IT WAS an epic battle that was bound to happen at some point.
Both of Filipino descent, Conservative blogger and political pundit, Michelle Malkin and Pulitzer prize-winning journalist and undocumented immigrant, Jose Antonio Vargas locked horns in a battle of wits over immigration issues on Twitter.
Coming from extremely opposing ends of the political spectrum, the high-octane exchanges between the two began with an offer of an adobo dinner from Vargas, to discuss immigration matters.
Malkin responds: “Thanks. I like my adobo with an extra-heavy dose of vinegar,” to emphasize that despite her Conservative political views, she is not a “traitor,” and that she still recognizes her Filipino roots.
The virtual debate continued on, like a Spy vs Spy comic book. However, it quickly became an outright word war, instead of a battle of antics and booby traps.
It also became an opportunity for both to flaunt their writing chops and political views: Malkin’s syndicated columns versus Vargas’ New York Times essay and TIME Magazine cover story.
In a nutshell, Malkin vs Vargas was about 302 million Americans/legal immigrants versus 11 million undocumented immigrants.
From Vargas’ standpoint, it is about finding a fair solution to a broken immigration system.
It is about practicing a “fair, common sense, humane immigration enforcement.”
It is about being “given a process to legalize.”
It is about coming out as an undocumented immigrant and being prepared to face the consequences.
It is about “defining American.”
From Malkin’s perspective, it is about focusing on “prioritizing national security, shoring up visa requirements, enforcing employer sanctions.”
It is about “tightening consular screening, reforming immigration court system, ending green card application backlog.”
It is about “open-border policies in BOTH parties…who refuse to take their constitutional duties seriously.”
It is about the “other 302 million people living in America who didn’t break immigration laws and who did not commit immigration fraud; who want their kids to go to affordable colleges; who are worried about the economy, jobs and their future.”
In the end, @clarko2012 gives the best comment: “I don’t care what else is going on. The exchange between @michellemalkin &@joseiswriting is the most riveting thing happening on the web.” — a feedback to which left, right and center would unanimously agree.
It may be a case of Filipino vs Filipino. Legal immigrant vs Undocumented. Conservatism vs Liberalism. Political punditry vs Award-winning journalism.
But above all,it was a healthy virtual debate which brought significant and valid points about immigration to the forefront, albeit in a bullet-pointish manner — a fact which highlights how we’ve evolved from face-to-face arguments, to succinct but nonetheless feisty exchanges in social media.
Immigration reform will continue to be a hot topic of debate for everyone in America — undocumented or not.
And whether it’s Vargas, Malkin or Juan locking horns in social media, there is no reason not to get involved in the debate — especially since we now have smart technology at our disposal.
You may like your “adobo” vinegar-heavy or garlicky, dry or saucy, over rice or as adobo rice with lots of soy sauce. The most important thing is that you get to state your preference and voice your opinion.
After all, we all agree to disagree.
(AJPress)
