While the national obsession with guns takes a turn for the hysterical, an interesting duel is taking shape in Washington between Barack Obama and Florida’s Sen. Marco Rubio. It involves an issue almost as incendiary as guns. Immigration.
Luckily for us, neither Obama nor Rubio is being hysterical about it. They both recognize that 11 million undocumented immigrants can’t be wished away. Nor will they self-deport, in the unforgettably Stalinist phrase of the late Mitt Romney. And we can’t arrest them all and ship them across the Mexican border. Dwight Eisenhower tried that in 1954 with Operation Wetback, when the casual bigotry of national policy had no problem advertising itself by name. The “Wetbacks” came back, not least because the dirty little secret of chambers of commerce from here to Wall Street’s bottom lines is that they want them here.
It’s not just that illegal immigration is unavoidable. Our consumer tastes and distaste for certain kind of work make it necessary. Without it, we wouldn’t have vegetables and fruit on our dinner tables because there’d be no one to pick them in the fields. We wouldn’t have much of a tourism industry in Florida because there’d be no one to make our beds in hotels and clean our theme parks’ toilets. We wouldn’t have nannies to slave after our children. We wouldn’t have much of a construction industry. In short, we wouldn’t have anyone doing the sort of work Americans believe they’re too good to do themselves.
And let’s be clear. Without illegal immigration, we wouldn’t have had America. The founders of this nation were its first illegals, and they were a lot more illegal than the poor waddlers across the Rio Grande these days: in the founding days, the great illegals of Plymouth and Jamestown came ashore with a Bible in one hand and a musket in the other, massacring everything in their way. We’re a nation founded not only by illegal immigration, but by genocide. At least today’s immigrants come here to slave for us and preserve our standard of living. The least we owe them is the dignity of recognition, and yes, a welcoming road to citizenship.
I’m using the words illegal immigrants and undocumented immigrants interchangeably. I don’t mean to. There is no such thing as an “illegal immigrant” anymore than there is such a thing as an “illegitimate child.” You can be a person without proper documentation. You can be a person who commits illegal acts. You can have illegal immigration. But unless you’re a character in a Kafka novel or a Borges invention, you cannot be an illegal person, though the political abuse of language is the first accomplice in the dehumanization of individuals. The degradation of human rights would not be so routine if it were not preceded by the degraded portrayal of persons as less than human, which the reflexive use of “illegal immigrant” achieves with as much ease and tolerance as “wetbacks” (or worse) once did.
It’s not just a welcoming road to citizenship they’re owed, but an atonement in language.
Let’s also recognize that illegal immigration slowed to a crawl a couple of years ago, and has now virtually stopped. Since the Great Recession, even Mexicans think they’re better off staying home than contending with our job market. Nothing like that has happened since the Great Depression. It’s a huge opportunity, like when the Berlin Wall fell and gave the West a chance to rebuild a saner world. We could begin by tearing down that obscene wall of ours at the border with Mexico, which insults America’s heritage no less than if the Statue of Liberty’s torch were replaced with a gun (which it might as well be).
We should then embrace any plan that recognizes that the overwhelming majority of immigrants, documented or not, are a benefit to the country. Rubio is still too concerned with using immigration to make a name for himself as the Republican Party’s great Latino hope. Just as he has a fabulist streak of making stuff up about his own immigration history, he’s pretending that his plan isn’t amnesty, even though he keeps talking about a pathway to citizenship. That’s amnesty. He wants to go slower than Obama, because he doesn’t want to scare off the crazies in his party. That’s just being cowardly.
The solution is staring us in the face. We’ve admitted that these immigrants aren’t going away. Let’s admit our co-dependence, let’s restore their dignity, and America’s, and admit that undocumented immigration is as American as apple pie, if not as American as empanadas.
Pierre Tristam is FlaglerLive’s editor. Reach him by email here or follow him on Twitter. This column is also syndicated through Florida Voices
farmer says
All are admitting it is more wealth for some in getting here and when this wealth slows here the masses stay back. Look at what poorer countries than Mexico get into when they try to get into Mexico for a little better life.We are now doomed as a country , just how soon depends and then what happens.Do we all go to Canada if allowed?
BajaRat says
The moment Comrade ObaMao was first elected the nation was doomed. Massive third world invasion from hostile nations such as Mexico is a deliberate treasonous attack on the American people by the globalist ruling elites.
Landaddy says
People illegally entering this country by the millions go back to Reagan. Obama is just the latest president to fail to adequately do his constitutionally sworn duty in this area.
IMO says
What Pierre Tristin is not reporting.
The looming immigration debate which is coming and it is coming is not simply about granting a path to citizenship amnesty to those illegals already in the United States but rather about democrat plans to include FAMILY REUNIFICATION in their new immigration policy.
Both the President and Hillary Clinton are ADVOCATES for a FAMILY REUNIFICATION plan.
