fill the blog with racist remarks.

Racists Begone! said...

For hundreds of years the indigenous Chamorro and Refaluwasch cultures have been tolerant and welcoming, where hospitality is among the highest virtues.

By contrast, the United States, for all its ideals, institutions, and aspirations, has a terrible record when it comes to race.

With Federalization, the invidious racism that pervades the USA is coming to the fore.

For over 50 years we've coped with government-approved racism, see the Temengil case, and neglect of Covenant Section 701 -- economic equality with the rest of the U.S. Radio and theater have reinforced racist memes.

But ironically the major cause of racism in the CNMI has been those "change" advocates who claim to be standing up for our hard-working guest laborers.

Every week, year-in, year-out, these "human rights advocates" practice the politics of division, the politics of envy, the politics of hatred.

They play one group off against another, blaming "greedy" business owners for their own ignorance of most elementary economic principles.

They spew vile hatred and invective against "foreign" garment factory owners like US-citizen Willie Tan (an exemplary business person of Chinese ancestry), fomenting xenophobia and fear through terms like SaiTan, BenTan, Tan's puppets, and such envious and racist screeds.

By this steady drum-beat, the so-called reformers seek to create a climate of fear of being controlled and exploited by "outsiders," an anti-semitic, misogynist, and agist approach they also apply to Howard Willens and Deanne Siemer.

You can see it in the pages of these very blogs, an unending stream of vile language, hatred, and invective.

The (perhaps unintentional) major cause of racism in the CNMI is Edwin Propst, Glen Hunter, Tina Sablan, Ron Hodges, Wendy Doromol, and Federalizers like Allen P. Stayman, David Barrett Cohen, and James J. Benedetto.

Fortunately, the people of the CNMI have repudiated such racism in our last election.

But we must remain vigilant against the forces of American racism in our midst.

g00$e said...

Racism is human. Chamorros and Carolinians, being human, are also prone to racism and to assert otherwise is silly.

To assert that the illustrated graffiti is a product of US racism is absurd. It's a product of local economic policy. Federalization is only racist in that it's designed to protect the local work force against foreign domination.

It's surprising this sort of thing hasn't surfaced sooner, what with the marches, petitions, talk of reparations. Many of the 'Guest Workers' have become quite demanding guests. Backlash should be expected and is actually long overdue.

Welcome to reality.

The Sign said...

"Go home
Filipino
Muslim terrorist."

The author can't be referring to too many people here.

Maybe the former Abu Sayaf, spouse-abusing "muchacho" Judge Govendo wanted deported?

There's always one in every crowd.

I'd say events such as the Unity March also contribute to a mob mentality, despite claims to being "peaceful."

Some of the demands of the Petition circulators are quite excessive.

Fortunately the local churches are very multicultural, as are our schools and families.

Ignacio Ignoramus said...

Based on the Filipino population on Saipan, they are mostly Christians...

Who ever wrote this is not one of the brightest bulbs in the chandelier...

LOL said...

What about the other Muslim terrorists? Why only single out the Filipinos?

Filthy Savage said...

American racism? Is thay why the Chamorros think they're better than the Carolinians?

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Anonymous said...

The fact that this grafitti writer is spreading his anti-foreign message in a foreign language (English) shows that there are deeper problems here than he himself may realize.

Voice of Reason said...

To 9:49

And all along I thought it was the status quo slavers vs the decent citizens of the commonwealth.

As for mud throwing and name calling, I think the spokespersons for the decent citizens have been blasted by anonymous posters like you. Ed, Tina, Wendy, Ron, and other have endured much to speak out against oppression, abuse, and human exploitation, and to advance the democratic ideals of our nation, and finally, their persistence and tenacity prevailed because we can now mark Federalization Day on the calendar here.

Anonymous said...

But they were equal opportunity slavers -- Russians, Filipinas, Chinese. All were welcomed into the houses of prostitution, as hostesses or Johns. Never saw a Filipino Muslim terrorist, though.

Thank goodness for DHS ICE DRO!

