What should be done about illegal immigration?

I'm vacationing in Hermosillo, Sonora right now. Miles to the north, there's the huge desert in the state of Arizona.

In the road, we passed the small town of Altar. Didn't knowing the story, I was surprised when I saw hundreds of young men on the sidewalks. By their faces, clearly they seemed from south. On the streets, there were many informal stores selling backpacks, jackets, shoes, bottles... you know, basic survival supplies. Along the road too, you could find lots of old vans, ready to be used.

This determined young people will be travelling north, on the Sasabe region. After that, it will be days in the desert untill they reach a town near Tucson. Everybody seems to know that, but yet... they generally go unnoticed by the US Patrol.

I shiver when I imagine them, right now, surviving in the desert.

Like it or not the legislation proposed by the lower house holds the key for the resolution of the problem. Making it a crime to employ undocumented aliens. Unable to find work will result in a mass exodus. It will also discourage people from sneaking across the border.

As long as they stay in Mexico,the US border patrol cant arrest them.

BUT,once they cross our border,then if they die in the desert,I wont lose any sleep over it.
After all,they CHOSE to break the law,they CHOSE to accept the risk,they CHOSE to accept the consequences of taking that risk.

Notice the theme,personal choice!!!
If you or anyone chooses to break the law,then you have chosen to accept whatever the consequences of those actions are.

In the reality they do not chose to break the law, they need to eat and get a job like me and everybody else, the difference is you and me have the chance to get a job in the place we live in and we do not really need (now) to cross a border, but how about in the future?.
I think the solution is that the richest countries support the poorest nation, and not only exploding them. History has shown that a rich nation suddenly fall down.....

Like the Roman Empire?

All they have to do is stay in their own country. God knows the US is sending enough jobs there.

Hermosillo eh/ there's an interesting chinese resturant about 7 or 8 miles north. I've eaten there a few times.

gerd wrote




The same thing can be said about a bank robber or second story man.

I am in total agreement on your posts. If the employers even thought they'd get in trouble, they wouldn't hire them!

That's always been my thought! If you want to stop the illegals, jail the Republicans that hire them!

Anon

LOLROTFPMP

that was supposed to be a component of the '86 amnesty. but somehow, , it has never been inforced.

When did Mexicans become a race?

The illegal (those who prefer the term "undocumented" are usually also quite fond of the term "racist.") Mexican immigrants that have converged on NC, generally, have very distinct Indian features. So are you a racist as respects Indians? But wait a minute, haven't Liberal eggheads told us that race is a silly and antiquated notion? Don't they sneer at such terms as Negroid, Mongoloid, and Amerinds (Funny, but they don't seem to have too much trouble with Caucasian)?

It became race when race became the reliable Big Gun of the Left. Treating someone poorly simply because of his or her race is stupid and cruel, but not all treatment of people is based solely on their race. The plus side is that American society has become sensitive about racism, the negative side is that this sensitivity is abused for political purposes.

If there were 12 million illegal Africans running around American, any protestation would be classified, by the Left, as racism. If there were 12 million illegal "Asians" running around America, any protestation might be classified, by the Left, as racism. (The Left has a funny disconnect with Asians. We all know that they are super-achievers, and so do they really need the protection of the Left?) If there were 12 million illegal Australians running around America would any protestation be considered racist? What if Blacks, Mexicans, Comanches, or Chinese protested?

That's always been my thought! If you want to stop the illegals, jail the Democrats that hire them!

If you don't know what libertarianism is, I suggest you look here www.lp.org

Really huh? Interesting chinese food huh? Interesting choice of words...




Well, need and hunger are some of the main reasons for crime committing.



I'm laughing too, but what does the PMP part mean?


Woohoo, I'm quoting!

[/quote]The same thing can be said about a bank robber or second story man.[/quote]

Maybe you do not understand, in the case of a bank robber is usually to get more money, and not for eating my friend.

This is about economy and not only jobs, this is the point.
I think you and me need to read more about economy, NAFTA, UNO, WTO, IMF and we will know the reality of the 7 nations and the rest.
we need to do something now.

Within a mile of where I sit there are probably a half dozen families who can trace their roots in this country back to the late 17th century. The Anglos only make up about a third of New Mexico's population, and generally we all get along reasonably well. Almost all of us speak some English, and most of us have some fractured border Spanish. Many families that have been in this country for, say, the last hundred years have family ties to all three communities.

My wife, Natalie, is one of those who gets semi-hysterical in favor of making English the Official and sole language of the nation. Wrong. English is the primary language used in international affairs, and it is essential to long-term survival in the United States. However an immigrant arrives their opportunities are very limited ... until they learn our language. People come to this wonderful country to escape what they regard as intolerable conditions in their homeland, and/or in search of opportunity to improve life for themselves and their children. The escapees never willingly return home so long as conditions are unchanged, and in some cases that might be generations. Those who come in search of a better life don't require a language law, they already are painfully aware of the need. Most first, and even second generation immigrants have difficulty with English which is a crazy language. Some never master it, but their children may graduate from Harvard. Immigrants should be welcomed here and helped to join our allegiance to the Constitution. Not many grow into America haters who will find any excuse to side against their adopted home.

