Thursday August 7, 2008, 6:29 pm
So sad. I wished we could all just get along as the good Lord intended it.

Thursday August 7, 2008, 6:35 pm
Thank you so much for this article, Michael.

Thursday August 7, 2008, 7:15 pm
Thanks Michael. So sad. Guess some people never got the "memo" from
God that said "Thou shalt not kill". People continue to cause trouble
for themselves and others because they can not follow the instructions.

Thursday August 7, 2008, 8:40 pm
Really Sad.

Thursday August 7, 2008, 11:18 pm
This is very sad and my heart goes out to his family.

All our corporations that we buy products from have sold us out, that is what we should be focusing on. There aren't any blue collar jobs, only burger flipper jobs, service jobs. The middle class is gone, and these angry youth are angry at the wrong group, thier lives will be shattered also. The perps are in the White House, Congress, and CEO offices, not among the laborers.



Sadly noted, thank you Michael.

Friday August 8, 2008, 9:11 am
I could not finish reading this story.
This is neither the first nor the last time
we'll see things like this happen. Especially
with people in the MSM, particularly Lou Dobbs,
demonizing and vilifying "illegal immigrants",
talking of them as though they're sub-human,
yes, we will see more murders such as this one.
I'm a native of Los Angeles, lived there 'til
I was 33. I was a racial minority in every school
I ever attended. The racial make-up of every school
I attended was 70% Hispanic, 20% African-American,
5% Asian, and 5% White. I've been known to go off
like a bomb on people who tell me that, as a white
man, I have no idea what it's like to suffer racial
discrimination......oh, yes......yes, I do know what
it's like.
However, growing up, attending schools,
and living in neighborhoods near
South Central Los Angeles taught me a
very valuable life-lesson:
skin color doesn't mean a damn thing.
As Dr.King famously said, It's the
content of a person's character that matters
above anything and everything else.

Thank you, Michael!
noted.

Friday August 8, 2008, 9:48 pm
MY CONDOLENCES TO THE FAMILY.. I LIVE IN AZ AND WE HAVE THE SAME HERE AND MY FIANCEE HAD WENT THROUGH RACIAL COMMENTS AS WELL BUT LUCKILY HE WASNT KILLED BUT IT SO OFTEN HAPPENS AND PPL NEED TO REALIZE THEY ARE NO BETTER THAN THE NEXT PERSON TO THEM..I AM TRULY SORRY

Friday August 8, 2008, 10:01 pm
Sadly noted.

Friday August 8, 2008, 10:59 pm
I can't believe they tried to blow it off as a "street fight gone bad"... Because of these 3 high school students, there will be 3 children growing up without a dad. My condolences to the family of Luis Ramírez.

Saturday August 9, 2008, 7:35 am
This is where all of the hatred against immigrants (read "Mexicans") leads to. For every thousand people who SAY hateful things about a given group, there will always be a small percentage of haters who will do violence to the group in question. The more hate-speech and de-humanization of the group, the greater the actual numbers of violent acts will be.

Saturday August 9, 2008, 9:57 am
I am sorry but I am with Lou Dobbs regarding illegal aliens. My state and county is run by Democrats who roll out the red carpet for illegals, and we citizens are paying a dear price for their presence. Economy is bad, resources given to them with my taxes forced by the democrat legislation in state and county, crime rising, Aids in latinos high, birth rate in teen latino mothers increasing 30%. Put them in a residential neigborhood and it goes to pot. Latino gang violence on the increase. Home invasions by latinos perpetuated on seniors increasing. Illegal aliens registering to vote. And this is a good thing for the US, I don't think so, it is destructive considering the majority of the illegal latino population acts entitled and refuses to speak english. I am personally sick and tired of the invasion of these "less-than-quality group".