Anonymous said...

What a bunch of horseshit "begone".

Welcoming? For what purpose? So that a group of people could do all of your real work for you at minimum cost and maximum profit, and never really be invited to be full members of the society?

Pure horseshit.

Anonymous said...

YOU HAVE A HOUSE WITH A HAPPY FAMILY...THE NEXT DAY "JOE" COMES IN YOUR HOUSE AND STARTS SETTING UP RULES ON WHAT YOU CAN AND WHAT YOU CANNOT DO...WOULD YOU LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN TO YOU? THIS IS FEDERALIZATION, MY FRIENDS!!


ALSO THE INVASION OF OUTSIDERS TO OUR SMALL ISLAND...WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU ASSHOLE THINK WE ARE? WE ARE VERY NICE BUT PUSH US TOO MUCH AND WE START FIGHTING BACK!

THE SIGN IS TELLING YOU ALL THAT ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!

Anonymous said...

YOU HAVE A HOUSE WITH A HAPPY FAMILY...THE NEXT DAY "JOE" COMES IN YOUR HOUSE AND STARTS SETTING UP RULES ON WHAT YOU CAN AND WHAT YOU CANNOT DO...WOULD YOU LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN TO YOU? THIS IS FEDERALIZATION, MY FRIENDS!!


ALSO THE INVASION OF OUTSIDERS TO OUR SMALL ISLAND...WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU ASSHOLE THINK WE ARE? WE ARE VERY NICE BUT PUSH US TOO MUCH AND WE START FIGHTING BACK!

THE SIGN IS TELLING YOU ALL THAT ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!

Anonymous said...

YOU HAVE A HOUSE WITH A HAPPY FAMILY...THE NEXT DAY "JOE" COMES IN YOUR HOUSE AND STARTS SETTING UP RULES ON WHAT YOU CAN AND WHAT YOU CANNOT DO...WOULD YOU LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN TO YOU? THIS IS FEDERALIZATION, MY FRIENDS!!


ALSO THE INVASION OF OUTSIDERS TO OUR SMALL ISLAND...WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU ASSHOLE THINK WE ARE? WE ARE VERY NICE BUT PUSH US TOO MUCH AND WE START FIGHTING BACK!

THE SIGN IS TELLING YOU ALL THAT ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!

Anonymous said...

well one thing, one post of your message is more than "enough" to convey your thoughts....

Gatbo na Islas Marianas! said...

Noni 9:49,

While the ancient Chamorros may have been welcoming, they have since been schooled in racism for hundreds of years.

The Spanish had their distinctions between Peninsulares, local-born Europeans, Mestizos, and Indios.

The Japanese put their culture "Ichi Ban," and marginalized the indigenous.

Likewise, the US had their racist three-tier wage schedule (US citizens, third-country nationals, and Micronesians) during TTPI administration, and purposely kept the TTPI like a "zoo" with minimal educational and economic development. See the Solomon Report.

So when you accuse today's "change" activists and Federalizers of being the "(perhaps unintentional) major cause of racism in the CNMI" what you really mean is that they are the heirs of American racism here.

But they didn't cause US racism here since 1944. If anything, their racist attacks on Willie Tan, SaiTan, BenTan, and the other racist slurs you point out are contining the grand tradition of American nativism, xenophobia, and "dog whistle" (hidden, subtle) racism. Anti-Catholicism goes along with that, too.

So the "change" activists and Federalizers could join with Billy Joel:

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it


Unfortunately, when you fight fire with fire (lighting back-fires), or fight racism with counter-racism, someone is going to get burned, and it hurts society as a whole, leading to ever-greater intolerance.

Bitter Edwin Propst and Smart Glen Hunter and their ilk likely did not intend to inflame local hatred and racism through their incessant SaiTan/ BenTan racism, but that is what they have done.

Hopefully the more honorable among them, such as AUSA James J. Benedetto, will have the decency to repudiate the racist tactics of their Unity March fellow travellers.

