Even after all of the research and discussion we've done on this topic, I am still a little confused about my own feelings on the subject. I feel like it is not my place to judge. However, there are some things that I do know. I think that people should be able to come to this country to make a better life for themselves. I think the working conditions for immigrants are terrible; yes, many Americans don't want the jobs that immigrants take on, but it is mostly due to those conditions. I think that our system right now is at fault for making it so long and so difficult for immigrants to become citizens. But when it comes to who exactly is admitted and other such circumstances, my opinions become fuzzy. Morally, it seems wrong to turn away someone who is simply seeking a better oppurtunity (at least, it does to me), but the well-being of everyone else has to also be taken in to account. How can you create a filter for who can enter and who is rejected? I don't know. People say that immigrants take up tax dollars and such, but the points have come up in class that immigrants do not see the benefits of taxes for the first five years they are here. I think all in all, everything evens out. Sure, not all immigrants are good people, but not every American is all that great, either. Sometimes, people will blame anyone and everyone else but themselves.
So, I guess I've realized where I stand.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Immigration Shmimigration
I was in desperate need of a catchy poetic title and the only thing that came to my sad, tired college mind is Immigration Shmigigration, I give Dr. Mahoney permission to beat me for lack of originality.
Anyway as far as the whole immigration issue is concerned I am more on the progressive side. I am against illegal immigration because after all it is illegal. However I feel that becoming a legal immigrant should become a much easier process. We should of course continue to filter out the criminals but as of now unless you marry an American citizen or are a student, it is very difficult to obtain a precious green card and this needs to be changed. People should be allowed to come over here and given a certain amount of time before they are forced to get a job. I do not see a problem with this since they will be paying taxes and will be earning equal wages therefore they will not be "stealing" jobs. Many people who want to come to the United States do not want to come to commit acts of random violence or steal our jobs, they want to come here to earn money to help support their families. As far as people saying that illegal immigrants take jobs that no one else wants, this is not true. They take jobs with poor conditions and wages so that legal citizens will not take them. So I disagree with people saying that illegal immigrants taking these jobs is ok. I sympathize with these people and I feel that they are entitled to the same rights. Also rather than soley punishing the illegal immigrants, we should put a lot more emphasis on punishing the employers of illegal immigrants. I think that no matter what we do illegal immigration will be a problem however by opening up our borders we can help to ensure that people with positive intentions come into our country rather than criminals and terrorists.
Anyway as far as the whole immigration issue is concerned I am more on the progressive side. I am against illegal immigration because after all it is illegal. However I feel that becoming a legal immigrant should become a much easier process. We should of course continue to filter out the criminals but as of now unless you marry an American citizen or are a student, it is very difficult to obtain a precious green card and this needs to be changed. People should be allowed to come over here and given a certain amount of time before they are forced to get a job. I do not see a problem with this since they will be paying taxes and will be earning equal wages therefore they will not be "stealing" jobs. Many people who want to come to the United States do not want to come to commit acts of random violence or steal our jobs, they want to come here to earn money to help support their families. As far as people saying that illegal immigrants take jobs that no one else wants, this is not true. They take jobs with poor conditions and wages so that legal citizens will not take them. So I disagree with people saying that illegal immigrants taking these jobs is ok. I sympathize with these people and I feel that they are entitled to the same rights. Also rather than soley punishing the illegal immigrants, we should put a lot more emphasis on punishing the employers of illegal immigrants. I think that no matter what we do illegal immigration will be a problem however by opening up our borders we can help to ensure that people with positive intentions come into our country rather than criminals and terrorists.
