IMMIGRATION FOR THOSE WHO HAVE THE TIME AND CARE.
It is unfair to let you do the heavy lifting. I am sending you some opinions of others so that you realize that everyone, from morons up to geniuses, is discussing this issue. See what you think after reading these. I got much more if you want to be educated on the issue and really want to make a difference.
Here is a proposal by a smart guy:
1."Let's be radical for a moment. My solution to the immigration problem with illegals streaming uncontrollably over the US/Mexican is to offer Mexico a quasi-statehood designed such that Mexicans are allowed residency, free travel and work in the US if Mexico pays their medical and educational and unemployment costs as well as some hefty discount on Mexican oil and other resources the US would normally purchase from them. The US and Mexico could save huge amounts of money now dedicated to border surveillance and arrests and even amalgamate their policing and military efforts.
This same mechanism could eventually apply to Latin American and South American countries that wanted to participate. Each could strike deals with the US according to their sensibilities. These arrangements could persist while efforts were made to create economic climates approaching US standards of living via investments by international corporations who are already outsourcing to those same countries. The key of course would be to create an international agreement of wage and taxation schemes to regulate the flow of both labor pools and corporate profit.
The initial funds for this project would be considerable of course so it probably would be necessary to liquidate the top 1% of wealth owners in all countries concerned and use the confiscated wealth as seed money. There would be some outcry I suppose, but hey, its only 1 % of the population ...big deal."
Here is another:
2." Nobel laureate Gary Becker had a great idea: sell visas in the open market. We propose that the U.S. sell 5,000 visas every business day via a market such as NASDAQ or the Chicago Board of Trade. This would increase total immigrant flows. Sale of visas to felons or other undesirables could be prohibited. Some “free” visas could be given for humanitarian purposes in addition to those sold in markets in order to maintain our commitment to helping the less fortunate.
The purchasers of visas would in general be those with the greatest economic potential. Banks might make visa loans similar to guaranteed student loans. The proportion of immigrants with high skills or motivation would rise. A guess is that the government would take in at least $12 billion annually in visa revenues, which could be used for generalized tax relief, providing native-born Americans some tangible evidence of the gains from immigration. Many immigrants who now spend a long time waiting and $10,000 or more on immigration lawyers could get in sooner, with far less hassle and at no greater expense.
A less desirable but perhaps politically necessary use of visa funds would be to provide financial support for governments in areas with large immigrant influxes, hopefully to reduce the burden on local taxpayers. If necessary for passage, some funds could also be used for increased enforcement of immigration laws, accepting the proposition that laws, even misguided ones, should be enforced. Such a visa approach might win the support of liberals and free market conservatives wanting more immigration, as well as cultural conservatives wanting to “crack down” on illegal aliens. We would end up with more, highly productive immigration, and a lesser perception of “burden” on native born Americans."
Another smart-ass:
3."Here's a very simple way we can prevent illegal immigrants from coming over our border: arrest any person who employs illegal immigrants in violation of U.S. labor laws.
Because if illegal immigrants can't get jobs, they'll stop coming here.
But as long as people like Sam Walton's billionaire children keep hiring them, they'll keep coming.
So I say, lock up the Walton Gang; the Gallo Brothers; all those Hollywood celebrities who employ illegal aliens to clean their pools; all the mothers in my apartment building who hire illegal workers from Haiti to baby-sit their stupid children; George Bush's friends in Texas who own companies that rely on cheap labor to clean their Houston office towers and cut their lawns; the owners of Chicago's Toney restaurants who employ illegal alien Mexicans to wash dishes; and all the agri-company executives who run businesses throughout the Midwest employing illegal migrant Mexican workers.
Besides, the U.S. cannot afford to patrol our borders with the kind of manpower that many Republicans suggest because all our soldiers are overseas fighting wars and maintaining order in Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia, the west coast of Africa, Saudi Arabia, the Korean border, and Lord knows where else. Our "obligations" overseas prevent us from protecting our own country--until we bring back the draft.
Here is an official version:
4."The U.S. government realizes that the country faces an immigration problem. Since January 1, 2004, there have been approximately 20 million illegal immigrants in the country, according to www.theamericanresistance.com.
To rectify this problem Sen. Larry Craig wants to pass the Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits and Security Act, or AgJobs.
This act will allow alien workers who have good work records to build their immigration status and become full U.S. citizens.
In conjunction with Schwarzenegger’s statement, “We can’t possibly seal off thousands of miles of borders and coastlines. But we can control them better and improve our homeland security,” Senator Craig stated in a Question and Answer session on his Web site.
“Thousands of AgJobs workers would be registered with and in a job program supervised by the federal government. This would be a major step forward toward a longer-term, more comprehensive solution.” Craig, said.
AgJobs will allow workers to establish citizenship as they work in the states.
The legal status will allow immigrants to have legal protection, higher wages and better travel conditions.
“Unlike the 1986 program - which was amnesty and was very different - our bill requires workers to provide documentary proof that they already were established here as farm workers - for example, tax records or employers’ records.” Sen. Craig said.
The senator feels the act will be a win - win situation for everyone."
And here is a smart liberal:
"It seems I’ve been doing so much responding to what I don’t like hearing about conservative’s complaints about immigration reform, I’ve barely stopped to think about exactly how I will fix the problem when I become the all-knowing, all-seeing emperor I know is my destiny. :-) Granted, I guess even I’m getting tired of listening to everyone, myself included complain about this growing schism. But I have to admit I find it pretty exasperating when others and myself are being called ‘liberals’ or apologists because we AGREE with President Bush on this issue! Not only that, but to be a ‘true’ conservative you need to line up behind Hillary friggin Clinton! Has the world gone topsy-turvy?