Regardless, the people of the CNMI have indeed decisively repudiated such Unity March racism in our last election.

Let us rekindle the hospitality the Marianas are known for world wide!

Anonymous said...

David Barrett Cohen was no mere fellow-traveller.

He justifies his federalization flip-flop (coincidentally timed with the 2007 Democrat ascendance in the House of Representatives) and politically-motivated jump aboard the George Miller express train by what he saw as CNMI intransigence and racism.

Yet he himself accused Governor Fitial of being a puppet of the People's Republic of China government!

Cohen has proven himself to be as racist as they come, and works double-time to rationalize and excuse himself. Too bad he apparently never bothered to study CNMI history in depth before becoming a reverse racist.

Anonymous said...

Okaay... so Bangladesh Muslim Terrorist ok? Ya?

Filipino Catholic Terrorist ok? Ya?

Filipino Muslim Tourist ok? Ya?

Yup, I saw it... the Filipino Muslim Terrorist went home. He's back in southern Mindanao now. Problem solved.

Who's next? Chinese Presbyterian Terrorist? Korean Catholic Terrorist?

Will the last terrorist please turn off the lights? Salamat Po.

Anonymous said...

Would any of you Federalizers want somebody to come into your house and tell you who to allow inside, when to do the wifer, when to take a shower, etc, etc??

If you say yes, then you are one stupid idiot!!

Anonymous said...

Cohen is a Jew! Jews are basically racists!!!

Anonymous said...

If he is..he is a Samoan Jew. LOL.
So what? Who really cares?

No Surprise! said...

He's also a vegetarian. (!)

And now making big bucks off his "Pacific connections" with a big Los Angeles shyster law firm. So he gets the last laugh.

------------------------

To assuage any personal guilt from previously supporting the "racist" CNMI guest worker program (and to be on the "winning side"), David Barrett Cohen pulls the plug on it.

The Federalization he engineered cost thousands of CNMI guest workers their jobs and as a result the unemployed had to return to their homelands.

Even if some eventually get status -- to make the self-congratulatory do-gooders feel better -- nothing can help those (with no US-citizen kids) who were sent home.

Political correctness can have unanticipated consequences!

Wasn't terrorism a central argument in the Federalizers' (racist) arsenal?

The graffiti is a predictable consequence of the activists' tactics and arguments.

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Picasso said...

Someone with a can of white spray paint could save lot of typing here.

Anonymous said...

Racist remarks say more about you than the person you're attacking.

Criticizing someone does not make you a racist.

I hope any Filipino Muslim terrorist who reads that does go home-- unless home is here.

Anonymous said...

Anyone who spray paints "GO HOME..." to anybody is too chickenshit to confront the person who made a whole group of people look bad in front of the vandalizer.

FUCKY YOU TOO for tagging public property and contibuting to another eyesore on my island!

BITCH AND MOAN LIKE EVERYONE ELSE and write a fucking letter to the editor in the TRib or MV.


DAMND IDIOT!

Homeland Security, No Exceptions! said...

Federalization is supposed to protect us from terrorists.

They are not legally entitled to “status” here, no matter how long they have dilligently worked for their employers, how long they have called Saipan home, how many disabled US-citizen children they have, or how unfortunate their circumstances in the Philippines.

DHS ICE DRO -- may your Detention and Removal Operations be a success!

It will be interesting to see how many overstayers register with the Interior Ombudsman by December 30th. It is almost guaranteed that those who fail to register will never see US status.

So will they be removed by ICE DRO?

Dilemas, dilemas.

Federalization: You asked for it; you got it!

Anonymous said...

Federalization: We demanded it, and it was granted to us.

Anonymous said...

Homeland 11:24 is just pissed that he/she's got to raise their own, damn spawn.

I wish disability on you and I hope your kids are evil just like you. Justice would be that you would be put in the care of someone that is other than your perfect race!

I hope you kiss the bishop's ring every Sunday, because your wiring is all crossed up! You're going to need help to enter the Pearly Gates, Demon!

