NSR: Give me your rested, your rich, privileged White Colombians yearning to post in soccer forums...

No one is saying it is a cake walk or easy which is why I alluded to it as being a difficult balancing act of being hospitable and empathetic while focusing on security and safety of your own citizens.

Of course people come here for many reasons which are difficult. People do a lot of things in life that are difficult. This is not an easy world to live in with evils and sins that occur.

That being said a Nation does have sovereignty and does have to prioritize its very own citizens first and foremost. (That is what a government should be doing at least. )
It is like a family. If you see that your neighbors across your fence border are struggling do you focus on them first before your own safety of your family?

 

I don't think there is anyone that disagree that a Nation should prioritize its citizens and that there is nothing wrong with having borders and laws on how to deal with that. But legality does not equal morality, these people are often coming for extreme reasons and in the cases of Central America the United States has had a major hand in ********ing up these countries so its very convenient to then refer to them as all criminals (not you but many do). Undocumented immigrants actually serve a vital role in the US economy, they actually contribute massively to social security without getting any benefit.

The biggest give away that this is a bullshit issue in the US to the GOP is the fact that they could massively cripple Illegal immigration by simply punishing businesses that hire undocumented workers. If we need to respect laws then why aren't the penalties significant for companies like the Trump org who hire undocumented laborers? So in reality why is it logical to punish certain laws but not others and why not cut off the faucet which you can easily control and cut it off at the source rather then going after the people fleeing horrible conditions? You never hear them suggest that because they really don't want to address the so called problem, they simply want to distract and garner votes through appealing to racism and the stagnant wages of the working classes. If they targeted businesses with hefty fines and legal consequences you would see the flow across the southern border completely turned off.

 

This is your opinion.
Do you have any facts for this basis of these generalizations?

 

Once again the whole World has problems and issues and immigrants from all over the world have disgusting circumstances to deal with.
You and others want to focus on what you perceive to be morality and I think focusing on the business aspect like you are mentioning is the way to go.
The GOP has let it go on for too long but it took someone like Trump to expose the problem. I think people on both sides of the aisle will conclude that businesses should not be allowed to take advantage of the broken system.
You are making it seem like people on the right are not talking about this but they are. Probably even more than people on the left.

 

I should have said fear that is different from them, which often then manifests to hate. Its inherent to humans when they don't understand something, simply look at the studies on opinions towards diversity in big cities vs rural areas. people in cities who come in contact with other cultures are much more accepting and the fear goes away, the most staunch anti immigration areas are areas that are very much homogenous without many other cultures.

I don't have time at the moment but there are tons of examples from history, simply look at the United States currently and the divide simply between the GOP and Democrats, they completely hate each other because each group has retreated to its side, look at the Nazi's, look at Yugoslavia, this concept is as old as humans are.

 

I think it comes down to many factors and is more nuanced than what you are portraying.

Sure there's tribalism but I think it has more to do with assimilation and not wanting to wake up finding your country looks more like a third world country than the United Stares. I would be fearful about that too and I am Latino.

 

No politician is raising this solution whatsoever. They are going to spend billions on a stupid wall rather then actually collect revenue through penalties on companies. Its a completely obvious, ethical and effective solution that is being ignored.

 

Yes. Politicians on both sides of the spectrum are not trying to deal with the problem. I agree.
But at least there is discussion about it which can lead to more hopefully.

 

Yes and when one side is completely obssessed with immigration you have to question their motives when they avoid the obvious fix for the spectacular and expensive one ie. they are using the issue to tap into racism which has completely taken over the conversation rather then focusing on a tax cut that handed trillions to corporations and the uber wealthy while ballooning the deficit.

 

The racism is not coming from the Right. The love of money and cheap labor which you pointed out is what the focus is. The Color of Green not skin color.

The only one really focusing on the race is the left. Which helps them since they love the racial divide and they know most immigrants vote for leftists.

Also do people really think the immigrant issues would be even talked about if Clinton or Bernie were in power right now?

 

Words are words. Definitions are definitions.
If someone comes here illegally then they are called illegal immigrants. Yes many of them come here with good intentions and come from horrible circumstances.
But you can say that about many people who do things illegally out of desperation.
The illegality is not nullified because of the circumstances.

 

Kids, I came here illegally at 7. My parents were scared for their lives. To those that think that there's this easy path and somehow assuming that it's somehow just stubbornness, laziness or blatant disrespect for law, has not experienced the process.

Anytime I hear, my ________ got in line, was patient and waited to finally earn their legal papers 'like everyone else' ....has not LIVED through the urgency of a life and death situation for many immigrants. As a child, I've seen people shot and killed, children starve and beg...some were neighbors. In many provincial areas it was ' who you knew' and how much you were able to 'grease' your inside man that granted you that chance to secure the papers you needed. My parents and I made the trek, like 'everyone else', collecting countless pieces of paperwork, countless visits to Cali and eventually to Bogota. My parents tried the good old way and it didnt work. Instead they kept losing more money and more time while violence just grew. With it desperation.

Like Willy Wonka, there are only such few 'golden tickets' to be had but with so much more at stake. Unlike fantasy world, we get 1 life. And if that life predisposes or corners you to misery, poverty, violence, lack of most basic needs, little options, well, you'll do what it takes to survive, specially with a child. It took me seven days to get to the US. Yep, seven. Started with pocket money and by our last stop we were sharing cans of vienna sausages (yuk!).