Saturday August 9, 2008, 3:40 pm
Oh dear Sue, You and yours are illegal immigrants that stole this land from Natives, commited genicide, killed all the buffalo, and gave them the worse possible places to live called reservations where you and yours have kept them there with the highest suicide rates in the nation, the highest unemployment in the nation and they must live as a third world nation. How dare americans say this about Mexicans. You know absolutely nothing about them and it shows in your writing...you believe the crap you read or hear on tv from bigots. Calif, AZ,NM, Tx...We stole it from the Mexicans and took their land too. They are our neighbors, they are human beings, they have families they want to feed. Taking jobs is the biggest joke ever. This state lost billions when INS went through and returned illegal (some were legal) to Mexico at the beginning of the picking season. Absolutely no one, not kid, adults women or anyone would pick and our growers lost everything. Ask the republicans, famous for hiring illegals as nannies, gardeners, housekeeper and not paying in taxes or social security. Start puttin blame where it goes. On the backs of employers that don't take out the damn taxes (and if they do, they pocket the money). They charge these people by the day to "live" in a shack without running water or toilets (this includes children) They supply no benefits for these families, legal or illegal. Let's see if you'd walk 200 miles on foot with no food and water in heat that keeps rattlesnakes underground. For years, border states have fines to or over $10,000. if caught feeding or giving water to these people. Quit bitching they send the money out of the country. Go for yourself south of TX and see our new dumping grounds for our poisons causing babies born withough brain stems. Go live there while the Federalies are armed, follow you, can make you disappear, the pay is less than a dollar a day unless you luck out and get into a resort town. They love their families, just like we do. They will do what they have to to feed them, just like we do. Do you honestly believe free government monies are just thrown at them?!!! This isn't a democrat or republican thing. It is a human rights issue. I don't know where you get your stats. The exact hateful things you are saying was said about Blacks not that long ago. Hate Bigotry Ignorance is blind. How would you know quality. Who made you the judge or God. I have know Mexican families in all the states I have named plus all stated w of n.dakota, Wyo,Colo. I am 63 yrs old and have seen this blind hatred far too long. I have been in Mexican homes, with families, in church, at parties and they are warm loving and fun. They are close knit families. Now,those are the facts. If you wish, I will give you the exception to the famiiies above, just like in white, black, brown and yellow neighborhoods. I know many people in those "colors" of families also. See the trouble with you, you see color first, remeber the hateful brainwashing and go from there. Try and go find out for yourself. Your statement of "less-than-quality" shows an un-educated person. It isn't even Christian or any groups pride in words. I feel so sorry for you. Peace

Saturday August 9, 2008, 3:46 pm
Truly sad. Lou Dobbs is a racist. Whenever there's a Recession, in this case a Depression, there is always a need to look for a scapegoat. "If we get rid of 'them' we won't have all these problems. Since America was stolen from Native Indians and many hispanics who lived in the southern states at the time, we could say that whites are the illegal aliens.

We can use legal and illegal hispanics for cheap labor with no benefits because our "citizens" won't do the slave labor, but we make life miserable for them here.

Good news for those who fear illegal aliens: they are leaving the US in droves. The dollar is bad here, and gas is cheaper for them back at home.

Here's something to think about: since we've been such good neighbors and villified these people who have families to feed and try to make an honest living, how do you think they will treat Americans when our economy crashes for good and we look to South America and the border for living, consumer goods, cheaper gas and opportunities.

I too want everyone to be legal. It is not their fault. They are trying to find a better way of life for themselves like we do. With no money, they need to save up to apply for naturalization. The problem lies with our system that is not doing its job. But like I said, many of these aliens don't want to live here anymore. They see America and Americans for what we are.

Saturday August 9, 2008, 3:47 pm
Sandy...we were writing on the same issue at the same time. Thank you for filling in the blanks.

Saturday August 9, 2008, 4:04 pm
Sadly noted as well. My deepest symphaty to the family.

Saturday August 9, 2008, 4:06 pm
Marion, great minds flow in the same river:)

Saturday August 9, 2008, 11:38 pm
Yes, Sue, you are definitely SORRY. You also have your facts wrong, but then racists like you refuse to be confused by mere facts. Did you even read the article?