Homeland Security, No Exceptions! said...

So you are saying that terrorism was just a pretext for federalization?

Getting rid of housemaids and nannies was certainly one of Congress's purposes. I pray you come to learn what a blessing, privilege, honor, and delight it is to raise children, and that you do a particularly loving job at the first six years of if because that instills life-long habits and character.

If you truly love your children, give them the nurturing environment of a committed marriage and don't even think of (or joke about) divorce!

Each child has a right to live with a loving father and mother as role models. Without them together, life will by infinitely more emotionally and psychologically challenging. Think of the children! They deserve married parents.

I pray for health in mind and body for you and your children, and that you empower them enough to bring them back to the Philippines with you to be raised in a loving community where they will be welcomed and valued.

But if, after sober deliberation, you decide that leaving them here is your only realistic option, I hope you will take comfort in knowing they will be cared for by the harmonious, multi-racial society of which I am a part and which my family exemplifies.

Finally, if extraordinary relief is called for, I hope you will consider a “Private Citizenship Bill” (Private Law 111-xxx) from Del. Kilili Sablan.

May you learn to repay evil with good, and not become bitter like some in my midst.

I bear not an iota of ill will toward anyone. I am particularly well disposed to those countries that some well-intended activists seek to make unsustainable by draining their best and brightest.

As a community we should not be so greedy and self-centered.

Respect is important, but far more important than kissing rings is listening to the Word of God at least every Sunday, putting it into practice, and studying 2,000 years of Catholic teaching, as summarized, for instance, in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Each of us should attend to his own soul. God doesn't force anyone to believe; so we can't force others in light of their Free Will.

Anonymous said...

There is nothing evil or “twisted” about denying status to terrorists.

That is the law. Are you saying you are a terrorist?

If not, those comments about being absolutely barred from any hope for status do not apply to you.

Anonymous said...

yes.. strange post.

Anonymous said...

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Armchair Lawyer said...

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 2241:

The more prosperous nations are obliged, to the extent they are able, to welcome the foreigner in search of the security and the means of livelihood which he cannot find in his country of origin. Public authorities should see to it that the natural right is respected that places a guest under the protection of those who receive him.

Political authorities, for the sake of the common good for which they are responsible, may make the exercise of the right to immigrate subject to various juridical conditions, especially with regard to the immigrants' duties toward their country of adoption. Immigrants are obliged to respect with gratitude the material and spiritual heritage of the country that receives them, to obey its laws and to assist in carrying civic burdens.

Id., reprinted at
http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p3s2c2a4.htm#2241.

This implicates the decisive moral issue of the extent to which the CNMI is able “to welcome the foreigner in search of the security and the means of livelihood which he cannot find in his country of origin,” on an immigrant, as opposed to non-immigrant, basis, and in what number.

Of course, the CNMI is not a “nation,” but the same moral principles apply.

It is gravely unfortunate that the U.S. Congress utterly failed to undertake an econcomic study of the impact wage and immigration federalization would have on the CNMI economy.

At the very least this should be accomplished before a decision is made on any status adjustment.

Calling Saipan Middle Road! said...

Could someone kindly delete the two instances of blatant unsolicited commercial comments (SPAM) that are befouling your blog?!

Anonymous said...

9:49 - That is not only twisted, but indeed disengenious, perhaps your specialty.

Anonymous said...

9:49 - That is not only twisted, but indeed disengenious, perhaps your specialty.

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Anonymous said...

Let it BE!

Anonymous said...

What's up with these blogspots? They're all requesting "invitation" only. Goes to show that Ed Propst, the Daily Yapper and Lil Hammerhead are all connected somehow. hmm. Say it isn't so for you middleroader...

Anonymous said...

Now they will spew their racism only among like-minded individuals.

HA!

Behind Closed Doors said...

The implementation of Pub. L. 110-229 is likely to be the major issue in next year's Congressional Delegate campaign.

Will Tina Sablan run against Kilili?

Maybe that's what they're plotting. Transparency? HA!

