If 90% of the illegal immigrants were white, we wouldn't have the laws that make those immigrants illegal in the first place. Fix the laws and the "problem" is solved.
Thomas Greaves | Homepage | 06.19.06 - 10:16 pm | #

I wish you guys had the same passion for allowing gay partners to enter the country. My best friend had to move to the UK five years ago because she is gay and her partner couldn't get a visa to live here. Until gay US citizens have rights how can we give them to border jumpers? Don't forget the cause of us US citizens who have no rights.
Leonardo | 06.19.06 - 10:23 pm | #

Hear hear!
Jennifer | Homepage | 06.20.06 - 12:50 pm | #

I tend to agree with you guys on most things but I think you're a little short sighted in the illegal immigration department. I don't think we can (or should) send them all back but before we give the ones here a path to citizenship we really need to get control of our borders so we know and we decide who comes here.

We should care about these things because illegal immigration causes problems for that segment of society least able to defend itself: The folks on the economic bottom of society. The illegals aren't primarily migrant farm labor any more. A great many of them now are taking construction and other jobs that used to be province of lower education level whites and blacks. These people are not only seeing illegals take their jobs they are also seeing the competition drive their wages down. I'm talking everything from landscaping to electrical workers and all the trades in between. I was talking to a customer a couple of months ago who after 20 years as a journeyman electrician has seen his pay go from 21.00 an hour to 12.00 an hour when he can find work. The jobs are there but they are being filled by people with no legal right to be here. In 1989 laborers in meat packing plants in the north made 19.00 an hour. It took decent wages to get good employees to do this work. A friend of mine in Chicago recently told me those same plants are full of mexicans making 9.00 to 9.95 an hour.I read an article a few weeks ago (wish I could find it again) that quoted a developer from Georgia who said that construction costs in the southeast would be 20 to 25 percent higher without the illegals. Who do you think this is hurting? I believe this because after Hurricane Hugo there were construction workers from all over the country pouring into the affected areas. Have you noticed who is doing most of the work in NO since Katrina? The ones I've seen look mexican to me.

Think about this: Now that most of the manufacturing jobs have gone to China and we're allowing illegals do come in to take the construction jobs what do we expect these people to do? It's not realistic to think that all these people should get a college education and get a better job. Everyone can't go to college and if they could what do you think that would mean to most of us that behind desks in nice air conditioned offices? A BA isn't worth what it used to be anyway so let's add
hundreds of thousands (or millions) to that job pool and see what happens.

Thomas I have to disagree with you on the skin color issue. While many of those spouting off may see race as an issue those that are losing their jobs and wages don't care what color these people are.
Dave | 06.21.06 - 1:45 pm | #

The way I see it, no one can take a job that isn't given to them. So if "these illegals", "mexicans", "foreigners", or whatever else people want to call them are taking jobs that are being offered to them, then it seems that there are employers willing to pay what these employees are willing to earn.

By the way, on this quote:
Have you noticed who is doing most of the work in NO since Katrina? The ones I've seen look mexican to me.
so do tell, what DOES a mexican look like?
Minerva Oblongata | 06.21.06 - 2:20 pm | #

Maybe whites and blacks should pay more attention in high school and do some work there in order to graduate. Then they might not get stuck working menial labor jobs because that pays the best wage. Barring that, they can wake up early, work hard, and keep their mouths shut just as well as those Latin fellows and learn the skilled trades within construction, rather than just humping concrete mix.

But what do I know, I'm a dumbass who throws his time away in a volunteer position tutoring kids who live on Skid Row in LA.
Area Man | 06.21.06 - 2:52 pm | #

Area Man: The skilled jobs are the ones I'm talking about. Your average contractor won't pay a citizen the 21.00 an hour he used to earn when he has an illegal standing there willing to do the same job for 9.00 an hour. The contractor is also not paying the illegals matching social security or workmens comp. The illegal ends up being used though he has a short term fix while the citizen is down at the unemployment office. In the long run both are being hurt.

I applaud you for your volunteer work, no one gives as much as the man who gives of himself. Unfortunetly if you have any children of your own that can't make the grade in college they may end up living in skid row. I see the long term affect of this as being the end of the middle class since we are busily throwing away the gains made by American workers since the thirties.

Let me throw in this one last thing. I think a lot of people who support illegal immigration do so because they see lower prices coming their way. In short they have something to gain but the short term gains will not be worth the cost in both dollars and misery.
Dave | 06.21.06 - 3:44 pm | #

I think some of the statements made are completely STUPID and the writer has exhibited it very well. For example: “Requiring every American to get permission from a federal agency before they can work. Putting soldiers on the border.” What do you think the federal governments’ responsibility is and has been since we became a nation? Here is another classic: “Shifting resources from fighting violent crime to arresting people who want to work.” Please read the article again. Are they not fed up with the crime and didn’t they say this is the reason? What were the illegals doing about the crime? Simply put, YES to this one: “Would the anti-immigration folks support crazy policies like these if 90% of illegal immigrants were white?” YES to this one also: “Would they be so quick to give up their civil liberties if the immigration issue was about Canadians instead of Mexicans?” It is all about the rule of law. Coming across either border is illegal and is a crime. Stealing social security numbers to work is also a crime.
Frank Livingston, EFO | 06.21.06 - 10:04 pm | #

Illegal immigrants in America are law breakers and law breakers are criminals, plain and simple. Those who choose not to come to America legally are law breaking criminals! Criminals belong in jail for society's well-being! Regardless of color or origin, coming to America any other way but legally, you are a criminal.
DJWoodburn | 06.21.06 - 11:37 pm | #

Dave: I was using my experience as a tongue-in-cheek jab. Most of the welfare hotel and street campers on the row are black. There are very few hispanics in that sector of poverty. In general, hispanics have better social networks that support their families and secure jobs. They may get drunk, fight, and sleep under cacti, but we had similar complaints about the Irish (except for the cactus part, they slept in gutters) in the 19th century. The Italians with their firey tempers weren't welcome either. I think there is a pretty stong stench coming off the anti-Papist factor, the Protestant fear of being out-bred and replaced by those saint-worshipping mackrel-snappers.

And $21/hour is a gross overpayment for the work being done. These people aren't registered nurses.

As far as the law and order aspect, just because the government codifies something as a crime doesn't make it morally wrong. This country discriminates against people becoming citizens for a number of logically indefensable reasons. My thoughts are to make it easier to become a citizen and much easier to get a renewable work visa so people can come and go as their work needs dictate and get in the system so they can be taxed.

The harder we squeeze, the more people will slip through our grasp.
Area Man | 06.22.06 - 12:55 pm | #

Area Man: Most registered nurses (at least the ones I know) would laugh at 21.00 an hour. Most hospitals pay them more than that these days or as I said at least the ones I know. I think I read somewhere that the average worker at the big 3 US automakers made about 60 bucks an hour. I know techs that work for phone companies that make close to 35.00 bucks an hour. Twenty one bucks an hour for commercial/industrial electricians is not that unusual. When I was an electrical contractor one of my journeyman quit me to move back up north. His new boss called me a couple of months later and offered me 27.50 an hour plus benefits. That was in 1994.
Dave | 06.22.06 - 2:27 pm | #