I have no problem with the law...
...but, I'm not going to pretend that the law is about illegal Mexican immigration. Arizona's problem with illegal Canadians doesn't seem to amount to much.
I think the question is: Is the political will to enact the law about Mexicans....or is it about illegal immigrants, who happen to be coming over the Mexican border...I think there is a difference.
My take: tall fence, wide gate. Allow Mexicans to enter in a controlled fashion, with work sponsors, etc....but make it relatively easy to enter. However, in order for anything like that to be effective, we would have to have a law like the one Arizona passed, to get rid of the illegals who still insisted on circumventing the rules.
Elena, in my few posts on this subject I have focused on Mexico because that country is the single largest source of illegal immigration. If you read my posts, however, you will note that I am NOT anti-Mexican. I AM anti-Mexican-government. The people coming here from Mexico, legally or illegally, are overwhelmingly hard working, good people who just want a chance to support their families. Insofar as it is the role of government to create an environment that allows people to do just that, the Mexican government has failed its citizens miserably. I'm afraid hearing our much-beloved president praising Felipe Calderon today made me laugh. I have far more sympathy for illegal immigrants from Mexico than from (as referenced in above posts) Canada, the UK, etc. Those folks don't have anything approaching the pressures facing most Mexicans, and are far more likely per capita to be criminals.
Gryphon,
Thank you for your post, but I didn't want anyone to defend themselves. I do understand that Mexico has the most illegals here and that's why everyone (meaning the nation as a whole) is fixing their eyes on Mexico.
I'm not upset with anyone, just voice my opinion/feelings.
Elena, earlier you responded to someone you called JD. Were you addressing me?
Fox news just reported that not only is Mexico the greatest source of illegal aliens but also the greatest source of LEGAL immigrants; 111,000 in 2009.
By the way, Elena I would love to watch you play with your toys. Do you think you could PM your password to me?
If you go back in history to the Mexican American War you cannot tell me that we did not steal this land under the phrase "Manifest Destiny." The justification for this war has been rewritten at least 4 times struggling to find any decent justification for it other than we wanted the land and took it.
Illegal Immigration to me is just taking your land back. lol
This is a nation of mutts. We all came from somewhere else and during our existence we did not like the Irish, the Germans, The Jews and any other ethnicity for a time until the melded into our society.
Old white men are just fearing that they are losing their priveleges.
You cannot deport 12,000,000 of anybody realistically. Worse if you put them in jail logistically. Offer an amnesty with a $1,000 fee to apply for citizenship and wait 10 years or 5 if you did military service.
Seal the border in the interim or charge $1,000 to get in and apply.
Would make a big dent in the deficits run up by the previous administration.
Me gusta las latina chicas!!
Maybe we should suspect everyone and have the police stop us all and prove our innocence and legitimacy. Ya know guilty until proven innocent? Would that make you feel good?
JG....it was my mistake, sorry. But yes, I was talking to you.
"If you go back in history to the Mexican American War you cannot tell me that we did not steal this land under the phrase "Manifest Destiny." The justification for this war has been rewritten at least 4 times struggling to find any decent justification for it other than we wanted the land and took it."
Yep we did and they fought us and lost, they got beat by a country that was half their size, now its ours and if they want to take it back then I guess they can fight us for it, until then, I guess we will keep paying for it through all of the financial aid, like the 1.3 billion we just gave them for the war on drugs, thats funny, their fighting themselves, the government is fighting the cartels that are supported by the corrupt government. So yeah, we took it, its ours and even if it was theirs they would still be crossing whereever the border is because the country is a shit hole caused by a corrupt government which steals all the resources for themselves and the people want to get the hell out of their. So until they take it back they need to enter this country the same way their government requires people to enter their country.
"This is a nation of mutts. We all came from somewhere else and during our existence we did not like the Irish, the Germans, The Jews and any other ethnicity for a time until the melded into our society."