I was eventually in one of those rickety boats crossing from the island of Bimini to get to the coast of Miami. Traveling the rough seas at night. Arriving at a strangers house where already on the floor lay 20-30 strangers, some sleeping, some looking more dead than alive. This is about the scariest memory I have as a 7 year old. If any of this sounds like a privilege or entitled experience, please, let me know. Because now I understand as an adult that this was about the bravest thing any human can risk. Their own life and worst yet, that of their child.

Since arriving to the states, my parents worked in sweatshops, lived in the worst of ghettos (I was along for the ride) and did what they could to have ends meet. But we managed to put our little sweat equity where we could. The priority was never them....it was always me. For many of my younger years, we all had to be completely quiet and be basically in hiding. No after school participation, no play dates, missed graduations and ceremonies, no parent -teacher relationship. I was bullied plenty but no recourse. All because of fear. So we did what we did and made the most of it. It was a miserable existence to a certain extent but we knew that there was light in this tunnel. Within 6 months of my arrival, I was so fluent in english that teachers were shocked that I wasn't born in the states.

Eventually my mother died of cancer when I was in my early teens and my dad just couldn't cut it so he went back to Colombia. It was the last I saw of him. But somehow mom knew that despite her physical absence she had helped me enough to steer the rest of the way. This type of resilience is remarkable amongst immigrants of all walks of life. Through Regan's amnesty program I finally gained permanent residency. I repaid my parents efforts and my new country's loyalty whenever i could. I never took anything for granted. Ironically it's the people who have most to lose that have the most to give. I was always top of my class and eventually earned my college degree by attending a top private school. Took me over 15 years to pay off some of those loans but it granted me access to work in some top 50 corporations and eventually settling in as an Exec in a marketing firm living a very comfortable life with wife and kids. I reside in one of the top school districts in NJ (a state considered one of the top educators in the country) and have a beautiful home. I've paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes over the years, so I've paid back more than my share for my interference. One would never know or think what I've been through and how my parents struggled. And I would say that while I can't vouch for all those 20-30 illegal immigrants that were sharing that cold tile floor in Miami the night we arrived, that many had the impetus to make it worth it here in the USA, otherwise why risk it all?

My experiences have not been in vain. And while I protect my children that have lots of social and monetary privileges that I could have only dreamed of as child, it is up to me to help them never forget what I went through. I remind them to never think that we're better than our neighbor by turning the other way. Never just accept that what the establishment says must always be right. Always question! Always seek the truth. Always follow your heart but use your brain. Always be the best person you can be. And always strive to make a difference. To never be indifferent to our fellow people need because one day it may be your turn to suffer. They know my story and it's very hard for my kids to relate to suffering. Seeing things through the lens of a 9 year old makes you really think, rationally and simple because we strive on making things awfully complicated as adults.

I'm not here to preach or surely to judge about their stance on illegal immigration. But I do think that we have a moral obligation to be better to our next generation. This illegal immigration stance and talk of 'walls' doesnt solve anything. Instead, it puts more folks in hiding, it tears families and communities apart and it polarizes a nation, so much that we lose focus. We blame. We guilt. And we seek separation. We thrive on chaos and the very rich and powerful know it.

We have to be careful with our resolve. There is a huge grey area at play and our fears will always be exploited. The government has my record. They have my past and present. If they were to order a mass deportation of over 12mm illegal people, I wouldnt be surprised to see them knocking at my door in my all white-collar polished neighborhood. We can't rationalize all just because it's the law and it may not affect us directly today. Doesn't mean you shouldn't follow law. It doesn't mean you have to disrespect law. But it doesn't mean the law is always right and just, even if legal. ~50+ years ago, the law was set in many (southern)states, that unless you could pass a reading and writing test, you couldn't vote. That was directed mainly at poor blacks who came from segregated districts with little access to education. Countless examples where law has been used as a blanket to cover status quo but where it's original intention has surpassed it's reasoning to exist and at times inhumane.

I care about the US. This is my country and it's where I've lived pretty much all my life. My kids are American. My wife was born in Canada, raised in the US and a US Citizen. But I won't ignore or be absent from my duties as a citizen of this world to help those that are in need when they need me most. I identify with the illegal immigrant because ultimately that thirst for any future was better than dying a slow death.

 

The moral obligation is to fix the problem. And part of the problem is that the borders are very dangerous places where rapes and murders and other things occur. So the Wall issue should be a part of the resolution and not swept under the rug.


With all due respect, citizen of the World has no meaning in the USA according to the constitution or the laws. The Government has to prioritize the citizens from within the borders first and foremost.
However, as I said we should be hospital and should be very empathetic towards people coming to this country. Obviously it is the way we do it and approach the broken system that has people arguing.
There's Millions and Millions of people going through problems on this earth. How do we set limits and determining who we protect and accept into this country should be looked at analytically and intelligently and not only with the emotional responses I hear from people on the left of the issue.
It will take much more than emotions and morals while fixing this major problem.

 

You are the one bringing up Nazi references and race
I am following a definition. I am not dehumanizing someone by pointing out that they did something illegal.

 

That is painting with abroad brush without any logic or reason and without knowing my circumstances.
I am focused on the American people and its citizens no matter what color they are or what ethnic background they are.

 

That is an opinion from one of the most leftist websites.
Far from an arbiter of neutrality and far from an opinion I respect when it comes to issues as to why definitions are applied and accepted in vernacular.

 

Good lord what's this about?

 

My Words have meaning and Justice is what i am focused upon.
You are the one bringing up race and social justice issues and camps.

 

I say the issue is hypocritical because the left is saying anyone who uses an accurate definition or term is trying to show bias or they are implying it is a use of a dog whistle...
... when for the most part people who use the term illegal immigrants are using it because it accurately depicts what is happening. No Political correctness. Just calling a spade a spade.