This week, the Fairfax County School Board threatened to sue the Army:

The top elected school official in Fairfax County said the system may sue to force the Army to recognize that an upcoming job influx at Fort Belvoir will bring a flood of new students.

This is pretty petty to start with. Although the County projects that next year’s school population growth of 3,541 (not all of which is due to the base realignment) will require “an additional $22 million in spending and 358 new positions,” the overall impact on the County’s economy will clearly be positive:

• Over 20,000 jobs (net) will be moved into the county.
• 6.2 million square feet of office space will be built in the county.
• $3.8 billion will be spent on construction within the county, supporting nearly 8500 employees per year over 5 years.

That kind of economic stimulus is why counties are usually upset when their bases are closed, not when a base moves in.

Ok, I understand that Fairfax County is just trying to shake down the Federal Government for as much money as it can get. That’s ugly, but hardly unprecedented. But they need to understand how bad it looks when they welcome illegal immigrants with open arms, but give the cold shoulder to the Army.

You see, as discussed before on this blog, Fairfax County is a sanctuary county for illegal immigrants. When asked about his stance on illegal immigration, Board of Supervisors Chairman Gerald Connolly explained, “I can just tell you Fairfax County is not going to go the route of some of our neighbors. We’re not going to demagogue. We’re not going to essentially roll back the welcome mat.” [Emphasis added]

Thanks to this welcome mat, 623 children of illegal immigrants moved from schools in Prince William County (which has begun cracking down on illegal immigrants) to Fairfax County schools last year.

Now, I’m not saying that Fairfax County should close its schools to the children of illegal immigrants. For one thing, it would be illegal to do so. But clearly, Fairfax County has made a choice to turn a blind eye to illegal immigration, and even to trumpet its commitment to welcoming any and all, and that approach is responsible for an influx of new students.

Which just makes it all the more galling then while they welcome people who entered the country illegally, they cry poverty when the Army moves in with thousands of jobs in tow. The message seems to be that the children of illegal immigrants are welcome to Fairfax County schools, but the children of our fighting men and women are not.

This is a fascinating idea. Let’s hope that it works - there is still far, far too much violence in American cities, and it hurts everyone.

The New York Times gives us another article trying to contextualize (read: explain away) Jeremiah Wright’s statements today.

Mr. Wright opined recently that the United States government may have used AIDS as a form of biological warfare against black people (Mr. Wright notes, correctly, that the United States has tried biological warfare on foreign nations)

The article does not explain when or where the US carried out biological warfare on other nations. Which is a shame, because according to the Federation of American Scientists, only one time has the US being accused of using biological weapons in war, and that claim wasn’t true:

The Soviet Union, China, and North Korea accused the United States of using biological warfare against North Korea and China during the Korean War. However, there was no confirmation of these allegations, and no epidemiologic support to the North Korean claim of having experienced epidemics. The United States denied allegations and requested impartial investigations. The International Red Cross suggested the formation of a special commission to investigate, and the World Health Organization offered to intervene. However, neither China nor North Korea responded to the International Red Cross, and the World Health Organization’s offer was rebuffed as a disguised attempt of espionage.

Like so many people, I have my complaints about Tom Friedman. He tends to reduce all issues to fit his current obsession, and his openness to “whatever works” can make him maddeningly inconsistent. But, fresh from a hiatus, his first two articles are a reminder of how good he can be. First, he tackled energy:

The McCain-Clinton proposal is a reminder to me that the biggest energy crisis we have in our country today is the energy to be serious — the energy to do big things in a sustained, focused and intelligent way. We are in the midst of a national political brownout.

Then, national infrastructure:

Who will tell the people? We are not who we think we are. We are living on borrowed time and borrowed dimes. We still have all the potential for greatness, but only if we get back to work on our country.

Agree or not, it’s nice to talk about policy issues again. I certainly don’t think character is irrelevant, but we also need ideas.