Immigration

[AceOn6]

For those of us in the States, today marked another series of rallies around the immigration issue.

I am so torn on this. Everyone here, other than Native Americans, came from somewhere else. Our economy is partially built on the premise that new workers will come in and fill the lowest paying jobs. In my case, my French Canadian relatives swept floors in the mills before being replaced with Italians and Greeks as the Canucks moved up to actually running the machines, then doing the books, then going to college and moving on to other industries.

I know it boils down to "who we want" vs. "who we don't want" but I just don't see a solution that provides some protection to those who are lawful in all other ways.

How about you folks? Activity in your areas? How do you feel about it?

[Amy in Vermont]

This is a very complex and very emotional issue.

On one hand, laws are laws. Our borders need to be more secure.

My family all came to this country, legally I assume, within the last 100 +/- years. They came to escape poverty and discrimination.

The folks coming up from south of the border are trying just as hard to make a better life for their families.

I do not beleive they are taking many jobs away from Americans who want to work.

I do beleive that our economy would collapse with out them, or at the very least, the cost of living would skyrocket.

But if we are paying them wages and providing services and infrastructure to them, then lets get them legalized and paying taxes into the system.

Do I have a solution that works for everyone? No, I don't.

[Melba]

I am torn on this issue as well. It seems as if there is no clear cut solution, but then there never is when it comes to human lives....its all grey. I agree with Amy to some degree. We are all products of immagration. My dad's family only came to this country in the early 1900's....I am only 3rd generation on that side of the family. I feel most of those crossing the boarders are looking for a better life and have good intentions, but there has to be some way to be slective without being discriminating. Times were very different when my ancestors came here as far as national security is concerned and we have to play by that emphasis.

As far as the theory of the infrastructer crumbling because they take up most of the low paying jobs...well....that is not necessarily so. My job puts me in homes of low income Americans every day. Most of them have been here a long time and are not recent immigrants, but these new immagrants will get all kinds of free government goodies due to income, race, etc. So, in fact, they will be taking advantage of all kinds of goodies that the rest of us pay for. This system is already overloaded. There are a lot of educational breaks as well and plenty of people who are already citizens, who fall in between the cracks and can't get any help. So, until there is some kind of feasible solution, it looks like a no win situation.

[dragonlady]

Then add on top of that that if immigrants are here to "fill up the lowest paying jobs", noone can live on minimum wage...so we're talking multi job workers who have families or single moms with multiple jobs trying to make ends meet immigrant or not. The minimum wage hasn't increased since 1997.

The infrastructure is overwhelmed but definitely would colapse on its own weight with out wnything to support so whatever needs to be sone needs to be phased in...I feel a Step 1, step 2 etc kind of plan needs to be worked out but something needs to be done supporting all poor who want to work.

-di

[paularoid]

What -I- wanna know is WHY is it that all the "illegal" immigrants are able to attract and organize protests of THOUSANDS of people in numerous cities and states, and yet the legal U.S. citizens cannot muster the same interest in protesting the atrocities being carried out in our name over in the middle east?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE? For cryin' out loud folks! Bu$h is talkin' 'bout possible nuclear WAR against Iran!

By the way, I have no bone to pick with the immigrants. They are doing the work that the rest of us don't seem willing to do, or can't afford to do. We truly do need their efforts since either we don't want to, or we cannot afford to do the things that they do.
.

[Melba]

What -I- wanna know is WHY is it that all the "illegal" immigrants are able to attract and organize protests of THOUSANDS of people in numerous cities and states, and yet the legal U.S. citizens cannot muster the same interest in protesting the atrocities being carried out in our name over in the middle east?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE? For cryin' out loud folks! Bu$h is talkin' 'bout possible nuclear WAR against Iran!

Amen, brother, amen. Seems a lot of folks get all up in arms about the minor stuff...minor in comparison to war, that is.

[Fursky]

"What -I- wanna know is WHY is it that all the "illegal" immigrants are able to attract and organize protests of THOUSANDS of people in numerous cities and states, and yet the legal U.S. citizens cannot muster the same interest in protesting the atrocities being carried out in our name over in the middle east?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE? For cryin' out loud folks! Bu$h is talkin' 'bout possible nuclear WAR against Iran!"

Paularoid- Apparently they find it more important to protest against world love, Gay marriage, and Gay adoption, these items will destroy the fabric of society way before a nuclear war ever would or could!! :eek:

[paularoid]

Paularoid- Apparently they find it more important to protest against world love, Gay marriage, and Gay adoption, these items will destroy the fabric of society way before a nuclear war ever would or could!! :eek:
Won't do a heck of a lot of good if "society" has been bombed to smithereens and there's no fabric left of it to destroy,... now will it? Oh but I forgot,.. the shrub (Bu$h) is a "uniter, not a divider". :mad: