Interview with Dr. Carol Wise on Immigration, Trade, NAFTA, Obama, and American Identity

Obama IS America! was blessed to be able to conduct an interview with the brilliant Dr. Carol Wise, Associate Professor of International Relations at the University of Southern California.  The good Dr. spoke on issues ranging from immigration across the US and Mexican borders, NAFTA and the US economy, our current economic crisis and its world impact, and shifting conceptions of American identity.  

Contained in this blog post, please find:

1.  The OIA! interview with Dr. Wise;

2.  A copy of the interview questions;

3.  A video of Dr. Wise discussing the Mexican drug war and its spillover into the US and a link to the text of a 2006 interview where she discusses Hugo Chavez and his control over oil;

4.  Links to news articles relevant to the discussion of immigration issues and the United States.

Interview: 

Questions:

1. Firstly, do you think you can give us your thoughts on the relationship (if there is one) between the massive growth in immigration to the US from Mexico and other Latin American countries over the last decade and regional trade agreements such as NAFTA? 

2. Is there any relationship between NAFTA or other US trade agreements and the current state of the American economy?
3. How do you think that a deepening of the current US economic crisis will impact US economic relationships regionally and internationally?
4. What do you think are some of the more significant negative impacts of NAFTA, and what are some of the positives? 
5. What impact, if any, do you think the Obama Administration will have on NAFTA?
6. Do you think that an Obama Presidency has changed or will change common understandings of American identity? Has it changed anything for you?
7. How would you describe what it means to be American? 

Dr. Wise discussing the seeping of the Mexican drug war into the United States:

2006 interview of Dr. Wise by Kai Ryssdal on Hugo Chavez's power over oil production:

http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2006/05/31/can_chavez_pump_up_opec_support/

Further articles/websites on immigration policy, the US, and human rights:
Tech Recruiting Clashes with Immigration Rules (NY Times)
Mexico City Bill to Grant Guest Status to Migrants

Truth in Immigration

What You Don't Know About NAFTA

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio

Human Lighthouses

SEPTEMBER 15, 2007

The Lighthouse Effect

Near an outcropping of majestic seaside cliffs, a lighthouse stands tall and steadfast. Its light alerts ships of the rocky terrain ahead. It informs those who see its light of their current position in the darkness and guides them to safety. 

One may assume that such a radiant lighthouse beamed its light assuredly and confidently from its very first day. Not this particular beacon. During his first days he stood in storms and endured driving rain and winds, as well as dense fog and haze. When the storms lifted and the darkness of night and veils of fog faded, the sun illuminated his surroundings: perilous cliffs and treacherous rocks. Surrounded by storms, darkness, and danger, the lighthouse became frightened.

One day a wise seagull perched atop the lighthouse. She noticed a sense of fear and sadness and asked the lighthouse about his distress.

“I’m afraid of the storms and the rain, the wind and the fog,” the lighthouse said. “At night I’m engulfed in darkness, and during the day I’m surrounded by perilous cliffs and treacherous rocks.”
The seagull replied, “You are a lighthouse. Your strength withstands the strongest storms. Your light beams through the darkness. You are strong and steadfast, and the rocks and cliffs pose no threat to you.”

“But I see the ships in the ocean tossing and turning in the churning waters of the stormy sea,” the lighthouse lamented. “I see the cliffs and rocks veiled in the storms and fog, masked in the darkness of night. I may not be in danger, but I fear for the safety of the ships. They face real hazards, true perilous danger, and I just sit here, beaming this light. I want to stop the storms. I want to clear the fog, to move the rocks and cliffs. I want to illuminate the darkness, but I can’t even do that. I can’t offer enough light to provide clear visibility. I can only beam. I feel I’m not doing enough and I’m angry at myself because I can’t do more to help.”

The wise seagull answered, “You are a lighthouse. You cannot clear the weather or completely illuminate the darkness, and you cannot move rocks or cliffs. Lighthouses do not have these powers. You drastically underestimate the power of your light. You are a lighthouse! You stand in treacherous surroundings, in the midst of storms and darkness, beaming a guiding light; a signal of hope and safety. 

Have you considered how ships see you? They see a beacon; a steadfast signal of guidance and safety. In you they see a being strong enough to stand directly in the chaos and danger while beaming a light that says, ‘Danger lies here. Navigate carefully.’ Your light makes a difference. It may not provide clear visibility, but it offers clear guidance. Your light allows others to navigate to safety.” 