So what exactly is FAMILY REUNIFICATION? It is a plan that would allow an undocumented alien who is granted Amnesty or permission to remain in this nation to bring his immediate family members still residing in their former country of origin into the United States. It would include their being allowed to immediately bring husbands/wives, children, brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents into this nation.
“Family reunification is a recognized reason for immigration in many countries because of the presence of one or more family members in a certain country, therefore, enables the rest of the family to immigrate to that country as well. Family reunification laws try to balance the right of a family to live together with the country’s right to control immigration.”
It is estimated that if the democrat plan of FAMILY REUNIFICATION was to become law each illegal immigrant would be allowed to bring an estimate 9 additional people into this nation (18 people if a couple) with no questions asked. That 100 million family members could flood into this nation.
It has been a long time since I read a fictional news story.
“…, the great illegals of Plymouth and Jamestown came ashore with a Bible in one hand and a musket in the other, massacring everything in their way. We’re a nation founded not only by illegal immigration, but by genocide…”
This Pierre Tristam does not have one iota of knowledge of the history of the America’s or of this nation.
Mr. Tristam there were NO IMMIGRATION LAWS in this nation until the year 1892. Before 1892 the federal government was not involved in immigration control at all. The only thing required of a ship arriving in this nation before 1892 was that the ship’s manifest be submitted to the Congress. Congress filed them.
It was 1892 when the Congress authorized the federal government to seal this nation’s borders and control immigration at the federal level. Before 1892 the individual States AND CITIES controlled immigration into their locations. NOT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT!
Sir you need to go to the Ellis Island website where you will see the federal government immigration records start in the year 1892. Before 1892 this nation had an “Open Border” policy.
Between the birth of this nation in 1789 and 1892 immigration into Canada and the United States was controlled by the governments of the nations that the immigrants were coming from.
Mr. Tristim…could you enlighten us further and advise what “Massacres & Genocidal Acts” occurred in Plymouth or Jamestown?
The only people dying were those who came off the ships.
Sir your ignorance and lack of education is astounding. You get a big fat “F” as to your knowledge of World History, American History and Government.
I should be laughing at your lack of knowledge and your failure to do proper research on a subject but instead I feel very sorry for you and your completely warped way of thinking.
Mr. Piere Tristin …graduate of the United Nations International School
Class of 1982 and who is a self described believer in Polytheism or the practice of worship or belief in multiple deities usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses.
Now the big question is does he wear a tinfoil hat while typing his nonsense.
rthomp11 says
I’m sorry but NO I will NOT thank them for being here! And I will not just open the doors and take down the border wall and let them just walk on in. They were not born here! If you are not born here you have to go through the process to become a legal citizen. If you don’t want to do that but want to work here then get a work visa. 25,000+ are issued every year!!! And we have 20 million unemployed AMERICANS!!
And for you to imply that your fellow Americans are too stupid or lazy to come up with a way to farm our own land that our forefathers fought and died for is simply…UnAMERICAN. Perhaps if we had cracked down on these illegals decades before now, our farming industry would not be in the state it currently is in. And thus, our economy would also be in better shape as well.
So NO, I will not thank any undocumented person or illegal immigrant for putting undo-stress on our public school system, heath care system, taking welfare that they didn’t pay in to, income tax they didn’t pay into, social security they haven’t paid into, identity theft, jail system, ….etc….that my, your’s and every other LEGAL American citizen’s taxes pay for.
And they do get all those things and AMERICANS don’t get a fraction of it and we were born here and paid into it. My cousin lost his job and he was told he didn’t qualify for any help but yet, there were so many Mexicans in that office there was no wonder they couldn’t help him. They had to help the Illegals!
Nancy N. says
You want to know what would happen to our economy if we “cracked down on these illegals”? Georgia already decided to run that little experiment…would you like to see their results?
http://www.cbsatlanta.com/story/14950054/exclusive-cbs-atlanta-investigates-migrant-labor-shortage-on-ga-farms
They have been experiencing a severe shortage of farm labor as jobs go unfilled as no Americans are willing to work for the wages they can make or have the skills to harvest the crops efficiently (yes, it’s actually a skill). Georgia has had to resort to using prisoners to provide farm labor because slave labor is the only US citizen labor they can get to work in their fields, but it’s not near enough to fill in the gaps.. Farmers are losing money because crops are going unharvested, and food prices for Georgia crops are going up for us, the end consumers.
Where’s all that benefit you were preaching about? I sure can’t find it in Georgia.
BajaRat says
Guest worker visas are available for farm workers and others. Only a fool would sell out our sovereignty and our citizenship for a bag of stinkin’ onions.
John Bowman says
Nancy,
Why did you leave out that unemployment, public spending, and crime all dropped after Georgia implemented their foreign criminal enforcement law? These benefits are more than ten times greater than the slightly higher food prices.
