For the most part responses to the badge were polite, with people looking for information rather than looking for a chance to argue. One woman, when I told her it was a sort of miniprotest against the new Arizona immigration law, looked at me and said "You don't look illegal." I responded, "That's the point." She let it drop.
An employee at the United Airlines ticket counter took exception to my protest, but did so in a civilized manner. He was quite hare-core, favoring concealed gun carry as a way to intimidate the "gang-bangers" but he did not engage in a rant. We parted on agreeable terms, meaning we agreed to disagree.
My friends in Traverse City, Michigan (hardly a bastion of diversity) were mostly interested in how the law was supposed to work and whether it would achieve the desired results. I think most of them agreed that, standing alone, it would probably not solve the problem. And in all cases, we agreed that it was a serious problem that needed to be solved.
As an aside, my time in Traverse City cemented the wisdom of our move to Arizona. I was snowy and windy on Saturday and Sunday morning the tempertature was 24 degrees. On top of thak the fish weren't biting.
Thought for the day: No man can put a chain about the ankle of his fellow man without at last finding the other end fastened about his own neck. Frederick Douglas.
Brooks Marshall
(aka)Pat
brooksmarshall@msn.com