This bumper sticker, sent to me David B., raises an interesting set of questions:

It could be that he was just exploring new places.  The bumper sticker, as is often the case, biforcates a complex question and offers two answers neither of which is satisfactory.

Columbus was seeking wealth and fortune through trade when he crossed the Atlantic in 1492.  He hoped to break the Portuguese monopoly on trade with China and therefore make himself and his sponsors the Spanish rich.  So in reality Columbus did not set out to be a terrorist or an illegal alien.  There is no doubt that his exploration set in motion terror and migration that judged by today’s standards was awful. But there was no way that he could have known that when he left Spain. 

The chain of events that he set in motion was in balance good for the world but was not good for everybody it effected.  It was however inevitable.  Read Guns, Germ and Steel by Jared Diamond to understand why it was inevitable.

The conclusion I draw from this pithy but inaccurate historical commentary is that migration happens.  The peoples who manage it the best will thrive relative to their more xenophobic neighbors.

Comments (2)

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I love stuff like this

Not because (as you pointed out) the sticker is accurate or brilliant in its own right, but that it truly gives one perspective. I think causing people to think outside their comfort zone and re-think history and what's been handed down to them as the truth about migration are the first solid steps to change.

Brian Ging , October 10, 2008

I love stuff like this

Not because (as you pointed out) the sticker is accurate or brilliant in its own right, but that it truly gives one perspective. I think causing people to think outside their comfort zone and re-think history and what's been handed down to them as the truth about migration are the first solid steps to change.

Brian Ging , October 10, 2008

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