Anonymous said...

I am a long term contract worker in Saipan my advice to fellow workers stop listening to tita wendy, tito jim & Abu sayed. You might get improved status if you go for the "LET IT BE" team.

Unknown said...

And they wonder why our tourism industry has slowed down...

Tina in '10 said...

Tina Sablan is a voice in the wilderness crying out against racism.

Sign the Guest Worker “Status Petition” and strike a blow for freedom and labor empowerment for all humankind.

Your signature on the Petition is also a signature for her to be our next Delegate to Congress!

Anonymous said...

Time to change the thread.. how about commenting on the Fitial Transition Team and it's wonderful leaders.

Anonymous said...

Since you mentioned it... thought I would repost this comment from the previous thread:

"The administration should start sweeping out the trash in its transition team! Who's doing the "top to bottom" review of the guys who are supposed to be doing a "top to bottom" review of the government?

Look at this gang of winners:

http://www.saipantribune.com/newsstory.aspx?cat=1&newsID=95876

What does the Covenant Party chairman know about the Office of the Attorney General?

Why is a convicted felon and known thief/con artist (Oscar Rasa) in charge of reviewing the Department of Public Lands?

What the hell does Ana S. Teregeyo know about the Office of the Public Defender?

What does Danny Buniag know about natural resources?

What does a fisheries guy (Jack Ogumoro) know about running airports and seaports?

Why is scam artist and government leach Jack Manglona in charge of reviewing CDA? (Someone check if he owes them money too!)

What the hell does Pete Paduna know about MVA and the tourism industry?

Why, Lord, WHY is Oscar Babauta in charge of the Commonwealth Election Commission?

What a joke! Let it be, let it be -- let it be a friggin nightmare!"

Anonymous said...

Yep, my sentiments exactly. Fitial said that "heads will roll" ... but all that means is that some old losers and misfits will be replaced with new losers and misfits. The dumber the better.

Boy are we in for a looooooooong five years.

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Racists Begone! said...

This is the thread for discussing racism in the CNMI. The next one is for discussing the BE Administration, including any reshuffling.

Speaking of racists, did you notice the post of The Yapper in his blog Friday that he is moving to Oregon?

Good riddance!

Federalization isn't all bad. It will cleanse the CNMI of some of its racist haole riff-raff.

Anonymous said...

I always thought the Yapper was Angelo! Oregon is a smoke screen for Florida. LOL!

the wise man said...

The Yapper is Angelo.

Tina will not run against Killi.

"racist begone" is Deanne Schiemer.

Oscar Rasa is not only a thieving crook, anyone that would place him in a position of public trust is a thug as well, and all his supporters are sad excuses for people.

Anonymous said...

Daily Yapper is Glen Hunter

Pragmatic Plato is Glen Hunter

The Truth Hurts on the Variety website is Glen Hunter

Hammerhead is Roberta Guerrero

Anonymous said...

I love all those blogs! We need more Glens, Angelos, Robertas, Yappers, Platos, and Hammerheads! Sharp, funny, intelligent, sarcastic... more insightful and waaaaay smarter than a lot of the losers and creeps who comment on this site.

Anonymous said...

I miss those blogs too. One thing I noticed they could attack others but they sure shut others down if they did not agree with them or were attacked.

Anonymous said...

really? i never noticed that... i always thought they all handled criticism and disagreement pretty well. though i have to be honest, i rarey disagreed. lol.

yapper, plato, and hammerhead could take as much as they dished out and they did it with humor and flair. not everyone "got" it though, because not everyone can handle having their ideas challenged, but so what? that's life.

hard truth said...

Bruce Batman is a vile faggot who got a do nothing job for character assinations and he makes the CNMI look like idiots for paying him as a marketing dipstick that defames and embarrasses every unemployed local on the island.

Anonymous said...

Angelo is not the Yapper... the Yapper works with other people on various blogs, including that Saipan Fake News (which is really funny, btw).

Angelo does his own thing, in general as Saipan Blogger.