Nancy N. says
All three of those numbers were dropping BEFORE the law was implemented…and there’s no empirical way to prove that the immigration enforcement law contributed to any change in those numbers after it was passed since so many factors contribute to those statistics.
Sophianova says
@!Nancy, Georgia’s farmers can get all of the legal agricultural workers they need by utilizing our federal government’s H-2A visa program. Farmers can also purchase machinery to help in harvesting their crops.
Nancy N. says
Have you looked at the burden placed on employers and workers alike by that program? Employers have to do a TON of paperwork each to get workers each time they need them, and they have to be able to plan far in advance EXACTLY how many they need and for what dates. The visa process requires workers to repeatedly leave and re-enter the country, remaining outside the country unable to work for months at a time. From a practical standpoint, it’s completely untenable for all involved. It’s just a nice political tool for anti-immigration people to point to and say it’s possible to do it legally.
Sophianova says
@Nancy – It’s not anti-immigration. It’s anti-ILLEGAL immigration. There is a huge difference between the two.
Magnolia says
States like California are bankrupt because of the millions of illegals coming by the hundreds of thousands across the western border and stressing all the state’s services.
Illegal immigration is not noble and not to be celebrated. And if not stopped, will result in the end of this country as we know it.
This has nothing to do with human rights and everything to do with pandering politicians who will do anything to stay in office. What a crock!
rvin says
-Why would US citizens go work in a field making next to nothing when they could make more receiving unemployment? The system is the problem.
Mary says
Do you know they were Mexican? just because one is brown and with it without a mustache and speak Spanish does not make them Mexican nor does it make them illegal. My husband is Mexican but is not illegal any more We did the 6 year paper work and fees plus a trip back to Mexico to finish up and get his Green Card. My husband does not think those who choose to come illegally should just be handed their green cards. He had a process to go through and so should the rest. If you truly honestly want it you will work for it and jump those hurdels. I do not agree with the way they have the 10 year and 3 year bans set up that right there is what should be worked on. Banning a person for 10 years when they are trying to do paperwork and pay high fees trying to fix a wrong then banning them just for being in the country over 180 days then banning them 10 to 3 years only because the trip back to their home country that is required triggers a ban is ridiculous they have worked and have gotten in no trouble in the US more then likely have US citizen children then they get a ban. No that is what I don’t agree with.
Landaddy says
While I understand you don’t agree with the ban, I do agree with it. For me the bottom line is that people who break the law should not profit from their illegal actions. This country has a legal way to immigrate and it is open to all people regardless of color, religion or country of origin; as long as you qualify. There should only be one line for everyone and one law, equally applied; no special treatment. No one is better than anyone else so let’s enforce the law for all. Lastly, I don’t care where your husband came from, this is America we all (except Native Americans) can from somewhere else. As long as your husband did not break the law when coming to this country… Welcome to him and everyone who honors this country by following the law.
Deep North says
All these bigotry remarks! First of all, I applaud you Mr. Tristam on this article. However, I do agree on some certain aspects. Yes, we, as a nation, can’t completely remove undocumented workers but there has to be some way in the legal system to increase temporary work visa to these people instead of them sucking off our nation’s expense. Believe it or not, welfare like food stamps does not take a large portion of our government spending, social security and medicare does. And @rthomp11, sir/ ma’m, with all due respect, when you said that Mr. Tristam was being “un-American”, you therefore limited his 1st amendment right to free speech; something that our forefathers bleed for as you stated. The only problem is the fact that Americans believe that such illegals, such as Mexicans, take their jobs away. Jobs such as heavy agricultural labor that pay below the minimum that many Americans refuse to take even though it’s out there for them. Hell, what do you expect, to become a CEO overnight? I do acknowledge that there are corruption and nonsense within our political system, but all these hate will just make us sit down and debate when we could be out there with our hand messy, and picking out the problems on the field right away and solving the issue.
From,
An anti-propaganda student.
rthomp11 says
Deep North…. It was my opinion that he was being un-American in his statements. Just as it is his opinion in the articles he writes.
Sandra Reynolds says
The difference from my ancestors who landed here in the 1600’s as opposed to the immigrants coming across our borders now is that it was NOT illegal to do so back then. They lived peacefully with the Native Americans for over 50 years. Sadly, some immigrants got greedy and some natives were not that hospitable. (Sounds familiar). I don’t see these new immigrants in the same light. They just want a chance for a better life as my ancestors did and probably every other citizen’s ancestors. Painting all illegals with the same brush is just down right mean.
Samuel Smith says
Another important point is that unlike your ancestors, today’s illegal immigrants to this nation didn’t deliberately spread smallpox in order to secure land that they wanted. We’ve all heard terms like “indian giving” or “as long as the grass is green and the water runs.”
