241 Comments

This is a beautiful piece, Peter. Thank you once again.

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Love the Free Press & have been a big fan of Bari's for years. I was caught up in company layoffs last month. I'm a graphic designer, and I'd love to do work with you all. I made a collage for this article: https://static.wixstatic.com/media/7440e1_11279953eea647e2865c6b725c249fe8~mv2.png

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Nov 15, 2023·edited Nov 15, 2023

I don't have any hard data or statistics to back it up, but it was my impression that Asian Americans were not overwhelmingly aligned with the Democrats until the Obama years, and that this was at least partly a function of the perception that Republican efforts to control illegal immigration (2006-08) were anti-immigration. Of course, some Republicans are anti-immigration, but this had not been the case with the GOP as a whole, historically.

Anyway, when I worked on GOP congressional campaigns in the late 80s and early 90s, Asian Americans were considered every bit as persuadable on conservative issues as white Americans. Many, as the author points out, came here to escape communist oppression and are/were therefore natural allies of then-GOP ideals.

My point is, Asians as a monolithic pro-Democrat Party ethnic bloc, is a relatively recent phenomenon caused by a perception that the GOP had become anti-immigrant.

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50 years ago Nov 1963 I was a GRAD student ( BA Geog) at The newly recognised University of East Africa UGANDA - This Teacher for East Africa (T E A ) with a second site in Afghanistan TA was an experiment in the 1960'd where PEACE through EDUCATION was thought possible.

I was naive and with Parents and Grandparents born Portuguese Goans in BRITISH India... but I under stood there was NO PLACE on EARTH for my family community.. we numbered less than half a million total in a newly developing Diaspora nad would soon intermarry and lose our "cultural distinctiveness" which was to be Mestizo Mutt, Mixed up R ace Face Blended.. folks.. ! ( Jewish Brahmin Chriatian Hindu Islamic ! you name it..

Lo and Behold !

I am like everyone in New Hampshire New England bordering Quebc / Vermon who landed l NOV 1974 .. nearl;y 50 years ago.. whose children graduated from the Elite Ivy Leagues BIG and "little" and havelived through Red Blooded Red States turn Deep BLUE

Code Blue Medically I am told means... ?? **

omehow zipped past PURPLE like the proverbial "flash" in the pan and straight into the fire..

FREE PRESS reports life as is Now I am as is . and can only be assured that Our Grandparents happy in their resting places in ASIA .never dreamed that ASIAN African America "Automatic Citizens by Birth" Grandchildren will follow our flightpaths ( not pioneer pilgrim "footsteps) and move on "forward" West ward Ho Ho Ho - as once 20th Century foklks "rounded " the Cape of GOOD Hope -Capetown going the Other way- across through Brazil Argentina Colombia up past California into Alaska where it is but a Hop Skip and Jump back into Eastern Asia..

Far sighted McCain Hanoi Hilton /Arizona and Running Mate ( who could see Russia from her Back Porch) knew with 100% clarity the Ocean Pacific Islands Midway - Marshall almost invisible from the many satellites and Space Stations have Money Powered Influence ers to get Time Zones to begin along what is now the International Date Line IDL Imagined on Paper or delightful crafted GLOBES Greenwich Mean Time GMT BBC will no longer be the staring point for Sunrise .. That will always bee in the East of Far East A tiny radio transmitter in the Ocean Pacific.. could hail thr dawn of the Dawn of the New amazing Era Age ..Season or whatever Y2K Fireworks proclaimed 1999/ 2000 January 1 23 years ago

I owe my hind sight insight far sight and near sight to my one year Diploma in Education created by 1960-63 Peace Corps Sargeant Shriver, 60-63 JFK admin

1900 1960 British Dev Office and the Goverment /NGO's of that REGION whose Port Cities Zanibar Mombasa Port Elizabeth Durban.. Luorenco Marques traded with India,Arabia Persia Indo China and Indonesia for 1000 year at least ..

Nothing new Under the Sun we all orbit around.. It has existed for billions of years ..

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I don't believe any of these articles. They are all wishful thinking. You can see the election results from last night. Dems are voting D and Republicans are voting R and no one is changing based on self-interest. The parties are affinity groups, and everyone wants to fit in regardless of cost.

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Dear Lily Tang Williams, I live in NH District 1 so I can’t vote for you, but I would. I hope you get your Moonlight Sonata, if you do, we all will sing in NH 🙏🏻❤️

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Great! Love that they want to MAGA. Only I would call them Americans. Period

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The moonlight sonata bit at the end was a beautiful way to end the story. Thank you.

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How lucky are we to have such smart, working people come here?

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*hard-working

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It's sad that Asians have to literally get beaten over the head to wake up from their liberal/Democrat stupor.

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Asian Americans represent the best of American ideals and values. Thankfully, the voting public is finally waking up to the insanity and anti-American policies of the Democratic party. Sea change is coming, thank god.

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Please do not call these common sense policies as “MAGA” and “right wing”. They are logical responses to the insanity.

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If people are Repubs, great-- what makes me wince is reading piece after piece about people leaving the left instead of reclaiming it... “baby come back”

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“We are being punished for succeeding,” Kenny Xu said. “The excuse when white people succeed is that they took advantage of a society that was stacked for them. We have no claim to that. If we succeeded, we did so fairly.”

This resonates with me.

My white father was mostly unhireable. He was hardworking, very smart and able. The problem was, he was Jewish. An immigrant who was dirt poor growing up. He took the civil service exam and scored so highly that the government had to hire him. Never got rich, but solid middle class job. He succeeded "fairly." When he retired, over 3 decades later, he left behind 18 months of un-used sick leave. He had values.

I'm the first generation in my family that didn't need to overcome some massive obstacle. I thanked my parents for helping knock down barriers so I didn't need to. I'm grateful to and respectful of those who knock down barriers on their way towards personal success and bettering society.

The idea of being punished for succeeding is mind-boggling. Human nature can be very petty. We're supposed to rise above, but clearly we often don't.

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Progressive Democrats operate like CCP and operate like a cult...

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There no longer exists a Democrat or Republican Party...we now have 2 distinct groups...the pro-constitutional republic group and the anti-constitutional republic group...I think it is time to let the other designations go just like we did with the Whigs in the 1850's...g.

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