Bruce and Glen have had a very serious row with both trying to get the other fired from their jobs. I try not to get in the cross-fire.

I used to believe in signing your name, but the blogs have gotten so vicious and personal, it's not worth it.

People dragged Ed's kids into the fray, and I think that was out of line.

But on topic, this blog thread is about race and to me, that is one of the distractions from the real problems facing this Commonwealth.

I think that the top down review has to be done with openness and I look forward to reviewing the work and recommendations from Basa, Teregeyo, et al.

Anonymous said...

Of the blogs mentioned above, only Lillian F. Hammerhead had any sort of tolerance toward opposing views, and only then if done with a great deal of civility while taking the part of defending her blog moderator duties in the face of impolite attacks on her.

At least she was not a racist, even if she occasionally and incorrectly accused those with a strict constructionist view of guest worker rights (and a view of world-wide sustainability of their homelands) of being racist themselves.

Be NICE! said...

I will never understand some bloggers' obsession with politeness.

"Impoliteness is the thing you whine about when your asinine argument has been soundly and deservedly ripped apart and you have nothing else to say."

Anonymous said...

No whine, just fact.

Read the comments in the last six or seven threads that display a gross lack of respect, contrary to everything the CNMI stands for.

Indeed, the racism is downright rude!

The CNMI is a place where every criminal defendant, victim, and most newsmakers are identified by ethnicity, something that hasn't happened in the rest of the United States since the South in the 1950s and 1960s.

People persist in a group-based dynamic (ethnic groups, guest workers, "greedy" businesses, "local" workers, etc.) and continuously draw distinctions about who is "better" than whom based on factors such as Article XII, education levels, culture, language skills, etc.

That is a receipe for ongoing racism, political bias, and hate, as we've seen in these blogs.

The solution is respect, kindness, and courtesy.

It has nothing to do with "winning" a blog "debate" or proving one's superiority.

It is about restoring the welcoming hospitality the CNMI was once known for.

If some unfortunate individual whose parents' divorce has caused existential angst is using his intelligence to play with us, we need to respond with politeness, courtesy, and civility -- even as he strives to bring us down to his level.

Love is stronger than hate.

Truth is stronger than lies.

Sophistry notwithstanding.

Anonymous said...

Hmm. Not sure where you're going with the "parents' divorce" thing, but that's ok, it doesn't really matter.

I don't like racism any more than you do, but I doubt you're going to convince your average racist to change his ways by chastising him for being "downright rude" and telling him to be more "hospitable."

And you're certainly not going to win any hearts and minds by making scapegoats out of people you disagree with. I'm thinking specifically of this comment upthread:

"The ... major cause of racism in the CNMI is Edwin Propst, Glen Hunter, Tina Sablan, Ron Hodges, Wendy Doromol, and Federalizers like Allen P. Stayman, David Barrett Cohen, and James J. Benedetto."

Seriously? You blame THOSE guys for racism? The most mixed bunch of people in the room at any party? In that circle of people alone, you've got a nice slice of what America, and the CNMI, are all about.

Racism is a monstrous form of ignorance, pal. You can either ignore it when it's seeking attention and diminish its power that way, or confront it directly and bring all that ugliness to a head... kind of like a boil, but grosser.

You might never change the racist, but you might be able to reach the people who just don't know any better.

Anonymous said...

Your point is well-taken, though even the highly-intelligent (Zaldy's "thinking class") have their zones of ignorance. But I think this quote upthread answers that:

So when you accuse today's "change" activists and Federalizers of being the "(perhaps unintentional) major cause of racism in the CNMI" what you really mean is that they are the heirs of American racism here.

But they didn't cause US racism here since 1944. If anything, their racist attacks on Willie Tan, SaiTan, BenTan, and the other racist slurs you point out are contining the grand tradition of American nativism, xenophobia, and "dog whistle" (hidden, subtle) racism.

Anonymous said...

Uh, I don't think that comment answers me at all.