Big difference is that the bulk of the cultures you mentioned entered this country legally, that fact that people are so willing to ignore illegal activity is a primary reason this country is turning into a shit hole of people of all colors that do what they want, regardless of the impact it has on others. "I got mine" its a wonderful mentality, I am glad you subscribe to it. Tells me so much about your charactor.
"Old white men are just fearing that they are losing their priveleges."
Yeah cause we all know how rich they ALL are.
"Maybe we should suspect everyone and have the police stop us all and prove our innocence and legitimacy. Ya know guilty until proven innocent? Would that make you feel good?"
Sure cause you know us racist crackers just lookin for an exuse to get us some beaners. Yes sir, gonna catch them, take them to the house and have them cut our grass and then we gonna depart their brown buts. Cause you know ever thing we do is because we racists, yes sir. Bubba, grab the shotgun and warm up the pick up. Yes sir, that be makin us feel reaaaaaaaaalllllllllll good.
For those of you of hispanic decent that I may have offended with this response I appologize but I am just sick of this BS.
"For those of you of hispanic decent that I may have offended with this response I appologize but I am just sick of this BS."
I usually avoid these discussions because "I am just sick of this BS too". The mean spirited comments made in these discussions make it difficult to remain civil at times. The midwest is probably the most racist area I have ever lived. It is home and I choose to stay here which is my American born right. Yes, a right, not a privilege. If I break the law or do something drastic to lose my citizenship, I give up my rights. White Americans will never understand what minorities experience. Don't tell me you understand or that we always play the race card. Unless you are a person of color, you will never understand what minorities feel. So when you throw out these attempts at humor at the expense of other humans to make your point, don't bother apologizing. You've made your point loud and clear.
The school mentioned is in an old part of Omaha, South Omaha in which back when my mother lived in South O, it was a HUGE melting pot of different races. Now, South O is mainly white and Mexican because a lot of the older people have passed and their children have moved.
The following makes numerous points and saddens me because the mind set of some people will never change:
http://www.omaha.com/article/2010051...ng-suspensions
As has been said, we don't have a major influx of illegal immigrants from Africa. Or Canada. The vast majority of illegal immigrants in the US are from Mexico. Each has a story and a reason for breaking into the US, but it almost always comes down to money.
Any discussion of the problem starts with the fact that illegal immigrants are people. But they are also criminals. And we are in a war to keep our tax dollars from being consumed in and services for illegals and management of the issue. It is not a war against people, but illegal immigrants are the primary cause of this problem. For the US, the problem is already overwhelming.
The illegal immigrants from Mexico who I've met are hard workers. They appreciate the US more than most US citizens. They would become legal if it became necessary, but there is not a strong enough incentive.
Elena is expressing a valid feeling. Some of the misguided anger is targeted towards Mexico. My "anger" is at the US government for not creating a strong enough incentive for people to not come here illegally.
You don't see this problem in Israel, partly because they have fences guarded by people with automatic weapons. Now that's an incentive. But everyone loses a lot of personal freedom to put that system in place.
I had a house where the gutters leaked. I didn't do anything about it. Over time, the water rotted the window sills and eroded the soil around the foundation so the foundation began to shift. If I had done something at the start I could have prevented most of the problem.
The first thing to stop was the flow of water. Then I had to deal with the results of my negligence.
We need to create a strong incentive to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and THEN deal with the results of our negligence. In a humane manner. Before our house falls in.
I guess I just don't understand why this is such an issue. If I'm leaving Westport at 3 am, and a cop stops me, he has a right to ask me more probing questions, as in "Where are you coming from?" "Where are you going, etc" to see if he smells alcohol on me so he has justification to arrest me on Suspicion of a DUI. Isn't that what this is? From what I've heard, they have to have cause to stop you in the first place. Then, if they have a question of your LEGALITY, then they can detain you. I can't think of a single other activity in which we would be partaking in ILLEGALLY and have the cops catch us in it and they CAN'T do anything about it.