Sunday August 10, 2008, 1:26 am
The last paragraph sums up the cause of racism and xenophobia:
"Politicians and big corporations have promoted hate and used fear tactics to scapegoat immigrants, blaming them for the economic crisis. At the same time, politicians on both political parties continue to look for ways to further criminalize immigrants in order to better control and exploit undocumented workers. These powerful social forces have the ultimate responsibility in Luis Ramírez's senseless and tragic death."

By using undocumented workers as scapegoats, these entities are able to control the 'fear factor' of Americans and therefore control the masses.
The choice is ours, do we succumb to their tactics, or, do we rise above and see these people as our brothers and sisters in search of a better life?
We are ALL legal inhabitants of this planet! To say otherwise is absurd and elitist.

Sunday August 10, 2008, 8:05 am
That's right, Kim. The pigs in power would far rather that we fight each other than unite across racial/ethnic groups and take back our fair share instead of fighting over a sliver of the pie.

Sunday August 10, 2008, 8:56 am
Sorry Sue, I don't fall in with the Lou Dobbs crowd.

But in any case, as Rochelle mentioned , this article has to do with the murder of a man who was targeted. Now illegal alien or not, murder is still murder where I come from. We are all human beings and are all entitled to basic human rights at a bare minimum.

I would hope that you would be sickened by the fact that this man was murdered.

Monday August 11, 2008, 2:03 pm
Thank you Sandy V. I am sick of people complaining about how our gov gives so much to illegal aliens, and spewing out ridiculous rumors about how supposedly illegal immigrants are riding high on the backs of U.S. citizens. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Even if you buy all of this ridiculous xenophobic propaganda, I don't know how anyone could be so cold as to commit hate crimes or insult an unborn child for its ethnicity.
My condolences go to Ramirez's family, and my heart goes out to all of the immigrants in the world struggling to maintain a sense of place in their new country.

Saturday September 6, 2008, 7:36 pm
"I would like us to forget about their color so they can try to be optimistic. Too many views on race that make them desperate. Let's leave the door wide open so they can talk about their pain and joy. Then we can give them information that will bring us all together."
"When a child is born, it has no concept of the tone of skin it's living in".
-'Seven Seconds', Yossou N'Dour & Neneh Cherry
This type of story makes me sad and furiously angry. If it had been a white man killed by Mexican teens, it wouldn't be the same thing. It wouldn't have been necessary for the community to stand up and protest before the perpretators of a crime were accused of killing someone.

Murder is murder, regardless of human status.

Sue: There are three reasons there are so many illegal immigrants.
One, the deplorable situations in their home countries. I'd like to see you giving life there a try - you wouldn't last at all.
Second, you need a visa to enter the United States, not just a passport, and only the tiniest fraction of applicants are given one. Moreover, you have to pay over a hundred and eighty dollars just to apply. In Mexico, that's the equivalent of 36-45 days salary, and no guarantee at all that you'll even get it. How would you like spending six week's pay to sit for hours at an embassy, where no phones, food or even water is allowed inside, be cross examined then denied permission to enter a country because 'we believe you might stay on' - even if you just wanted to see Mickey Mouse? People enter the country illegally because the chances are smaller when they try to do it legally.
Third: there are many people who have spent most of their lives in the United States, some of them since early childhood. They work, pay taxes, love and understand this country - and though they apply, are not granted citizenship.
Illegal immigrants are illegal because the government of the United States wants it so - it's much more convenient. They have a group of people they can blame for everything from insecurity to gas prices to salmonella, and that can be easily exploited as well.

Last point of all: there are immigrants in the United States from all over the world, not only Latinamerican countries. Yet it is only those of us of Latin descent that are targeted.

Saturday September 6, 2008, 7:41 pm
Whoops! I wrote 'human status' - that should have been 'legal status'... So sorry!