Why do you assume that "Edwin Propst, Glen Hunter, Tina Sablan, Ron Hodges, Wendy Doromol, and Federalizers like Allen P. Stayman, David Barrett Cohen, and James J. Benedetto" are the ones responsible for what you perceive as racist slurs?

I'm not even sure I see anything inherently "racist" about anyone scrutinizing/criticizing Wille Tan and Ben Fitial, and the well-known ties between the two which go back years.

And what exactly do you mean by "US racism" and being an "heir" of that?

That makes no sense to me at all. I must not be one of the thinking class. ;-)

Anonymous said...

The legacy of U.S. racism is Temengil (three-tier wage structure for U.S. citizens, third country nationals, and Micronesians), the TTPI zoo policy (decades of stunted growth), post-TTPI economic neglect motivated in part by the CNMI residents being a discrete and insular minority (and despite Covenant Section 701), and the inherent racism of American society which, despite the election of our first non-Anglo president, has not gone away.

Some federalizer advocates actually make the slurs, whereas the more sophisticated ones hold the USA as a flawless beacon of light to the downtrodden CNMI, or espouse a paternalistic (inherently colonialist, which is based on racism) mentality such as Jim Benedetto blaming Fitial for not drafting the Federalization bill that Fitial knew well would be the economic doom of our people.

Although Willie Tan is a U.S. citizen, he and his businesses are referred to ad nauseum as "Chinese" by those who disparage him and his accomplishments. Likewise, the use of his Chinese surname in epithets like SaiTan plays on xenophobic fears of foreign domination.

One could go on and on, but if you think a bit more, you'll get the point. Colonialism is racism.

Anonymous said...

Dude, if you look hard enough, you can find racism ANYWHERE.

For instance, I think your view of the people of the CNMI is paternalistic and offensive. To you we are all just a passive, generally ignorant group of people. We "inherited" racism from our U.S. colonial masters. We weren't "allowed" to develop because our colonial masters wouldn't help us grow. We are all poor victims of a system we are powerless to fight.

There is something inherently dehumanizing about denying the free choices that we have made, ourselves, as individuals and as a people to drive the CNMI into the ground. Imposing victimhood on an entire group of people is paternalistic.

Anonymous said...

The above does not accept and is not premised on a passive CNMI victimhood meme.

That is the attitude Fitial has fought against in trying to develop a free market economy here.

A major setback to the CNMI economy has been those who espouse the politics of envy -- such as characterizations of “foreign” investors as greedy.

I placed that in quotes because it is literally true they are foreign, but that group indentity receives primacy over individuality.

Hold individuals responsible for their actions, but do not blame whole races or other groups for the sins of the lot.

And, yes, this applies to progressive activists.

g00$e said...

Racism is human. 'Us versus Them' is programmed at the cellular level as part of survival plan that includes other useful human traits like hatred and the predatory drive. It's proven useful but like many survival plans it has its down side. Sort of like the Patriot Act.

Racism was probably pretty low key prior to the arrival of the Europeans, if only for lack of racial diversity.

If anybody 'introduced' racism here it was the Church.

Anonymous said...

Actually, they tended to ameliorate the racism of the Spanish colonial system.

See "The Mission."

the wise man said...

The "federalizers" are just concerned citizens, they have no “group”, and they are not racists.

If any hatred has come from that group of individuals it is a disdain for watching workers kicked around by bad employers in a broken system. Anyone denying that we haven't had a problem with labor abuse (and labor abuse does not normally mean physical abuse) here is a liar.

This case has never been we vs them or locals vs workers, it has always been intended to create a better future for citizens here and to fulfill financial and moral obligations to foreign national workers. Going forward, the citizens should be proud of the reform instituted here.

Some hide ridicules accusations with superb vocabulary skill as a disingenuous ploy to deceive the masses in anonymity.