Ali999 says
EVERY illegal is breaking or has broken the law, so yes, we can and should “paint them all with the same brush”. Our LEGAL immigration system is supposed to weed out those who will benefit this country and not be a burden or a threat to it. Illegal aliens don’t go through such screening and indeed have gone out of their way to avoid being admitted to this society. And by the way, Sandra, I bet YOUR immigrant ancestors didn’t get “free” healthcare, “free” education, welfare and even free money such as the $4.2 BILLION additional child tax credit that illegal aliens who filed with ITINs got last year ABOVE anything they might have paid in taxes.
Frank says
What a complete and utter load of crap. I have neither the time nor interest in dismantling this typical pro-illegal immigration piece by piece. My hope is that others who read it each take one of the fallacies here floated as “fact” and correct Mr. Tristam. I’ll start the ball rolling with
“We wouldn’t have much of a construction industry.”
What a smack in the face to the scores of unemployed carpenters and others in the construction business who’ve been replaced with illegals. And yes, employers are to blame, absolutely, and they should be fined and jailed. But the illegal immigrants they’ve hired should be deported.
“…Let’s restore their dignity.”
Unfortunately, people whose first act upon entering the country is an illegal one don’t have much dignity to restore. But if they did, I don’t imagine a lot of US citizens who have been negatively impacted by their presence would be all too keen on building up their self-esteem. “Hi, you’ve snuck into our country illegally. You’re taking away jobs from US citizens. You’re turning the communities you settle in into third world neighborhoods. Do tell us – what can we do to make you feel better about yourselves?!”
rthomp11 says
Giving all of them amnesty is not the solution either. And the only reason they have US citizen children is because they came here to have their children in the first place. The US is the only country that still has birthright citizenship. The only country!!! Other countries have immigration laws much stronger than ours. Doesn’t that tell anyone anything?? The only reason we have such a problem with it is because we haven’t done anything about it. It’s so easy to get in! They all know that and are coming here because the other countries have passed laws to stop them from getting into their countries. They deport them!!! Even the countries they are leaving have immigration laws!
As for unemployment, it only lasts as long as you paid into it. And frankly, if we didn’t have a Congress that did so many back room deals with other countries, our imports wouldn’t be twice what our exports are. I wouldn’t walk into WalMart and feel like I’m in ChinaVille, where it’s hard to even find anything MADE IN THE USA! Want to put Americans back to work?! Import only half what we export, just like other countries. Make it here! If it’s not make in the USA, then maybe we don’t need it as much as we think we do! If foreign businesses want to sell their products here they will build it here to sell or it won’t sell in the USA. But this will not happen because people in Congress have gotten kickbacks for making deals to open the doors on imports and in turn, put the American people out of work and the American economy in the toilet!
David Farrar says
In addition to Sen. Rubio’s provisions, I would like to add another proviso: During the 10-year waiting period, all offspring, if born in this country, would no longer be considered U.S. citizens at birth, but must under go naturalization at the age of majority, as would any juvenile not born in this country and illegally brought into the United States without documentation.
ex animo
davidfarrar
Geezer says
Q: How do you say self-loathe in Spanish? A: Marco Rubio.
Brad says
Well you try and find a job in flagler county , it used to be they only worked in the fields , now every construction company , landscaper, plumber you name it have no jobs for americans because they can pay these illegals so much less, its why we have the highest unemployment rates in the state , the highest foreclosure rates, and homeless people living in the woods , even american radionics buses them in , they`ve taken all the jobs this county has to offer
Patriot says
This article, just like Obama makes us all out a mass murders and illegal aliens. When are the bleeding hearts going to realize that we are a nation of laws and we have immigration laws on the books for a reason and that reason is not to allow every Tom, Dick and Harry that wants to come to America be able to do so, es\pecially illegally.
Over 80 per cent of Americas citizens and even a vast number of Latino’s say “NO AMNESTY FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS>”
Anonymous says
I’m sorry, but charity starts at home! Let’s get our homeless off the streets, and give our orphaned children a better life before we just “welcome illegal immigrants” to even more over populate our country! And by allowing the illegal immigrants to stay that are already here, kills our economy because they don’t income tax like a normal citizen. And I’m sorry, we live in America! I will not learn another language so I can order something from somewhere because an illegal immigrant won’t learn to speak English.
Geezer says
If I knew that a better life was across the border, I’d cross it too!
Hunger waits for no one, especially Homeland Security.
“There but for the grace of God (go I).”
I am lucky to have been born here. Far be it for me to not extend a
welcoming hand to any people not as fortunate as I am.
In response to the commenter blaming undocumented immigrants
for our economic decline: Why not look to the thieves we have elected to office
the last forty years? Farming decline, industrial decline? Blame NAFTA for that.
Further, I’d rather see non-Americans in America work in American-based companies,
rather than non-Americans in India or China manufacture my goods.
Let’s attack the corporations who out-source our jobs and line their pockets
while paying negligible taxes. Next time you shop at Walmart, ponder that.
If you want to play the blame-game, play it right.
