Why is immigration such a heated debate?
Answer:
I believe that this so called hatred exists due to the political
climate. When things get tough, we look for solutions even though somewhat irrational or unreasonable. (scapegoating)
The reality is we Americans like to have it both ways when it comes to domestic issues (even foreign issues). I agree that Illegal Immigration needs to stop on ALL fronts. Too many Americans focus on Mexicans crossing the border.
The excuse of "they are bankrupting our institutions", should focus the concern on our governmental agencies who have the policies that allow Illegals to take advantage of the system then perhaps thse failed policies will change. "WE", need to make our institutions more accountable!
The truth of the matter is EVERY country should be enforcing their immigration policies regardless of where they are, it is a matter of security.
There also exists a historic hatred of all things not white and English speaking and this hatred is surfacing its ugly head. Manifest Destiny is a thing of the past, but the mentality still exists. "They are good enough to wash my car, but I don't want to see them here".....didn't we pull that crap with the Chinese when the railroads were built, connecting the East and the West?
If we put the same amount of energy into getting our butts to work as we did hating on Mexicans and others coming through the border...the demand would go away and these folks wouldn't have a job to do.
Here is a good one, "If I remember right from what I read on the website their are more illigal mexican nationals in our prisons for felony crimes then any other ethnic group."
If I remember correctly from the US Bureau of Prisons and CA Dept of Corrections, African Americans have the highest incarcerations rates of all ethnic groups. Let's get our facts straight here. Bill O'reilly is the ultimate alarmist and is hardly one to find practical solutions to a problem like this.
The "Oh, i'm too good for THAT job", mentality doesn't work anymore....Americans are getting squeezed by the exporting of manufacturing jobs and the reality is that a good portion will have to accept working as a custodian, as a cook, mechanic, landscaper, construction worker.
They call it work for a reason........
With all of this said, I strongly believe that we the people should expect and demand more of our government. It shouldn't be acceptable to have someone who doesn't pay into the system get free care.
On the same token, give these people a federal tax ID number so that they do pay into the system when they are here working. If they are inded good people, there should be a path to legal residence and eventual citizenship.
Do give them temporary driver's licenses and allow them to buy insurance....not only will this reduce hit and runs, it will lower OUR insurance bills....It will make them more traceable (improving security) and singling out the terrorists that want to come across that border....
"They are already breaking the law by simply being here". This is what I call the catch all of excuses as to why "they " shouldn't be here. "Oh my God...THEY are here." LMAO!!!
I like to think that most of us Americans are a fair minded people, I also believe that a good portion of these folks are good, hardworking people who want to go home after a season of work anyway.
You want affordable labor then deal with "them" being here....otherwise, go hire a lazy union worker that can't be subject to corrective action and overpay by three times the amount.
Let's channel our energy on PRACTICAL solutions.....
Build the wall, kick the bad ones out and keep the good, hard-working ones here. Someone has to keep this Nation moving forward and standing on intersections and freeway offramps with cardboard signs depicting sob stories isn't going to do it.
Probably because some people feel threatened by it, particularly in employment. Also, there is widespread apprehension that immigrants tax social services beyond the extent to which they support them with taxes. I do not find these arguments convincing.
It's all about TAX
Because its a security threat. Ever hear of 9/11?
-Aztec276
To many people, population control, I can't stand having millions of people all crammed up
It isn't immigration I am opposed to it is illegal immigration. I have no problem with people coming over the boader in want of a better life but I feel it should be done within the paramiters of our laws. Also most illegals because of their status are unable to get heigher income jobs and to be honest even median income jobs and frequently are underpaid for the work that they do. Why not have fairness on all sides of the table. We as Americans shouldn't exploit them and they shouldn't exploit our laws.
As far as I know immigration is legal and the right way to come into this country.There are some interesting numbers about illigal immigrants at the library of congress web site. In reality illigals cost us more then they help. If I remember right from what I read on the website their are more illigal mexican nationals in our prisons for felony crimes then any other ethnic group. Only 21% do the hard labor jobs on farms and warehouses. Yet they cost us around 300 million in welfare and free use of our hospitals through using the hospitals emergency rooms and never pay the bills. I don't hate the mexican people in fact I work with a lot of them on a daily basis. they are hard working generous good people for the most part. But illigal is illigal we have laws for a reason and if we don't abide by them we will have chaos.
Its really simple -- it all boils down to how much the immigrant gives and/or takes from society.
Many immigrants, especially in europe, will take advantage of their socialist systems, and live very generously off their public funds, the fat of the land. Funds raised from taxing the working people of the country.