Saipan has less racism than the Southern or Midwest US. The assimilation of cultures here is remarkable in food, clothing, and language. This is strength here, not a serious societal problem. Most of what we do have is split between our financially challenged and our educationally challenged residents. We should require all public HS students to take two years of Japanese, Korean, Russian, or Mandarin. There is nothing wrong with people wanting to maintain language, but English is the language of law, and the aforementioned offer tremendous opportunity for the future of our young people. This is not meant against the Carolinian, Chamorro, or Tagalong languages at all, but only the economic facts of tourism and business trends here.

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In one respect the Japanese era didn't help, with respect to a racial hierarchy and attitudes. To this day Japan remains one of the most homogenous countries in the world.

Yet as Noni 2:18 points out, the degree of cultural assimilation here in the CNMI is remarkable.

During the Japanese time we had Japanese, Korean, and Okinawan workers here. While repatriated after the war, they set the stage for the CNMI's successful guest worker program in the 1980s.

Men of goodwill can make good things happen even out of adversity.

Peace!

Tina in '10 said...

Your praise for the CNMI's guest worker program omitted the obligatory denunciation of abuses. That could mean you are ignoring them, or even that you support them and are a racist yourself.

What? All the abuses have been violations of federal law since January 9, 1978?

Oh.

g00$e said...

Ameliorate? 'The Mission'? De Niro's performance was memorable but Magellan was a fundamentalist Catolico terrorist. The Taliban look like Grace Christian school boys compared to the entity that produced folks like Magellan.

Federalization is a result of failed local immigration policy. It's got a fair amount of 'Us versus Them' built in to it but the major issues of contention surrounding it are rooted in the divergent views of who 'Us' and 'Them' is.

Anonymous said...

If Uncle Ben wanted to consolidate his power and create unity in the CNMI, he would use the "federalizers" to his advantage, as there were only several that controlled the case and caused federalization. That may be better than having them work against us.

g00$e said...

His power is pretty much absolute right now, but you're right- the Feds could serve him well three and half years from now.

Anonymous said...

in most big companies here, you're hired according to your qualifications and abilities. it is in smaller companies where unfairness is rampant. where alien managers are placed because of their nationality. then they hire alien workers of a different nationality who do most of the work at a much lower pay with no other benefits or much lesser benefits than the others.

Anonymous said...

Your blaming Catholicism for the excesses of Magellan is but the flip side of the same coin as those who blame CNMI federalizer activists for the ongoing legacy of American racism here.

Catholicism was the first institution in human history to reject racism in toto. Salvation was offered to all, regardless of race, ethnicity, or citizenship.

Politicians and conquistadores who tried to use the Church for their own purposes were violating clear and consistent Catholic teachings.

Likewise, American constitutional law is clear in rejecting racism, however long this may have taken. Temengil was based on the fact that, unlike the CNMI since November 4, 1986, the TTPI was not part of the United States under federal sovereignty.

The flaws of federalization (such as no economic study) are not due to racism so much as political partisanship.

The CNMI had no Delegate to Congress, and so had to hire a lobbyist to effectively make their voice heard. Unfortunately, they chose the wrong one. When he and his party fell from grace and power, the vindictive political retribution was swift and inevitable.

As much as the federalizers continue to deny this, blaming it solely on labor abuses here -- despite the fact that these were and are violations of federal law -- the historical record is clear that Pelosi, Miller, and Allen P. Stayman acted out of such political and pro-union calculations, not out of any great concern for what the people of the CNMI themselves wanted.

This political gamesmanship does not seem racially motivated except to the extent noted above that one could find racism anywhere if arguing hard enough, such as the anti-colonial critique.

Tina in '10 said...

Fortunately progressives like Sam McPhetres write the history books. They get the last word.

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Snowball in Hell said...

That would be UNfortunately, not fortunately that these paternalistic left-over white hippies from the peace corps write the history.

Surely you jest. Tina in 10 has as much chance as tina in 09 did. Didn't you get the picture? She and her system were soundly repudiated at the polls. One might say that she was beaten like a baby seal. A rerun? Bwahahaaaaaaaaa

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Peace Corps, yes lots of them still around... I remember Guy Gabaldan kept calling them the Fleece Corps.:}

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