by MC Williams

Created on: May 26, 2008

My mother use to say "If you are going to go into someone else's country, learn about their culture, know their judicial system and respect them enough to learn the basics of their language." My mother speaks five languages and she knows sign language so she actually lived what she preached to us kids. And the first time you leave the comfort of America you will get a big dose of how much people expect you to do these things when you enter their country.

But I wonder why so many people that travel into our country don't feel the same need to respect this country. Sure many come here because we are a free nation and they want to be a part of that, but then they don't feel the need to be loyal to this country. Why not? If you want to be here, you need to do what it takes to be here and part of being here is being loyal to this country.

Now loyalties can come in many forms. You abide by our laws or you go to jail. You respect our government, even when you disagree with them. You pay taxes (and complain like we all do). You know our language, which is English by the way. You know our Nation Anthem and salute our flag. You be willing to fight for our country, our freedoms and our way of life.

Now some will look at that and say, well not all Americans do all of those things so why should we? Well you are right, but the question is not about born Americans' loyalties. The question is newcomers and their loyalties. I will leave that for another form.

So, you can't live here for a while, send your American earned money back into another country and then claim to be loyal to America. You can't live her a while (tax free) send your American earned money back to another country and claim to be loyal to America. You can't live here for twenty years and still only know your native language and claim to be loyal to America. You can't do all of that and claim loyalty and expect hard working Americans to not be mad when you don't even know English.

And if you are a newcomer that does any of the above you are not a loyal American, you are using our great country and its freedoms to get what you want and then taking it back home'. If you choose to 'use' what we Americans love and work for on a daily basis then you choose for many to not like and respect you while you are here. Because it has become nationally acceptable for Americans to adopt the attitude love it (America) or leave it'.

We (as a nation) do welcome newcomers and we do encourage it, but there has to be a respect from the newcomers or the masses will continue to resent newcomers from being here. And the older I get and the more I watch people use our country and complain how we live and then take American money back home, I see how animosity grows within American citizens. It makes me think more and more about my mothers' words; respect other countries.

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