One Woman's Viewpoint
Merritt Hamilton Allen, whose work is published previously in the Edgewood Independent, will also provide her columns to the Grant County Beat.
When it comes to immigration, no one is happy
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 19 May 2023 19 May 2023
When Title 42 expired on May 11, the southern border did not explode, as many predicted.
That's because President Biden issued an executive order that essentially replaced Title 42 with regard to asylum seekers. The tough new regulations include fast-track deportations for those whose asylum applications don't meet muster or who are here illegally, combined with a five-year ban on re-application.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, thousands of deportations have taken place since the 12th. Additionally, cooperation with Mexico and Guatemala has resulted in greater border security along those nations' southern borders, and other nations in the Western Hemisphere have tightened their immigration policies to stem the flow.
Leading up to the expiration of Title 42, there was a rush to get to the border before the new regulations took effect. With the implementation of the new regulations, the number of migrants crossing illegally has dropped by roughly half. It's unclear if this is a lull or a permanent drop.
The importance of choosing your dance partners
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 12 May 2023 12 May 2023
The conviction of Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio of seditious conspiracy was a blip last week, to the relief of the RNC.
I happened to be in South Florida when it occurred and picked up a local newspaper, the Miami Herald. There was more extensive coverage of trial and conviction as Tarrio hailed from Miami. It wasn't until I hit the editorial page that my jaw dropped.
"Miami's homegrown extremist, former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio, wanted a revolution….what he should get is a lot of years in the slammer for trying to violently overthrow the government…Now, can we finally toss the other Proud Boys from the local GOP executive committee, where this hate group has wormed its way in?" asked the Herald's editorial board.
Wait. What?!
Some further reading (and a couple monthly subscription payments to get past paywalls) revealed that the at least six members of the Miami-Dade Republican Party's executive committee are current or former Proud Boys.
What does victory look like for the pro-life crowd?
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 10 May 2023 10 May 2023
When the legendary founder of Thebes, Cadmus, approached the site of his future city, he sent his companions to get water. The nearby spring was guarded by a dragon that killed most of Cadmus' entourage. Thebes would eventually be established, but without the people Cadmus intended to settle it.
Since then, a victory with little or dubious benefit to the victor is known as a Cadmean victory.
So we come to the Edgewood anti-abortion ordinance.
There are no abortion clinics in Edgewood. New Mexico just created a law proscribing local ordinances banning or curtailing abortion care.
Permission to Fire Granted
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 01 May 2023 01 May 2023
What does the Second Amendment look like in a quiet, residential neighborhood? How does it work? More specifically, 1) who gets to bear arms, 2) what arms can they bear, and 3) who gets to shoot first? New Mexico got a raw look at these questions in the April 5 shooting of Robert Dotson in Farmington at the hands of the Farmington Police Department. The answer to these questions seems to be: anyone without a felony conviction; any weapon; and the fastest on the draw.
Robert Dotson of Farmington, New Mexico, is dead. He was defending his home, his wife and his daughter on April 5 when he was shot to death by officers of the Farmington Police Department. Mr. Dotson was a Second Amendment warrior in the best sense. He likely believed he had the right, the duty, to bear arms in defense of his home and family. And so he exercised his right and did his duty; having done so, he is now dead. His wife widowed, his daughter fatherless.
Three members of the Farmington Police Department, those who killed Mr. Dotson, are not dead. They were defending themselves and their right to go home alive at the end of their shift. They too are Second Amendment warriors, and as front line law enforcement officers they are at war every day. Being on the front line means they see both good guys and bad buys bearing arms, every day. The line between seeing good guys and bad guys may not be seen in the split second it takes to pull the trigger, but the imperative is to go home alive at the end of the shift. So the Farmington warriors rightfully pulled the trigger in a split second judgment.
New Mexico can't run CYFD any longer
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 23 April 2023 23 April 2023
With the announcement of Secretary Barbara Vigil's resignation last week, I heard a death knell for the Child, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) as we know it.
We all know it doesn't work in its current form.
Child welfare was a major topic during the 2023 legislature. 60 child welfare bills were introduced. 51 did not pass. Some say this was because of pressure from the governor.
The most significant legislation that did pass, the creation of a civil rights division in the attorney general's office to investigate, intervene in, and pursue civil actions in the case of civil rights violations on the part of state agencies, was vetoed.
And again, legislation that would create an independent ombudsman office to investigate complaints went absolutely nowhere.
It is very clear that this administration is unwilling to accept any external interference or accountability for CYFD.
Stop talking, I've already labeled you
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 14 April 2023 14 April 2023
I took a bit of a hiatus from social media this winter. And by social media, I mean over-50-social-media, i.e., Facebook with a sprinkling of Twitter and enough LinkedIn to make me feel like I'm working. Instagram is hard and weird, Snapchat – why? And TikTok seems redundant after China already hacked the Office of Personnel Management database a decade ago and stole my detailed personal information.
When I dove back in with some political posts in recent weeks, I should not have been surprised that exactly nothing has changed. Very few read past a headline and my "label" remains etched indelibly in the minds of my friends.
Of course, that label is different depending on who you are. And because I am a moderate Republican, I get the trash talk from both sides. I'm not right-wing enough for a lot of conservatives, while the liberals see me as hating children, women, minorities, and looking for new opportunities to oppress all the above.
No one wants a conversation, and that is a shame because I know a lot of really cool people.
Bright spots in the bleakness
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 07 April 2023 07 April 2023
It's been a bit of a downer of a winter, and I have been keen to write all over it with my opinion. For Holy Week and Easter, it's high time to remember there are some very high-minded and hard-working people doing great things for those who need it most.
I write and talk a lot about New Mexico's very troubled Child, Youth and Families Department (CYFD). I was taping an episode of New Mexico in Focus on NM PBS earlier this winter and one of the topics was the governor's toothless CYFD executive order drafted to provide cover in the face of all the inertia in that agency.
Fellow panelist Dave Mulryan asked off-air, "Isn't there someone working to help these poor children?" The other panelist, Andy Lyman, and I said at the same time, "Maralyn Beck!"
The lost boys
- Category: One Woman's Viewpoint One Woman's Viewpoint
- Published: 31 March 2023 31 March 2023
Coming into the Final Four this weekend is a welcome spring ritual. In both the women's and men's NCAA basketball tournaments, these semifinal rounds cap weeks of tough competition and stunning upsets.
I have been interested in the unique status of college athletes since I was a college student. The demands made of student-athletes and their ability to manage their time and still have a college experience is something that continues to amaze me to this day.
And the pressure! Especially for the big two: football and men's basketball. As exciting and demanding as all college athletic programs are, football and men's basketball bring in the big bucks for their schools and the stress increases accordingly. The "student" in student-athlete often falls by the wayside and football and basketball players move in their own rarefied universe.