More compassion needed.(Letter to the editor)

In the matter of immigration, there is a distinction between hospitality and compassion. Yes, we are a hospitable nation, and that's fine, but we don't have to be hospitable to be compassionate. If we were truly being compassionate regarding, say, Mexicans, then we would have to think of all Mexicans, not just the ones lucky enough to come here, either legally or illegally. If we really wanted to be compassionate regarding the rest of the world, here are some of the steps we could take:

1. Stop giving foreign aid. Foreign aid supports the collectivist nature of governments, which impoverishes and oppresses their people. It also dumps free goods into the marketplace of other nations, damaging local economies and national pride.

2. Eliminate loan guarantees and contributions to all international loan bodies, such as the IMF. They also support the collectivist tendencies of government and interfere with the market economies of those countries, causing economic hardship.

3. Withdraw from the World Trade Organization, NAFTA, and all other supra-national quasi-governmental bodies. These also have a powerful collectivizing and impoverishing effect on foreign nations.

4. Link trade and diplomatic status of other nations with the size of the nation's government. Mole government would result in lower status/higher tariffs, on a sliding scale. Government size could even be tied to loan guarantees, if guarantees are not eliminated. Less government will bring greater prosperity and increased ability to pay back on past loans.

5. Start practicing the principles of constitutional government in this nation. Bring back the gold standard, shut down the Federal Reserve, cut back our regulations, cut back government spending and taxes, cut back ...