I love history as a subject but don't let it dictate my life. It seems people from many nations are prisoners of their own history. During the bombing campaign in the former Yugoslavia a couple years ago, I heard people justifying their hostilities based on something that happened 500 years ago. The hatreds are even more ancient in the Middle East. So long as people use ancient events as justification for violence, there will be no peace short of one group wiping out the other side.

Perhaps it's time for countries like ours to crack down hard on this type of violence. Maybe we need to tell all immigrants that they're welcome so long as they're peaceful and abide by our laws. If they can't abide by the laws of their new country then they should stay home. If they do break the law then they'll be swiftly prosecuted, punished, and then summarily deported with no chance of readmission.

For the record, I'm very supportive of legal immigrants. My wife is an immigrant. So are my stepsons, my daughter-in-law and a high percentage of my friends. Legal immigration helps renew society. Many of the hardest working people I know are immigrants and many of them are the living embodiment of the American Dream. However, if immigrants bring their ancient hatreds here and commit violent acts as a result, then kick them out forever. We don't have to put up with this kind of nonsense.