Illegal Immigration and region of country?

[jsamuel]

Regional opinion... just to try to get a better hold of the issue:

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

1. I don't like your options.

This isn't an either/or issue. You can be FOR higher standards against illegal immigration AND FOR the immigrants themselves. In fact, I think that's the only rational solution to the problem.

Firstly, there's a reason the term is "illegal immigrants".

Secondly, the ability of people to cross the border with no check whatsoever has to be one of the highest actual national security problems that we have, and yet we do absolutely nothing about it. The elaborate and highly engineered tunnel that was discovered in California that had 2 tons worth of marijuana in it wasn't just used to bring in pot from Mexico. I guarantee you that people and god only knows what else was brought in using that as well.

Thirdly, illegal immigration is harmful to the illegal immigrants themselves. Everyone talks about how they come over and "take our jobs". That's bullshit for the simple reason that illegal corporations are giving them jobs for a fraction of the legal minimum wage. Often they don't even bother to pay these immigrant workers, and since they have no legal recourse based on their immigration status, they have no hope of obtaining that pay. Further, they have little to no hope for upward mobility, being damned to the lowest of the low class because of this problem.

Fourthly, I know a number of illegal immigrants who don't even mind being deported. They repeatedly come back in hopes that another amnesty might kick in while they're here, so they'll just keep trying until that happens.

Finally, a lot of the illegal immigrants are little more than indentured servants to the people that smuggle them into the country in the first place. That's not an acceptable solution to the problem in the 21st century.

My solution:
1) Crack down on corrupt corporations that hire and abuse illegal immigrants.
2) Ramp up border security in a big way. Build a giant wall if you have to.
3) Ramp up legal immigration quotas.

[jsamuel]

3. i deliberately left it in extremely open words. "more one or the other"

if you can't fit into those then you aren't a person

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

4. Then I guess I'm not a person.

Quite frankly, I'm equally concerned for both. There are huge problems on both sides of the issue, and if people would take time to learn more about it, they'd learn how incredibly complex and convoluted this issue really is.

[jsamuel]

5. I feel the same way, but for purposes of taking a poll, you have to try to

split hairs to get a trend line

I agree that both are important. For example, I am both concerned that people are losing jobs to people who get paid 2-3 dollars an hour. But I am just as concerned that those people are only getting paid 2-3 dollars an hour! It hurts everyone.

(on edit: I don't agree with the wall - just for clarification, jic. Governments build walls when they are incapable of actually solving a problem.)

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

6. I know what you mean

But I think my solution pisses off both sides equally. Which is why it won't happen.

[jsamuel]

2. I kind of expect a rainbow, but so far it is a little reveling

[jsamuel]

7. even more now, so we are showing a large break between NE and SW

[slide to the left]

8. What I think

Build the wall, but...

All illegals in the US are now legal, they can register for a green card, get one and after 5 years apply for citizenship. This means no more under the table. Punish, harshly, employers who hire those here illegally.

Also, a lot of the employment is day labor, like only for one day. Set up day labor unions where people with the need can go and contract day laborors. This way all the forms are already filled out and the workers are employed by the union.

All workers need to be taxed and treated fairly. This might work.



edit: spelling

[PsN2Wind]

9. I seriously doubt the validity

of the 10 to 1, concerned for vs, concerned about, illegal immigration in the Southwest unless Southwest now excludes Arizona.
It is easy to skew these polls if people desire to.

[jsamuel]

10. well, it may be an accurate reflection of SW DU'ers though

maybe most of the SW others are actually RW'ers and it splits largely along party lines in the SW???