I have. Well, he's legal now at least. But my beloved brother-in-law initially entered this country illegally from Ireland, something I only learned today. He came seeking a better life than that in his native country, which when he left it, was the sick old man of the former British empire.
I'm glad that President Reagan signed immigration reform in the 80's that allowed him to go back to Ireland and re-apply to return and stay legally.
That seems to me to be a logical part of any new immigration reform. We need to do a better job of controlling our borders, we need to do a better job of tracking folks who come here and then overstay their visas, and we need to do a better job of figuring out how to turn those who are here already (illegally) into taxpaying, law-abiding residents. Some call it amnesty. I call it smart.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
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9 comments:
You say that we need to do a better job of figuring out how to turn those that who are here illegally into taxpaying residents. I don't think the majority want to be tax paying US citizens. They have it great right now. No taxes, free schooling for their children and free health care at the local hospital.
I would imagine that if you locked the borders, gave amnesty to those here illegally and made them pay taxes, you would see a great number returning under the border.
Your "beloved" brother-in-law came here with the ability to read, write and comprehend the English language. That put him well ahead of today’s average illegal immigrant.
We are experiencing the dumbing down of America by people who unlike their predecessors do not wish to assimilate into the American culture, but instead expect American culture to change in order to accommodate them.
I suggest you read a book that was well ahead of its time. Published in 1992, The Disuniting of America, Reflections on a Multicutural Society by Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. by W.W. Norton & Company.
When a person enters our country illegally, they demonstrate a propensity to break the law to attain their desires. Once one breaks the law the first time, it becomes much easier to do so when subsequent opportunities arise.
Bill Long
So Smoothfur, is my brother-in-law to be lauded for showing up with English language skills, or is he to be warily watched as a potential repeat criminal? Not sure which direction you're going with this. I made it very clear to him that I did not support his illegal entry into the country. While I support your views of those who do not choose to assimilate, I wonder if we're not applying a different standard to recent immigrants. Every big city has a Chinatown specifically because of a desire among some Chinese immigrants NOT to assimilate.
And, for every Chinatown, I'll show you a Little Italy or Germantown where Italians and Germans no longer live.
May I be so bold as to suggest that you re-read my initial post? I do not believe that you will find any mention of your brother-in-law deserving to be lauded for his English language skills.
The fact that he chose to return to Ireland and return as a "legal” immigrant speaks well of his intentions to assimilate into the American culture and may well be worthy of some laudatory comment. I would also hope his actions set an example for other illegal immigrants to return to their native lands and work toward becoming legal immigrants who would be able to take full advantage of the opportunities available to an American citizen.
I apply all standards equally. I do not break down our population by race, color, creed, national origin or gender. There are only two kinds of people in this world. They are; honest, hard working, intelligent people, and dishonest, lazy, stupid people. Both types transcend all races and genders.
"Your "beloved" brother-in-law came here with the ability to read, write and comprehend the English language. That put him well ahead of today’s average illegal immigrant." Smoothfur
Maybe I went too far in calling that a laud. But it certainly strikes me as positive when compared to the "average illegal immigrant" of today who seems destined to a life of crime.
I love to rail on Hollywood. So bear with me as I get that out of the way. I'll bring it back to the topic of illegal immigration. Promise. What I find so abhorrent about the Hollywood elite (“H.E.”) is not that they choose a nearly unanimous liberal affiliation (a holdover from the McCarthy inquisitions?), nor that they behave so irresponsibly and receive such widespread admiration when they temporarily stop using drugs. It doesn’t even bother me that after they play a role whose character was a real-life participant in some real or perceived social ill, they suddenly become an authority on all the factors and forces surrounding that issue (although I believe we should impeach those in Congress who waste our nation’s business time when they call them to testify as authorities). No, my single biggest gripe is that so many of them: Tom Cruise, Barbra Streisand, Alec Baldwin, Cher, Robert Altman, etc have made threats, which none of them carried out by the way, to leave the country if the most free election process on the planet didn’t result in their candidate winning office for the statutory next 4 years. How is it that anyone could be so narcissistic, even an H.E., to think that such words would somehow move sufficient numbers of their fellow citizens to alter their sacred right to vote for the candidate of their choosing and shift it to his/her opponent, or risk losing said H.E. as a fellow citizen? Is it really possible to be so self-absorbed to make such a threat thinking it would indeed influence fellow citizens? My wife, one of THE most starstruck people I know, wouldn’t even be influenced to that degree. Finally, as a former Naval Officer, I witnessed several circumstances first hand where people who had given up their life’s savings to be packed into an unseaworthy dugout canoe or lashed wooden raft to escape their nascent country, to leave behind their loved ones and to face the very likely risk of either being turned back (no refunds, sorry) or stranded at sea until rescued or tossed overboard to die JUST FOR THE VERY SCANT POSSIBILITY THAT THEY MIGHT MAKE IT TO OUR NATION’S SHORES--the very shores within which these H.E. flourished and about which they so cavalierly tossed out such threats. It is for this reason more than all the others put together that I have such total and utter disdain for the Hollywood elite. Given the complexity of our immigration challenges, I offer the following as a small but positive step to improve current policies. Have the State Dept provide a one-way ticket (first class if need be) and a permanent one-way visa to send an H.E. to his country of choice and to replace him with one of those people who risk so much to come to this country. As we flush the spoiled and unappreciative H.E. out and replace them with people who have already proven their appreciation for what our nation offers, I suggest that we would dramatically improve the quality of the populace. It's a clear win-win.
Bravo! A great idea. It is interesting that you don't hear conservatives saying they'll leave the country if Senator Obama is elected. The thought is simply anathema.
By the way, next time I go on vacation, perhaps you'll take over the blog for me so I don't get dirty looks from my kitten when I should be "enjoying myself".
Were you not "enjoying yourself" writing while on vacation? People golf at home and on vacation. People read at home and on vacation. Why shouldn't you enjoy writing while on vacation?
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