Trust me, even THAT law is more lenient than almost any other country in the world, INCLUDING MEXICO! Just try going into another country illegally, get stopped and see what happens!
Look, we ARE a nation of immigrants. But this is different. This is not a culture that is moving here to assimilate into our society to better themselves. They're coming here and creating their own sub-society. Many of these kids are graduating High School and can't read or write in English. Sorry, but that's our language. In France, if you can't read or write French, tough shit, you get a bad grade.
I don't blame them for wanting to escape Mexico. It's a crazy, dangerous place right now. Most common folk have no rights and are at the mercy of the upper class. But why don't they work on creating a better society there? Quite frankly if you look at the economics of Mexico, the only thing keeping the country afloat is US! Not only from the aid we give them, but the fact that millions of the citizens that would be a burden to THEIR country can come here and take advantage of OUR services, and many times sending money back to family in Mexico and propping up their frail economy. The only real reason I can see NOT to be more aggressive on stopping ILLEGAL immigration is doing so cold turkey will almost assuredly cause Mexico to collapse under the strain. And I'm serious about that. But I think they need to work on fixing their own country first. It's not our responsibility to fund their education, health and welfare, especially when we're struggling ourselves.
And I'm not anti-Mexican. I'm anti-ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT! As I've said before, my sister-in-law is a LEGAL immigrant. And because of the strain of the ILLEGAL immigrants, they're making it harder for LEGAL immigrants because there just isn't enough structure for ALL of them. That's the way it goes. But again, if they want to come here legally and contribute to our society lawfully, then I don't care where they come from. But if they sneak over in the middle of the night and become a burden to our social system then we have the RIGHT to ENFORCE the law. It's not racist. It's just the way it is.
The school mentioned is in an old part of Omaha, South Omaha in which back when my mother lived in South O, it was a HUGE melting pot of different races. Now, South O is mainly white and Mexican because a lot of the older people have passed and their children have moved.
The following makes numerous points and saddens me because the mind set of some people will never change:
http://www.omaha.com/article/2010051...ng-suspensions
Originally Posted by MsElena
A handful of immature boneheads had a "brilliant" idea. But in the end, it only took one bonehead to throw the cards and create the big scene.
And that one bonehead has now caused all of the people of East to be labeled as boneheads.
I bet that muslims in this country have similar feelings when they see the 1.6 billion muslims in the world "defined" by the actions of Al Qaeda (which has 500 members total). Except that it's one bonehead out of 3.2 million people there. And they're not just throwing cards.
BB,
I can promise you without a doubt that Al-Qaeda has more than 500. They are just an extension of the "Muslim Brotherhood" which has been in existence for a LONG time. They are the militant arm of it, but they train more than 500 for sure. They may only have a cadre of 500, but they have training going to thousands of willing terrorists.
Kris Kobach helped write the law, and he came on Topeka radio to explain some things. An officer has to have to reason to suspect you are illegal, before asking for proof of legality...same standard applied if he wants to search for drugs, etc.
And it isn't necessarily just one item that makes him suspicious...it has to be a totality of items.
He gave examples: Car is on known smuggling route. Driver has no license. Nobody in car speaks english. Nobody in car has any valid ID. Driver is nervous and unable to answer simple questions. A vehicle equipped to carry 7 people has 14 people riding in it. They all seem logical, and not one of the criteria deals with the race of the person (according to the law, being Mexican is not an item that an officer could use as a reason to suspect a person is illegal...however in reality it will probably be used).
I'm actually shocked that there wasn't already a law in place similar to this. It seems the federal border agents are allowed to make similar assumptions, and pursue an illegal, based on purely where they are (next to border fence, for example).
Vito it was not an attempt at humor, it was a purposeful comment to let people know that they can't keep calling people who disagree with their point of view racist just because their white. The appology was for those who do not do this. For those that do it served its point and I do not appologize.
So I guess Vito all this repression of minorites makes it okay to call ALL white people racists, the rights of the minorites supercedes the rights of whitey.