US, Mexico, and those who know everything
There are many things about this immigration debate we have been having in class that really unerve me and others that really confuse me. What i enjoy the most however, by far is the amount of US born 18-19 year olds that feel they have the right to decide who has the right to a "good" life. What pains me is that all of us in class have not had to work for our rights or much of anything else yet in our lives. Yet somehow we have this right to put down those people who aren't born so lucky? i imagine this point of view is one that strictly exists on the subconcious basis of, "if it's not me i dont care". some people believe that naturally born citizenship means they know everything. nice.
of course i understand the point that if there is crime happening here because of the illegal entering of the country, but perhaps instead of attacking the individual for the problem we should attack the country allowing and lets just say it, PROVOKING these people to come. First of all we have thousands of employers offering jobs to immigrants over americans for pretty obvious reasons...they can pay them WAY less. When the conditions in another country are so bad, wouldnt we just naturally assume that people would try to get out of them? instead of blaming those people luring in immigrants, the only option people see fit is to deport many of the hardworking people who just want a better life for themselves and their families. We also need to reavalute our system of citizenship. if every person born here is automatically a citizen without a second glance, then why is it so hard for people outside of the country to become citizens? it's f***ing ridiculous if you ask me. Sure not every immigrant is a "good" person but not every american is a good either. again that goes unnoticed.
of course i understand the point that if there is crime happening here because of the illegal entering of the country, but perhaps instead of attacking the individual for the problem we should attack the country allowing and lets just say it, PROVOKING these people to come. First of all we have thousands of employers offering jobs to immigrants over americans for pretty obvious reasons...they can pay them WAY less. When the conditions in another country are so bad, wouldnt we just naturally assume that people would try to get out of them? instead of blaming those people luring in immigrants, the only option people see fit is to deport many of the hardworking people who just want a better life for themselves and their families. We also need to reavalute our system of citizenship. if every person born here is automatically a citizen without a second glance, then why is it so hard for people outside of the country to become citizens? it's f***ing ridiculous if you ask me. Sure not every immigrant is a "good" person but not every american is a good either. again that goes unnoticed.
US, Mexico, and those who know everything
There are many things about this immigration debate we have been having in class that really unerve me and others that really confuse me. What i enjoy the most however, by far is the amount of US born 18-19 year olds that feel they have the right to decide who has the right to a "good" life. What pains me is that all of us in class have not had to work for our rights or much of anything else yet in our lives. Yet somehow we have this right to put down those people who aren't born so lucky? i imagine this point of view is one that strictly exists on the subconcious basis of, "if it's not me i dont care". some people believe that naturally born citizenship means they know everything. nice.
of course i understand the point that if there is crime happening here because of the illegal entering of the country, but perhaps instead of attacking the individual for the problem we should attack the country allowing and lets just say it, PROVOKING these people to come. First of all we have thousands of employers offering jobs to immigrants over americans for pretty obvious reasons...they can pay them WAY less. When the conditions in another country are so bad, wouldnt we just naturally assume that people would try to get out of them? instead of blaming those people luring in immigrants, the only option people see fit is to deport many of the hardworking people who just want a better life for themselves and their families. We also need to reavalute our system of citizenship. if every person born here is automatically a citizen without a second glance, then why is it so hard for people outside of the country to become citizens? it's f***ing ridiculous if you ask me. Sure not every immigrant is a "good" person but not every american is a good either. again that goes unnoticed.
of course i understand the point that if there is crime happening here because of the illegal entering of the country, but perhaps instead of attacking the individual for the problem we should attack the country allowing and lets just say it, PROVOKING these people to come. First of all we have thousands of employers offering jobs to immigrants over americans for pretty obvious reasons...they can pay them WAY less. When the conditions in another country are so bad, wouldnt we just naturally assume that people would try to get out of them? instead of blaming those people luring in immigrants, the only option people see fit is to deport many of the hardworking people who just want a better life for themselves and their families. We also need to reavalute our system of citizenship. if every person born here is automatically a citizen without a second glance, then why is it so hard for people outside of the country to become citizens? it's f***ing ridiculous if you ask me. Sure not every immigrant is a "good" person but not every american is a good either. again that goes unnoticed.
My Belief...
When it comes to immigration, I believe that our country should stop focusing so much on who is legal or illegal and focus on making everyone legal. There should be no illegal immigrants in this country. That sounds harsh but that's my feeling on the issue. They don't have permission to be in this country so they shouldn't be. I understand that they want a better life but they need to go about it the right way.