Even so, a nation that can not protect its borders is in trouble and breaching our southern border is soooooo easy that some people do it on a regular basis. The government has no real idea of exactly how many illegally cross the border every day. We don't know who the illegals are nor where they are going. Some are agents of foreign governments or groups who wish only harm to come to America. Among the flood there are narcotics mules carrying cocain and heroin. There are escaping felons, and those carrying communicable diseases into our communities. How many are affiliated with radical Islamic terrorist groups? Nobody knows. This is an intolerable condition, especially during times like these.

What should be done about it? Some insist that Hispanics without proof of citizenship be arrested and deported as criminals breaking our laws. Any Southwesterner would tell you that is about as foolish an idea as can be imagined. Who carries around with them their birth certificate or passport? Who wants to carry their proof of citizenship all the time? Imagine being stopped by the police repeatedly and asked to provide proof that you are a citizen. In our country, with a third of the population being of Hispanic origins, such a policy carries with it the certainty of harassment and injustices that far outweighs any benefit. Only when an illegal is apprehended in the act of crossing the border, or in hot pursuit is instant deportation practical. I can't imagine anyone mad enough to try conducting massive searches for illegal immigrants in South L.A. In addition to the harassment and injustices that would be visited on our own innocent citizens, this approach would almost certainly result in massive street violence with un-necessary injury to people and the destruction of property.

Some want to seriously penalize those who employ illegal immigrants as workers. Who are those employers? Are you sure that your gardener is "legal"? How about the kid who works arranging fruit in the local supermarket, or the woman who cleans your house for you? Is every farmer and rancher in the country going to become an arm of the INS? How guilty is an employer who hires an illegal who has a social security card, and proof of local residence? Illegal immigrants aren't going to tatoo the word "Illegal" across their foreheads. Should employers do background checks? How can an employer know whether the unskilled laborer is an illegal immigrant? If stiff criminal penalties were assessed against anyone found to have employed an illegal immigrant, best start building a whole lot of new prisons that will be filled with small business owners, farmers, ranchers, and executives for service businesses that hire low wage workers. Make it a serious crime to hire illegal immigrants and who will ever willingly hire a low-skilled worker again. Our own citizens who need jobs the worst will find it even more difficult to make a living for themselves and their families. The jobs will still need to be done, but with higher risks and more paperwork. The criminal class who hire, often unknowingly, illegal immigrants encompasses every shade of political opinion, so maybe given the partisan hostility we will need Republican Prisons and Democratic Prisons. This is another idea that even a moment's thought will reveal as at least foolish.

There are those who think that public services should be denied illegal immigrants. Who is going to arrest an emergency room doctor for setting a broken arm without first making certain that the patient has legal residence? Who is willing to indemnify that doctor from the malpractice suits he will have to pay for refusing to sew up a gash in a 18 year old because he didn't have "sufficient proof" of status? If an illegal is sick with TB, should they be turned away from our hospitals to infect regular citizens? Will we refuse to teach little children the things they need to know, because they might belong to a family who came across the border illegally five years ago? That kid might have been born a citizen, but might well be condemned to a life in the shadows because of some ill begotten law? Already our thoroughfares are filled with terrible drivers who operate their vehicles without licenses or insurance. Do we really want to increase that number by keeping illegal immigrants from taking drivers tests, or carrying insurance?

The only reasonable alternative is to provide some means of permitting those already in the country illegally to make their status legal. The legislation currently under consideration is not perfect, but it is a start and I believe should be passed.

Passage of a laws to deal with those already in the country isn't enough. We must stem the flow, and direct it through designated ports of entry. INS has to get its house in order. Who is it that is entering the U.S., and for what purpose? If they are coming here to work, do they have a job lined up? How long will they be here, and where are they going? What is their itinerary? Is the visitor coming here to work, to study, or just to visit and get a taste of what the United States has to offer? If they are coming to study, have they been accepted into an accredited program?
Those with suspicious backgrounds need to be identified and dealt with appropriately. Those with criminal histories (non-political crimes only), or who carry infectious diseases need to be refused entry. If a person drives into the U.S., or is expected to drive in this country they should be tested according to our laws and required to show proof of insurance. Proper documentation from the visitor's parent country and/or our Embassies and Consulates should be required.

Even that is only a minimum. So long as living conditions in the rest of the world, especially those places continguent upon our borders, are so much more desperate than inside the United States ... people will want to come here at any price, at any risk. How much can and should the United States be involved in "improving" the conditions in another sovereign state? There are a whole lot of folks here at A2K who have said that the United States has NO business interfering in other nation's affairs under any circumstances. Of course, there are others who think that the United States is obligated to redress every ill and inequity where ever it exists in the world. You can't please everyone, but its easy to displease at least half the population with the best of intentions.

Asherman
I mentioned it before and will for your benefit again. The issuance of Identity cards by the US government will easily solve the problem for employers. Illegal aliens [not immigrants] will voluntarily leave the US and illegal will stop arriving when they are unable to find work. If the need for labor persists than the US can up the immigration quotas and design a workable guest worker program. The certainly should not throw up their hands and cry what to do, what to do. The sky is falling.

As far as English being declared the official US language. I stand with your wife four square.