Illegal Immigration, Government Is Not The Solution

I didn't have the opportunity to respond to your discussion yesterday but I do have some opinions about this issue. I may have to combine some of your points though and respond to them out of order. Starting with Issue 5-They are violating the law. You say change the law but can you tell me what there is about our current immigration policy that is bad? The people who sneak across the boarder do it because it's easier than following the rules. Does that make the rules wrong? It's also easier to just get behind the wheel and drive instead of following the requirements for getting a driver's license but you wouldn't suggest that we do away with licensing people before they drive, would you? Issue 6 & 7- They are taking jobs away from Americans and they are depressing wages. The reason for both problems is that illegal immigrants work under the table, for cash daily, and this is an attractive proposition to unethical employers. Why pay someone a fair wage and, as a business, pay your fair share of taxes, when you can hire day laborers? These employers are not paying payroll taxes for these people, they don't have to cover them under Workmans Comp. You suggest that prices would increase without this cheap labor but, since they don't make up the majority of any workforce in this country, that can't be true. What is true is that the employer is reaping a much larger profit and is certainly not passing any savings along to the consumer. Look at the construction industry as an example. The influx of cheap labor in the field of new home construction and home improvement started less than ten years ago. Have prices gone down or remained stable? No, the cost of services in this area have increased along with everything else. Consumers continue to pay more, the employers continue to keep more as profit. The worst part, particularly in this industry, is that the consumer has no way of knowing who is doing the work and if they're certified to do it. Would you want an unlicensed electrician working in your home? Which brings me to Issue 2-Why don't we punish the businesses that hire them? Your example does not match the situation. Aside from the fact that employers are not paying illegals a fair wage, they're not paying payroll taxes, we don't know if the employees are criminals, we don't know if they're qualified, they're not paying taxes on their income...the availability of these jobs is an incentive for them to come here in the first place. If it were not possible for them to find work, they would either not come or would come here legally...giving us the opportunity to do background checks, giving your state and mine the payroll and income tax revenue we're entitled to and ensuring that only qualified people are doing certain jobs. Issue 3-National Security. Just because the 9/11 terrorists entered this country legally, that does not mean that our boarders shouldn't be protected. We have the right to know who is entering the U.S. I don't know how you think boarder patrol agents could prevent terrorist attacks, or why you believe that we have a shortage of people who work in that area, but it's important...not only on a national level, but also on a state and local level that we know who has entered this country. Issue 4-The Mexican government. Comparing the immigrants who sneak into this country illegally to the Europeans and others from around the world who followed the rules and entered legally is pretty lopsided logic. Our boarder states have serious crime and gang related problems because group after group arrive...without resources...without employment opportunities and too many of them are criminals.

I am not against immigration. Three of my four grandparents were immigrants. I am against ILLEGALLY being in this country and receiving what citizens of this country PAY for. I am against giving away our resources to someone who is not a citizen and never plans on being a citizen. Industries that hire illegals do so to save money. And rob citizens of jobs doing so. I say that that deserves punishment. As for terrorists, I ask, why in the name of sanity, just when our country is in the most danger from without, do we RELAX our vigil at the borders? Sounds paranoid, I'm sure...but horse sense says to WATCH even more carefully. A government push to relax at this time is CREEPY. It is not just Mexican illegals that bother me or the people I know. But let me ask you this, I know personally two sisters who came here from Mexico legal. They are model citizens and contribute to this town, county and country. Why is it that some can do this legally and prosper? But we think we have to hand out favors to those who won't do it legal? I'm all for welcoming in those who want to prosper. But they MUST do it the same way as my European anscestors...legally. My German grandfather learned English, btw. So did my Italian grandfather. My Irish grandmother already spoke it...but she'd have rather spoke Gaelic. She spoke English instead. Sacrifice and hard work. Not hand outs. I live under the poverty line. I don't qualify for assistance. I don't get hand outs. I do what my grandparents did. I obey the law and work. As for those prices and the dollar being devalued. That was planned and we bought it. And according to my parents, they saw it coming way back in the fifties.

Actually there's likely plenty of laws already.. I'm always leery when gov wantsw to make more laws to solve something already having laws.. I'm in favor of a work program, then illegal immigrants would not have to be 'illegal' and would not have to risk their lives to get here.. and also we would know more who is here. I'm not in favor of blanket amnesty and citizenship granted, as I feel that is a political ploy which will see buses rounding them up and delivering them to voter booths in order to vote a certain way, millions added to the voter pool overnight.

Gew by your thought process as long as you can pay the amount of money to gain entry into the US you should be able to come... You do not find this statement as being rediculous??? Remember we are not just talking about mexico we are talking about all countries. That would make the US a third world country in no time at all, it would be overcrowded and we would not be able to sustain as a country.

"Issue 4 The Mexican government needs to do more to help their own people. We should be glad that all of those European government were pretty messed up. There is a reason why this country has so many descendants of European immigrates." Are you saying it's the responsibility of the United States to give jobs and entitlements to the people of Mexico and the Mexican government has no responsibility in this matter?