As the lighthouse contemplated the seagull’s words, he realized his new friend spoke words of wisdom. Lighthouses are not built in safe places. They stand amidst chaos and danger, yet are not consumed by these forces. They stand strong in darkness, fog, and storms, and while they do not fight against these forces, lighthouses provide a beam of light that allows others to navigate safely through chaos and storms.

The lighthouse became excited. He realized that he need not fear storms or darkness anymore, because he was a lighthouse, standing strong and steadfast in his power. He beamed even brighter, realizing that his radiance allowed the ships around him to experience a similar feeling of empowerment as they chose their paths based on his guiding light. Lighthouses allow ships to sail the waves of empowerment. The lighthouse does not tell a ship where to go, but provides guidance in the midst of chaos. 

The seagull was right. The lighthouse underestimated his power. From that day forward, he chose to beam his light confidently and stand steadfast as a radiant beacon for all to see.

Many of us who choose to walk a spiritual path can relate to the lighthouse story. We “wake up” one day to find ourselves surrounded by darkness and chaos. As we realize our resilience and choose to stand in our power, we fear for those around us. We wonder what we can do to help them see through the darkness. We want to stop the chaos, settle the storms, and neutralize the perilous terrain. We want to change the world, but we cannot do this; at least not in the way we expect to. 

A lighthouse holds no expectations, makes no demands, and passes no judgments. It stands in the midst of chaos without judging or fighting it, without converting others to fight it, and without being consumed by it. Human lighthouses empower themselves as they choose to shine the light of their truth and their hearts for all to see. As others see this beacon of light and choose their path, they sail the waves of empowerment. Human lighthouses empower themselves and others simply by shining their light.

Lighthouses don’t always see evidence of their effectiveness; they don’t always see ships arrive safely at their final destinations. They only shine within their surrounding environment. Human lighthouses shine in the present moment. We do not often see the “results” of our light. Like the lighthouse in the story, some human lighthouses underestimate the power of their light and the strength of their being. They feel as though they’re not enough and as though they’re not doing enough. Then somehow a wise seagull appears. Perhaps a friend or teacher, a book or an article offers a new perspective, or perhaps their higher self communicates with them. Something or someone helps the human lighthouse realize the inherent power of its light; the Light of our spirit. 

The light of our spirit impacts all who experience it. The light of our spirit differs from candlelight or a light bulb. It illuminates our innate Divine Intelligence. Divine Intelligence works through us and moves energy through us to others in exciting and mysterious ways. We don’t often see this light with our eyes, but we experience its feeling, intent, belief, desire, and passion. 

We broadcast Divine Intelligence through the light of our spirit when we choose to follow a spiritual path, when we are conscious of how we manage our energies, and when we pray and meditate. We share our guiding light with others through simple acts such as listening, laughing, breathing, praying, sharing conversation, and telling stories; we share our light simply by being ourselves and embracing the light of our spirit. 

As human lighthouses, we beam the love and truth of our spirit to those around us and to the world. We live as beacons and share our light in many simple ways. Our light makes a difference in the world, even though we may not see it. Through chain reactions of events that occur as more people become empowered, human lighthouses affect true change in the world.

Article: Soros, Tyson, Martin Wolf to Headline Discussion on What Will (or Won't) Replace US Consumer

Soros, Tyson, Martin Wolf to Headline Discussion on What Will (or Won't) Replace US Consumer

By Steve Clemons - March 22, 2009, 4:43PM

Regrettably, the Obama administration seems to be fumbling the ball on an economic policy course that restores confidence in the American economy on both the optics level and also on a substantive front that reorganizes the "social contract" and design of the real economy in the U.S.

Obama, in his 'loyalty' to his current economic team and the mistakes they are making is the antithesis of Abraham Lincoln. Obama may have tried to mimic Lincoln's "team of rivals" approach to politics -- but he needs to read the chapters on the number of generals Lincoln fired during the Civil War to finally get things moved forward.

Obama may need to fire a number of his economic generals who have been trying to restore Wall Street to what it once was -- not boldly and critically reorganize the financial sector in a way that the dysfunctional behavior that characterized its bubble success is dismantled and reshaped.

Civil society should not wait quietly while Obama's team continues to fumble -- and while its key economic policy chiefs play "point the finger" at their colleagues behind the scenes. It's time for serious discussion about what needs to be done. . .and we need better benchmarks than we have for applauding, critiquing, and simply measuring the policy steps the administration is taking.

Paul Krugman, James Galbraith, Joseph Stiglitz, Robert Reich, Robert Kuttner and others have been invaluable commentators and truth-tellers on the macro and micro dimensions of the economic policy steps and missteps the Obama team has been making.

