During the recent Senate bloviations on immigration and making English the nation's official language, Sen. Boxer (D-CA) of Marin County said:

"Why do we have to say that English is the language that we speak in America? Are we that insecure about ourselves?"

Much of what passes for "debate" over immigration and the national question consists of this kind of posturing intended to suggest that the speaker is so rich, powerful, talented, and all-around superior that he or she can afford to be utterly insouciant about any conceivable side-effect of immigration.

In contrast, Enoch Powell pointed out that insecurity about the future is the appropriate attitude of our elected officials:

"The supreme function of statesmanship is to provide against preventable evils."