But many conservatives are even talking like liberals. Ratcheting up hysteria over a problem the facts don’t even support as even being a problem, and then begging for an even bigger and more intrusive government to fix said problem.
To me, a real conservative solution to illegal immigration would be one that does not have to increase the size of government, or increase the scrutiny of law-abiding citizens in order to find the lawbreakers. And I think we can do that, and have an effective solution …
a) Support law-abiding citizens watch groups like the Minutemen. They’ve both proven their effectiveness and their rational behavior in patrolling the border. They worked with law enforcement and did not act as law enforcement themselves. There is no way, despite many conservatives’ wet dreams, that we will ever completely secure our borders, or even come somewhat close. Eve if the impossible dream of securing our land borders was to be, we’d still have to worry about our water and air borders as well. But these citizens groups, when done in a RESPONSIBLE and non-vigilante way, as the Minutemen project has proven they can do, can be amazingly effective, and would certainly work better than creating a police state on our borders. Government size, intrusiveness, and cost would not increase, and we’d be fixing the problem ourselves instead of complaining and asking Big Brother to grow and fix it for us.
b) Support the Bush guest worker program. This program is an extremely forward-thinking idea, a radical new way of handling illegal immigration. It can provide a way for us to document those here to work, and will increase participation and involvement in our economy for those who come here looking to work hard and make themselves a better life. It can provide businesses a way to fill job openings and increase their productivity. Finally, it can also provide an avenue for hard working souls to become fully integrated into our country. We can also move them to the ‘back of the line’ behind people trying to come here the right way. And if you’ve ever had any experience with the INS, you know that ‘back of the line’ is not a small thing at all. :) Scott Peterson will have his reckoning day before those in the back of the line at INS do …
c) Support tax incentives for businesses building factories in Mexico … let’s face it, when people are talking illegal immigration, they’re basically talking illegal Mexican immigration. And if people don’t want them coming here to work, helping to increase the number of available jobs there is the only real way to stem the tide. Again, this one becomes a question of ‘what do you want?’ Do you want the jobs here, with people crossing the border to find any spare jobs? Or do you want the jobs down there, so they don’t cross the border to find them? Me, I’d rather have the jobs here, but maybe I’m alone in that wish.
The point here is clear though. The wave of illegal immigration will only slow when the economic conditions of the countries the immigrants are coming from improves. Even the founder of the Minutemen, James Gilchrist, sees the truth of this, calling these people not invaders, but ‘economic refugees’, as this openly hostile and nutty article admits.
None of this is rocket science. I don’t know why so many people don’t seem to get it though.”
5.Senator S.I. Hayakawa of California came up with a proposal for legalization that strikes us as one of the most practical so far. He suggested that each migrant deposit $250 (which is less than the going price for being smuggled into the U.S.) with the Mexican government, to be held in interest-bearing bonds. In exchange, the migrant would be issued a travel document entitling him or her to a six-month visa. The deposit would be returned only if reclaimed within the six-month period, and the worker would then be eligible for another visa the following year.
A system of this sort would be beneficial to both countries. It would offer temporary employment to Mexicans, thus relieving their nation's unemployment pressures while-at the same time encouraging the return of many laborers who would have acquired the kind of skills needed in a developing country. It would not encourage workers to stay in the U.S. and bring their families, as ironically closing the border would do. It would provide American employers with the low-cost, hard-working labor they want . . . and help prevent the abuse of those workers. It would also avoid the need for the police-state enforcement of immigration laws. And, by satisfying needs on both sides of the border, the plan would help improve relations between the United States and Mexico.
6.Which are the possible solutions? First is to do nothing and believe me or not, this was the option taken by every previous administration in Washington since late 1980s when president Reagan made an amnesty. If this course continues, the illegal immigrants will increase in number and in proportion. It seems that some sections of American public opinion favor this option of doing nothing. Second solution is to try to do something and one of the possible options is to catch and deport every illegal alien, those that have entered the country illegally and those that have stayed beyond their travel, student or other temporary visas.
With all due respect for the laws in America I don't think such solution is technically feasible. Imagine that all these 15 million are caught detained and are waiting for extradition. Without proper papers their country of origin is unclear. Many of them look like Mexicans but in fact up to half of all illegal immigrants come from other countries. Waiting for months to be deported following even the quickest judicial procedures, the American taxpayers will have to pay the whole bill from the search through detention, procedures and deportation. Let's assume that the bill for every case amounts to $10,000, thus the whole operation may cost up to $150 billion.
The effect will be that the United States will become a perfect police state, where the government may track everyone, everywhere. Not knowing where exactly to deport the illegal aliens, the authorities will throw them into Mexico, creating suddenly a humanitarian earthquake of biblical proportions. There is at least one more practical objection that should be considered before applying this radical measure. If the number of illegal aliens is 15 million this means that in the United States there are 7-8 million jobs that couldn't be fulfilled even if all unemployed Americans suddenly decide to take them. These 7-8 million vacant jobs will be like a magnet for new illegal immigrants and the catch-catch game will have to start again.
There seem to be at least two solutions for this problem. One will be to import back this time legally 7-8 million foreigners; the other is to export these jobs abroad. The same strategy should be applied to any new job in the country that can't be taken due the demographic decline expected in the years to come.
I don't think all the above mentioned measure are pure nonsense, but if the American society wants to deport 15 million or if it wants to keep the situation as it's now, it should be aware of the consequences of such decision.