Under the auspices of the New America Foundation Economic Growth Program,Next Social Contract Initiative, and Smart Globalization Initiative -- my colleagues and I are organizing a set of economic policy forums that are going to raise questions about our economic policy course.

The first "Bernard L. Schwartz Economic Policy Symposium" will take place in Washington at the New America Foundation offices on Thursday, 26 March 2009. Attendance information is here.

Financier and former Loral CEO Bernard Schwartz has been trying to push the administration and Congress to realize that there are different kinds of deficits the nation has to struggle with -- and the most important in his mind is leaving an "infrastruture deficit" to the next generation. He will be helping to open this important conference.

Philanthropist and investor George Soros will also be speaking -- and has been pushing a five point plan for the Obama team to consider. His new book is about to appear -- but a short primer piece of his recently appeared on Huffington Post and outlined five key points of an economic recovery plan that the Obama team has flubbed up on for the most part:

1. A fiscal stimulus package

2. A thorough overhaul of the mortgage system

3. Recapitalization of the banking system

4. An innovative energy policy

5. Reform of the international financial system

Former National Economic Adviser to President Clinton, Laura D'Andrea Tyson, will also be engaging in a discussion with Chief Economics Commentator and Associate Editor of the Financial Times Martin Wolf. Wolf, who recently authored the book Fixing Global Finance thinks that there is very little that can be done at present time to respond to the collapse of consumption by American consumers that have been the essential driver of global growth. Tyson has been very focused on the question of what America needs to do to rewire a "new social contract" with middle class American workers who have been left behind by the patterns of economic growth in the past.

I have been suggesting for some time that "Tysonomics" -- which recognizes a need for government prioritizing of certain strategic sectors and of regulation -- is very different than the Rubinomics that dominated the Clinton administration (even when Laura Tyson worked for it) and which arguably were at the root of much of the deregulatory, neoliberal mania that helped hatch the economic disaster the nation and world find themselves in today.

Others in this conference will be Mark Zandi, Chief Economist and Co-Founder, Moody's Economy.com as well as author of Financial Shock: Global Panic and Government Bailouts -- How We Got Here and What Must Be Done to Fix It;Tom Gallagher, Senior Managing Director, International Strategy and Investment (ISI) Group; Richard Vague, Chairman and CEO, Energy Plus and Founder and Former Chairman & CEO, First USA Bank; Leo Hindery, Managing Partner, Inter-Media Partners and former CEO, AT&T Broadband Network as well as Former CEO, Yankee Entertainment and Sports Network -- who has been writing recently on the "Obama job creation deficit"; Jeff Madrick, Director of Policy Research, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis, The New School and author most recently of The Case for Big Government.

Also. . .Sherle R. Schwenninger, Director, Economic Growth Program, New America Foundation; William Gerrity, Chairman and CEO, Gerrity International; Clyde V. Prestowitz, Jr., President and Founder, Economic Strategy Institute; Nicholas Lardy who recently co-authored China's Rise: Challenges and Opportunities and is Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics; and finally one of the most prescient forecasters of today's major economic crisis -- Desmond Lachman, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute.

I will be moderating the meeting along with my colleague Sherle Schwenninger and New America Foundation President and New Yorker staff writer Steve Coll.

Bernard Schwartz. . .George Soros. . .Laura Tyson. . .Martin Wolf. . .Clyde Prestowitz. . .Desmond Lachman. . .Tom Gallagher. . .Steve Coll. . .Mark Zandi. . .William Gerrity. . .Leo Hindery. . .Richard Vague. . .Nicholas Lardy. . .Jeff Madrick. . .Sherle Schwenninger. . .and others make up quite a line up for a great meeting.

For those who are deeply interested in these issues, I should note that George Soros' revised book (in paperback) will be released next week on March 30th and is titled The Crash of 2008 and What it Means: The New Paradigm for Financial Markets. Soros will also have a major economic policy critique/op-ed in tomorrow's (Monday, 23 March) Financial Times and another economic policy op-ed in Tuesday's (24 March) Wall Street Journal. Leo Hindery will have a front cover featured article on the Obama administration's job creation deficit in the April 1 edition of The Nation which should be online early this next week.

This entire conference will STREAM LIVE at The Washington Note between approximately 8:30 am and 1:00 pm EST on Thursday, 26 March 2009.

If you would like to attend, RSVP information is here.

The purpose we have in organizing this meeting is to try and position some of the key issues that should be considered at the London G-20 meeting and to begin to emphasize that the fumbling on economic policy needs to stop.

It's time to begin organizing a Team B economic policy effort -- even if it is organized by a network of concerned civil society leaders.

-- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note