It’s bigotry and xenophobia which are un-American.
(un-American to me, anyway.)
Sophianova says
@Geezer, Americans who welcome legal immigrants but want illegal aliens deported are not xenophobes.
Geezer says
Thank you Sophianova, for reading my comment in its entirety.
Magnolia says
Geezer, disagreeing with a government which refuses to enforce it’s immigration laws already on the books does not make us bigots or un-American.
How long do you think we’d last as a nation with an open borders policy or politicians who could selectively choose which laws they’ll enforce?
America is fast becoming a nation where there is no respect for the rule of law. We are becoming a nation where people expect to be handed things instead of working for them. That’s un-American.
Do you have any idea who many women walk across our borders on a daily basis just to give birth so their children will be citizens and eligible for benefits? Paying these hospital bills has cost this country billions of dollars and forced many hospitals into bankruptcy.
We are a nation of immigrants and we value their contributions. But we expect them to obey the laws, to go through the normal immigration process and respect the traditions of our nation.
Geezer says
I stand firm in my opinion, please read my most recent comment about the banks below.
Tell me if you disagree.
Thanks for sharing your opinion.
confidential says
@David Farr. Nations Granting Birthright Citizenship not only USA also CANADA.
Birthright Citizenship is the automatic granting of citizenship to children born within a nation’s borders or territories. The United States and Canada are the only developed nations in the world to still offer Birthright Citizenship to tourists and illegal aliens. 8 U.S.C. § 1401 : US Code – Section 1401 (1952) grants automatic citizenship to any person born in the United States.
@Patriot. Remind you that 70% of Latinos voted for Obama and also want comprehensive immigration reform and have respect for law abiding hard working undocumented. The other 30 % are those likewise Marco Rubio believe “to be the righteous/chosen only, to deserve to be immigrants in our land”. The others are subject barbed wire fences, shot on the spot and as suggested maybe electrified fences!
@Magnolia. California was bankrupted by the sequence of GOP administrations and not by the undocumented used over and over as escape goats to blame CA’s financial debacles. Prove is that Governor Jerry Brown last elected has reduced the deficit and transform it in a 800 million plus budget surplus. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-15/brown-turns-to-one-time-fixes-to-help-close-budget-gap.html
http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Jerry-Brown-California-s-deficit-is-gone-4183371.php
By the way Obama has to take the example from CA’s Jerry Brown and fix our country finances and create jobs doing the same, raise taxes to all making over 250,000.
BajaRat says
These parasites are called illegal aliens (the correct legal term) because they are aliens who are in the U.S. illegally. They aren’t “immigrants,” and they are hardly “undocumented.” They have plenty of documents….. all stolen or forged. I say build a wall and deport ’em all.
quercus says
The California legislature has been Democratically controlled for years. And Moonbeam Brown is a spinmaster. As for the surplus that was an estimate of proposed future revenues. Thus far revenues have been much much lower then projected. The last budget was supposed to be balanced. but shortfalls of revenue put it in the red.
California is still in the hole regardless of what the spin is. There is hidden debt:
“Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, said he embraces Brown’s effort to spend more on education and pay down HIDDEN DEBT over time.”
Taxing the wealthy isn’t a long term fix. Tax revenues will not increase because of unemployment. If people are not working or are only working at low income jobs, there is no tax base.
Middle income and the modestly well off are leaving the state to the tune of 225,000 or more a year.
California state and local governments currently have 325 BILLION dollars of unfunded pension liability. Orange County with it’s high illegal alien population has an unfunded pension liability of 10 billion dollars. Illegal alien workers displacing Americans and driving down wages also drives down the tax base.
The simple truth is that there is no benefit to this country or it’s citizens as a whole to import more people. This country doesn’t need any more low wage earners. It needs jobs. A surplus of labor regardless of legality decreases wages and increases unemployment. Immigrants whether they are legal or not, tend to send a large part of their earnings abroad. Mexico’s second highest source of revenue next to oil sales is money transfers from the US. They average between 15-20 billion a year. If Americans held the majority of those jobs, that money would be spent here.
And as for illegal aliens, tell LA County just how much a benefit they get from them. Total cost to LA County residents for illegal aliens 1.6 billion/year..
Total cost to California is near 22 billion a year.
Magnolia says
confidential (and FlaglerLive), did anybody READ that article? It was talking about what Brown would have to do in order to balance the budget. California is not even moving in the right direction to reduce it’s massive deficit.
Corporations and citizens are fleeing the once great state in droves. They are losing their tax base.
Magnolia says
Confidential, that’s a good question but would be better addressed to us all. Hurts me to think your life was so hard that you still feel so hurt and betrayed at this point in life. I hate to think of anybody feeling like that.
If that is the case, will there every really be a way to erase those feelings?
I met a very nice young man once who was working in a hotel in Puerto Villarta. He had a brother in California near where I was from. His brother is a citizen. This young man used to come to California during the growing season to make money and send it home to his family. he sent everything he made home to them. He told me about how he missed his wife and kids.
