Word: alienate
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Forget whether or not your housekeeper is an illegal alien. The real question, at least in "Mrs. Doubtfire," is whether or not she/he is your estranged husband in disguise. Directed by Chris Columbus, "Mrs. Doubtfire" is the tale of Daniel Hillard (Robin Williams), a man who dresses up as a nanny in order to be near his kids. Buoyed by Williams" antics and the innocent reactions of his wife Miranda (Sally Field), their three adorable children and Miranda's new suitor Stuart (Pierce Brosnan), the movie succeeds in providing some genuinely funny light comedy, but ultimately suffers from its attempt...
...that each newcomer was welcomed by a fledgling society entirely free from fear and bias. In 1798 Congress raised the residency requirement for citizenship from 5 to 14 years, largely to exclude political refugees from Europe who might foment revolution. Later some states imposed taxes on alien ship passengers they feared might become public charges...
After World War I, there were fears that millions of displaced Europeans, newly influenced by Bolshevism, would infect America with alien ideology. As a result, a series of racism-tinted national-origins laws passed during the 1920s established an annual immigration quota of 150,000 that favored established groups like the Germans and Irish. Some nationalities, notably the Japanese, were excluded entirely. The national-origins system was preserved in the 1952 McCarran-Walter Act, though that notorious law did establish tiny quotas -- 100 or so a year -- for such previously barred groups as Indians and Filipinos...
...most striking feature of the Brady Bill debate has been the NRA's success in convincing us that the bill is a major victory for gun control proponents. By presenting the bill as the single greatest blow to American liberties since the Alien and Sedition Acts, the NRA makes it sound as if the bill's passage was a major advance for gun haters. On the contrary, the bill is only a modest step towards controlling weapon sales...
...researchers argue that alien abductions may be disguised memories of sexual abuse. Others assert that abduction memories may also be unwittingly planted by over-zealous therapists. "I believe these victims believe it," says Ray Hyman, professor of psychology at the University of Oregon. "People are trying to please the hypnotist. The therapist and patient collaborate with each other to produce the story." Hypnosis can be extremely effective in eliciting fantasies that therapists can use in treating patients. The technique, however, can also create false memories. Says Ray William London, president of the American Boards of Clinical Hypnosis...