The other one is a feeling of intense annoyance some people get when they see how successful a foreigner can be, how rich they can be, how nicely they live in the nationals home country -- and they havent even been here long. They feel threatened, because they are struggling whilst the foreigner does well. Often this is blown out of proportion -- A mexican doctor will earn more than an American labourer (in a production plant for example).
Cost vs perceived Rights. When you increase a segment of the population by 3-5% the impact upon a society is significant.
You argue that the economy needs them, I counter that their effects [both short and long term] are of greater harm then any potential contribution to our society.
The majority of illegal immigrants work, but in doing so, they do drive away legal competition and lower market wages by not getting paid an equivalent wage for the sector of the market they work in.
For example, let's assume that an illegal construction worker gets paid by his/her company 12.00/hr, if you factor in payroll taxes, unemployment, social security an equivalent wage be around 20.000/hour.
By law the employer of a legal worker has to pay that equivalent wage, and this company is effectively competing against a at twice the rate for a similar product. Now to compete effectively against the the company using the 12.00/hr worker, the legal employer must either higher more illegal workers or cut salary of current employees.
Another is Medical care. If you are here illegally you use the ERs as preventative care and do not pay for it. While Americans struggle to pay their own health insurance and it's rising cost, illegals are contributing to that rise. by using Hospitals as their primary care givers [and not paying] Insurers and communities have to pay for it themselves. This cost gets stuck back on the Average American in the for of reduced benefits, higher premiums and higher taxes.
Rather than rambling on a few other salient areas where cost of supporting illegals immigrants hurts American society.
-Education.
-Incarceration
-Use of public facilities [roads, buses, trains etc]
Immigration is not a heated debate.
Illegal aliens are.
Illegal immigrants are a great danger to America. They are all lawbreakers by virtue of entering America illegally, and when they arrive, a significant number continue to break laws; they steal, rape, murder, form and join gangs, sell drugs, and engage in illegal weapons trade.
In 2002, illegals cost the federal prison and court systems $1.6 billion. That doesn't include costs incurred by individual states. The state of Arizona spends $80 million each year incarcerating illegals.
"In Los Angeles, 95 percent of all outstanding warrants for homicide (which total 1,200 to 1,500) target illegal aliens. Up to two-thirds of all fugitive felony warrants (17,000) are for illegal aliens." - City Journal's Heather Mac DonaldThe Social Services
Factor: Illegals are not American citizens, and yet they sap social services and cost hospitals billions of dollars in unpaid-for health care. In 2002 illegals cost the federal government $2.5 billion in Medicaid, $1.9 billion in food assistance programs, and $2.2 billion in treatment for the uninsured. States near the border suffer the biggest burden. For instance, illegal immigrants' health care costs Arizona alone about $400 million each year. California takes an even bigger hit.
"California's addiction to 'cheap' illegal-alien labor is bankrupting the state and posing enormous burdens on the state's shrinking middle-class tax base," -FAIR President Dan Stein.
The Disease Factor: Not only are illegal aliens bankrupting hospitals on the U.S. border, they are bringing diseases into the country, including drug-resistant-tuberculosis, leprosy, hepatitis A, and Chagas Disease, an organ-attacking parasite imported from South America.
Do I need to go on?
Poor people take more than they put in in taxes. It costs $10,000 per child per year to educate children K-12 in California. The money they don't pay in property taxes is taken from our own children's education. Schools are on year round schedules, teachers are on emergency certificates, gifted programs, languages for our own children (particularly any language other than Spanish) PE, music, arts and other courses once routine have been cut to pay for ESL.
If blue collar workers are paid poverty wages, they also get services, either for themselves if they are legal, or for their children and 'aid to families with dependant children' even if they are not legally here. These people will also take more in social security payments, even before retirement, and medicaid (if legal, particulaly) etc. They would be a great drain on social security when it is already not enough to pay for our own people. Furthermore, to the extent we actually NEED workers once wages go back to pre-mass immigration levels, those workers could be legal, and not a bridge to automatically bring in non nuclear family, but only the needed worker, spouse and minor children.
Those of us who have children in the schools, or have aging family members have a huge stake in this.
Remember these classes in school? Art? Health ? PE? Choir? Foreign language( German, Latin, French). Many of those classes are being cut because of funding issues. The funding now goes for more bilingual classes. So, if your American, English speaking child has been encourage to try out for choir..... no just luck. That classroom is now equipped with tapes and a couple of bilingual teachers . Isn't No Child Left Behind a marvel???
The immigration information post by website user , MyTend.com not guarantee correctness