However, now that Mexico’s economy was expanding and the resort industry growing, he was able to make better wages in his own country, without the long absences from his family. He was enjoying watching his boys grow up, attending their ball games, in his home country.
That should be our goal. We need to return to being a nation of production and being able to take care of our own people. And the federal government needs to be held responsible for a broken immigration system. No more excuses. This has been going on for far too long and has reduced the quality of life for us all. That should never be mistaken for an uncaring populace.
Liana G says
To be honest with you Pierre, I would like them to go back via self deportation – the GOP’s position. Here’s why, the democrats position/policy of rounding them up and detaining them in our taxpayer funded private prisons run by Wall Street banks, is exploitation of the worst kind. And our gov’t, with its strong Wall Street ties (I’ve lost count of how many now work in and for the Obama administration), is fully aware of what is going on.
Obama has rounded up more immigrants for deportation in his first year than Bush did in his entire 8 years. Clinton also deported many during his term, but not more than Bush. Our job creation has more to do with the construction of more prisons which are being run by private companies, increase prison guards and other types of jobs, than by any sort of meaningful job creation. The taxpayer cost of detaining one of these immigrants/prisioners in such institutions range from $18,000 – $33,000 a year depending on the state. And the added incentive/profit? These immigrants still perform the same labor, but for less if not for free.
Kids whose families have been rounded up are placed in foster care. And who knows exactly how many disappear into a world of human traffiking and abuse because there is no proof of their existence in our system. Especially when they’re taken across state lines and away from any ties to their community.
This is America’s shadow economy. The good news is that the state of our economy has resulted in a large drop in immigration. The bad news is that America has increased and expanded its destabilization and plundering of small defenseless countries to continue feeding its gigantic appetite. America was founded on Greed. Will it fall the same way?
John Bowman says
Liana,
Bush deported 2 million over 8 years, Obama 400,000 each year. 2 million is five times larger than 400,000. http://www.dhs.gov/yearbook-immigration-statistics-2011-3 Table 39.
john sampson says
I agree there is a way to legallycome into this county
They were not born here let everyone do it the legal way.
jane says
illegal: not according to or authorized by law : unlawful, illicit; also: not sanctioned by official rules
Synonyms: criminal, felonious, illegitimate, illicit, lawless, unlawful, wrongful
illegal immigrant = lawbreaker
Why would anyone applaud or be thankful for lawbreakers? Am I thankful for the local scumbag who breaks in my house? I think not.
levotb says
What part of the old Soviet Union did Tristam come from?
Samuel Smith says
Those browns should just stay at where they came from and leave this nation to those that Jesus gave it to, right and proper God fearing white Americans.
Ali999 says
Georgia’s farmers, like those of any farmers in this country, are able to bring in an UNLIMITED number of legal seasonal agricultural guest workers under the H2-A visa program. That they choose not to do so show that they’re too lazy, too stupidn, or simply too greedy to do so. Moreover, MOST workers in agriculture are still here LEGALLY according to the Pew Hispanic Center. Likewise, MOST illegal alliens do NOT work in agriculture but under stolen SS numbers alongside Americans in jobs Americans are doing and will do when they can get them. Look at the results of ICE audits on companies ranging from Chipotle to Target to Pacific Steel for the proof of that.
Larry says
WHAT IS INSANITY?
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.
Congress has passed 7 amnesties for illegal aliens, starting in 1986.
1. Immigration and Reform Control Act (IRCA), 1986: A blanket amnesty for some 2.7 million illegal aliens
2. Section 245(i) Amnesty, 1994: A temporary rolling amnesty for 578,000 illegal aliens
3. Section 245(i) Extension Amnesty, 1997: An extension of the rolling amnesty created in 1994
4. Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA) Amnesty, 1997: An amnesty for close to one million illegal aliens from Central America
5. Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act Amnesty (HRIFA), 1998: An amnesty for 125,000 illegal aliens from Haiti
6. Late Amnesty, 2000: An amnesty for some illegal aliens who claim they should have been amnestied under the 1986 IRCA amnesty, an estimated 400,000 illegal aliens
7. LIFE Act Amnesty, 2000: A reinstatement of the rolling Section 245(i) amnesty, an estimated 900,000 illegal aliens.
Ali999 says
They both recognize that 11 million undocumented immigrants can’t be wished away. Nor will they self-deport, in the unforgettably Stalinist phrase of the late Mitt Romney.