Immigrants shouldn't be outlawed from this country by any means. We should be a welcome home to anybody especially if their homeland isn't safe anymore. Now, I'll admit I don't know much about the naturalization process but from I gather it is not an easy process. I think that's where our efforts should be focused. We should work on getting immigrants legalized in this country in an efficient way. I don't know what that way would be but I am all for finding that way.
So, again, when it comes to immigrants they should be welcomed into our country if they do it the right way. Illegals need a better procedure to become legal and they need our country to aid them in that quest.
Immigrants shouldn't be outlawed from this country by any means. We should be a welcome home to anybody especially if their homeland isn't safe anymore. Now, I'll admit I don't know much about the naturalization process but from I gather it is not an easy process. I think that's where our efforts should be focused. We should work on getting immigrants legalized in this country in an efficient way. I don't know what that way would be but I am all for finding that way.
So, again, when it comes to immigrants they should be welcomed into our country if they do it the right way. Illegals need a better procedure to become legal and they need our country to aid them in that quest.
Monday, October 16, 2006
It is after all illegal
It is after all illegal for an undocumented immigrant to enter the country, isn't it? Isn't the government doing everything necessary since September 11th to make sure there aren't people in this country that they don't know about? That is a comforting thought, but apparently it is untrue. It is estimated that 12 million people live here illegally. That means they work here illegally, that means they drive here illegally, that means they aquired living space illegally. Fact is, if you are here illegally, you are technically illegally breathing our air. I know it is unfair to say just because they weren't fortunate enough to be born here they can't live here, but for now the law is the law, and that must be upheld. According to "Two kinds of immigration," immigration isn't hurting the economy, illegal immigration is hurting the economy. Legal immigrants have actually positively affected it. As said by Ray Martin of the Oklahoma Daily, "contrary to popular belief, the law matters." I agree, however, there is nothing wrong with ammending it. Let's see Democracy work, let's see America be the land of the free once again. No matter what someone is in this country for, the government should know about them.
Hey look, there's articles on this nearby!
I was looking around the internets and tried to find some articles on illegal immigration that were close to or in Pennsylvania. Suprisingly, I found such an article. In The Morning Call newspaper, located in Allentown, on September 29, 2006, there was an editorial titled "Illegal Immigration bill gets polished, but it's not getting any better" about the city council and a specific member (wow there were a lot of commas in the beginning of that sentence). Anyway, City Councilman Louis Hershman wanted Allentown to have strict guidelines on illegal immgration that would be nearly identical to that of Hazleton's laws created by Barletta. This editorial shows the views of policemen who would need to add forces to crack down on this problem and of other city officials' perspectives who believe that the immigration problem is too big for Allentown alone to handle.
Another article, this time from the Boston Globe (yay Boston), entitled "Two kinds of immigration (10/16/06)" reveal that people and politicians (there's a difference) should view both the benefits and the costs of both legal and illegal immigration. This article attempts to show that jobs are being lost by the American population to illegal immigrants but do a poor job at it. Their statistics have little validity and their information is vague at best. These authors should have never written this article and only hurt their own cause with their lack of information and semi-"pro-illegal immigration" points. And I thought better of a Boston newspaper.
Allentown Morning Call
Boston Globe
Another article, this time from the Boston Globe (yay Boston), entitled "Two kinds of immigration (10/16/06)" reveal that people and politicians (there's a difference) should view both the benefits and the costs of both legal and illegal immigration. This article attempts to show that jobs are being lost by the American population to illegal immigrants but do a poor job at it. Their statistics have little validity and their information is vague at best. These authors should have never written this article and only hurt their own cause with their lack of information and semi-"pro-illegal immigration" points. And I thought better of a Boston newspaper.
Allentown Morning Call
Boston Globe
IMMIGRATION
Although this may sound very stupid and naive to some, I never really knew about the huge controversies over Immigration until I began researching for this class. Its as if I lived in some cave, hidden from the outside world. It may be due to my unenthusiastic attitude toward staying current with global news. From reading about this issue I think it has sparked my interest in learning more.