————-Actually, it’s probably more like 20 milion illegal aliens and the Census reports that about 1 million illegal aliens have left, probably because of a lack of jobs and increased enforcement. What we do know for sure is that we can’t legalize illegal aliens because we’d only get not only more illegal aliens but more legal immigrants–the family members sponsored by the legalized illegal aliens. We saw that after the 1986 amnesty, which we were promised would be the ONLY amnesty because our laws would be enforced. As for “Stalinist”, one might more accurately draw a comparison between Nazis who cavalierly disregarded the borders of their neighboring countries, and illegal aliens who do the same. “Invaders” is a term that comes to mind.
mobilebay says
This article is the biggest bunch of hogwash I’ve ever read. All that is needed is a leader with a backbone to demand that illegal aliens leave the same way they got here, or serve a nice, long prison term. We’ve become the world’s dumping ground and the author must know that Mexico doesn’t give their illegals any quarter. They throw them in jail or hustle them back across the border, or in many cases, murder them. We, like idiots, reward them. This is no longer a sovereign nation and certainly no longer a nation of laws.
kathy kauth says
There is a statutory procedure for legal entry into this country for non citizens. Those who flaunt it are breaking the law and must be deported. The trillions of dollars being spent on our latest wars which we all know will end the same as did Vietnam, should be applied toward the internal safety of Americans. I honestly don’t care if the entire Muslim world is a democracy or a dictatorship; do you? And I am quite sure that the radical jihadists throughout the world are not going to be wiped out by our government, even if Patton were still around. The precedent that has been set by permitting our borders to be a world wide joke is having devastating effects on our economy, our growing drug problem and our overall stability. And, What is the deal about children of illegals being eligible for a free ride for a US college education? Please!!! These are you tax dollars at work, folks. Think about it every time you see your withholding tax increase. There can be no amnesty for illegals; why? Because it effectively abolishes the existing immigration laws of our country. The real solution, which no one seems to want to recognize, is to place ICE under the jurisdiction of the Dept of Homeland Security. All of our “guests” ie, visa holders and permanent residents should be reevaluated by DHS simultaneous with the expulsion of illegals. Lest we forget, Ellis Island, which processed millions of legal immigrants beginning in the1800s, became a detention and deportation processing center in 1924.
Mark says
Pierre, an illegal alie– Oh, I mean an undocumented immigrant! — drunkenly plowed into my car last month and managed to take off before the cops got there, only to be tracked down the next day after he’d sobered up. To my – and I’m sure your – utmost surprise, he was neither insured nor had a license. How would you suggest I show this magnificent example of humankind your suggested gratitude and reverence for his unselfish act of destroying my car and sending my insurance rates up?
Pierre Tristam says
Mark, are you sure the illegal bastard–undoubtedly Mexican, since he was drunk from a day of laziness–wasn’t also gay and Muslim? Surely all that has as much to do with his wrecking your rates as his illegal status (I checked: nine out of 10 drunkards who plow into us Americans are illegal drunk Mexican, though only six of those are gay and the Muslim thing gets confusing once you try to weed out good Sunnis as opposed to, say, Taliban Sunnis). Glad your sense of justice is OK though.
Dave says
Wow, what a twisted tale…
First, the ‘late’ Mitt Romney? I must have missed his obituary. Hmm, let’s not use such negative imagery.
Second, the European settlers referred to herein were not the ‘first illegals’. To be illegal, you have to be in violation of an existing law for an existing nation/government. Neither of those conditions were met at the time. So, while ‘an inconvienent truth’, this is simply more of your negative imagery – weak at best.
Third, while there is a smidgen of truth in it, your statement that this nation was founded on genocide does not have anything to do with immigration, so why use it? Again, more negative imagery – you must truly hate this country. ALL NATIONS were either founded on or had some form of genocide in their history.
Fourth, you’ll be surprised to hear me agree that there is no such thing as an ‘illegal immigrant’. However, based on federal law, there are illegal aliens. Once again, just becasue you don’t like the truth, you use colorful imagery to soften this fact.
Fifth, regardless of the administrations ‘prclamation’, illegal immigration has not slowed to a crawl or stopped altogether. As a matter of FACT, just as before, when the possibility of an amnesty (DREAM Act) became a (political) reality, the numbers of illegal crossings has increased. However, Border Patrol Agents are being ordered to report encountering no more than two illegals – even if they find more.
Sixth, the fact is that illegal alien workers ara a total negative effect on the economy. Yes, companies want them in order to pay lower wages and benefits (if any); but that has the end result of holding ALL wages down. Some agriculture businesses that have been unable to find enough workers at the low wage offered, have been forced to modernize/automate without significant cost to the consumer.
Seventh, we don’t (and never had) have a ‘wall’ on our border. It is a fence, and a partial one at that. Oh, and it has ‘gates’ – commonly referred to as ports of entry. If a person wants to come here, they can go through a gate – legally. Otherwise, they have committed a crime. When you build a fence (wall) around your property, it is to make visitors enter through the gate. Anyone who goes to the effort to climb the fence/wall must not be a welcome visitor.
Eighth, we DO NOT owe illegal aliens anything. Oh, self-deportation DOES work. Thousands of illegal workers are returning to Mexico because they can no longer find work here – and Mexico’s economy is actually booming. Of course, there are several million who will not leave, because the ‘dangling carrot’ of an amnesty is too tempting to walk away from.
confidential says
Thank you Pierre for your drastic but real description of some plain racy statements here. Real statistics do not count for some willing to distort data to achieve their sadistic goals.
What are they so afraid of? Their concern is why Mrs Walsh picked for title of her book “What is the Matter with White People” http://www.salon.com/topic/whats_the_matter_with_white_people/
Geezer says
When your home’s value, and your investments tanked these last few years, you were basically pick-pocketed
of hundreds of thousands of dollars. You owe all of your vitriol to the banks who operate above the law in these United States, and the politicians who insulate them.
I’ll bet if Pierre had instead written an article about the misdeeds of the banks, the hateful comments would have been more subdued and far fewer.
curious says
You know I have been reading all this arguments against illegal immigrants and against the dream act but I have a few concerns..1. this country was built by immigrants and unless you are a Native American, your ancestors at some point were illegal and have killed to take over the land. They were not told to leave the country and apply to come back legally..if that was the case then chances are majority of you would not be US citizens. 2. Not all illegal immigrants are lazy and living off of your tax dollars.. there are ones who r paying taxes for decades with no hope what so ever in benefitting from it and you are living off of their tax dollars 3. Specifically for kids brought in the US as a child, this is their home. They know nothing except the US. How would you feel if the only country you know as your own told you to go away and not come back for 10 years. Not so good. Plus keep in mind growing up they r not seen as outsiders, the grow to love this country and call it their own then one day they become outsiders. Now they don’t belong here nor there. These kids, now some adults, are no different than you and I. I bet if you came across one you wouldn’t even know the difference. 4. A lot of people say that they do not want the kids to get status bc they will eventually apply for the parents who committed the crime but there are cases where the parents are already legal whether through family sponsorship or other method of applying and now the kids that came with them are stuck.
I believe there should b some way for them to at least apply for status in the US. You don’t have to give citizenship like free candy but at least have a process in place for them to legalize their status. You can disqualify those who do not pay taxes or are taking advantage of the welfare system but at least let the ones doing the right thing have a chance. A little competition will bring out the best in all of us, just because you were born here does not mean you have to get a job you don’t actually qualify for, its not a birth right.
confidential says
@Dave.You are correct in one thing…Mexico’s economy is booming enough that they came here and bought Cement Reinker in Bunnell and the nation from Rinker Australia, now in the hands of Cemex of Mexico and saved all its American workers jobs since 2006. Now Mexico’s “Bimbo” is ready to buy out Hostess Cakes and save all those Americans 19,000 jobs. http://www.enstarz.com/articles/9488/20121119/twinkies-survive-mexican-company-bimbo-buying-hostess.htm
An even more …”for your enjoyment”, the richest man in the world is Carlos Slim a Mexican that owns their version of Telecom from Mexico down to South America and still expanding:
http://www.forbes.com/profile/carlos-slim-helu/
Maybe because they are brown in your square vision, do not deserve their success?
Why don’t you worry about the Chinese stealing your millions of real high tech, high paid jobs instead?
http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/highlights/toppartners.html
Geezer says
You’re just banging your head on the wall my friend.
While your comments are spot on, they can’t compete against the hateful ones.
I’m just glad that you’re well-informed.
confidential says
Lets don’t be so shocked for some of our neighbors prejudiced comments here. Instead lets take the example of this Latino waiter in Texas reaction to some of the same:
http://www.aol.com/video/waiter-refuses-to-serve-discriminatory-customers/517650215/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmaing9%7Cdl2%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D260269
Magnolia says
@Confidential, You are so determined to blame all this on racism. Why? I think those commenting here have made it pretty clear this is about people breaking the law and NOT people of color.
Nancy N. says
Yeah and all those people who rant against President Obama and say they are concerned he wasn’t really born in Hawaii are really interested in making sure our presidential elections adhere to our constitution, not just racists.
It’s not politically correct to say “we don’t want immigrants in this country because it will make white people become a minority even faster.” So they frame their arguments with all sorts of straw man law and order arguments to pretend it really isn’t about race.
NANCY MERVIN says
Well my vote is for the qualified eligible youth who should be allowed to continue to live in US and why not with full rights as US citizens.US is only set to gain from them.
confidential says
Thank you Geezer.
I take my time getting informed because ignorance leads to slavery. Have you heard of “Keep them ignorant and conquer them”? I love our USA so much, to take the time and wise up. Maybe looks like I am banging my head with no results, but I believe that if we do nothing then nothing will improve. Lately shows, that working hard together we can achieve success as America is unique on its greatness.
Geezer says
Thumbs up for you my friend! Thank you for your excellent comments.
You’re a bright spot in morass of bigotry.
You are absolutely correct about ignorance and it’s side-effects.