I began searching and I came upon a website called http://www.immigrationdebate.com/ it was a very interesting website. The article I read was completely for immigration. This article completely slammed all the negative impacts of immigration. The author proved that these negative set backs were instead positive. For example, "The most convincing argument against immigration is usually their effect on wages, but current economic policy is already focused on fighting this wage pressure to reduce the threat of inflation and subsequent depression. As such, the chief argument against becomes an argument for increased immigration. Most importantly, let us not forget that these immigrants are people who simply want a better life, just like our parents and grandparents, who all came to the United States in similar situations. Helping them in their quest for a better life makes us rich in ways which transcend money. " What he is saying in this debate is completely true. In my opinion this point is a indeed a very accurate point. We are so worried about money that we forget that most, but not all these immigrants are coming to America for a better life. They have been taught that this is the greatest place and why must we insist on tearing there dreams apart? I do agree that not all of these immigrants are here for "the right" reasons, but we have natural born Americans who haven't made "the right" decisions either. We must not punish all the immigrants due to a few that aren't morally correct.
In this website there are a bunch of articles both positive and negative towards immigration. It was nice to sit down and read what these people have to see and read their opinions. I am so indecisive when it comes to this issue. On one hand I do agree with immigration and then when it comes something on the negative side, I somewhat agree. Its so confusing. I feel like i am stuck in a really bad storm when trying to decide whether i like immigration or whether I hate it. I am on the nuetral end.
I began searching and I came upon a website called http://www.immigrationdebate.com/ it was a very interesting website. The article I read was completely for immigration. This article completely slammed all the negative impacts of immigration. The author proved that these negative set backs were instead positive. For example, "The most convincing argument against immigration is usually their effect on wages, but current economic policy is already focused on fighting this wage pressure to reduce the threat of inflation and subsequent depression. As such, the chief argument against becomes an argument for increased immigration. Most importantly, let us not forget that these immigrants are people who simply want a better life, just like our parents and grandparents, who all came to the United States in similar situations. Helping them in their quest for a better life makes us rich in ways which transcend money. " What he is saying in this debate is completely true. In my opinion this point is a indeed a very accurate point. We are so worried about money that we forget that most, but not all these immigrants are coming to America for a better life. They have been taught that this is the greatest place and why must we insist on tearing there dreams apart? I do agree that not all of these immigrants are here for "the right" reasons, but we have natural born Americans who haven't made "the right" decisions either. We must not punish all the immigrants due to a few that aren't morally correct.
In this website there are a bunch of articles both positive and negative towards immigration. It was nice to sit down and read what these people have to see and read their opinions. I am so indecisive when it comes to this issue. On one hand I do agree with immigration and then when it comes something on the negative side, I somewhat agree. Its so confusing. I feel like i am stuck in a really bad storm when trying to decide whether i like immigration or whether I hate it. I am on the nuetral end.
Procrastinators Unite!
I'm actually glad that we had this assignment because it gave me the chance/oppurtunity/excuse to learn more about this whole ordeal. What's more, I was able to find arguments from both sides. One of my articles involved David Cameron, who believes that "the recent flood of immigration into Britain is a good thing". He was quoted as saying that the gaps in our own labor market are being filled with these migrant workers and that this is not necessarily bad. "When willing, able, and energetic people come to this country to work, they don't crowd out other people from the labor market." He even goes to say that "skiller foreign workers expand our economy and make us more competitive".
Other articles I found were not as positive. In a student-run independent newsweekly called The UWM Post, it was brought up that it is not legal immigrants that many people have a problem with, but the illegal ones. Illegal immigrants pose all kind of problems for our society, including taking up space in jails and driving without insurance; when an accident occurs, our own government tax dollars pay the expenses. Another interesting point brought up in this newsletter was that if illegal immigrants did not take up unwanted or undesirable jobs, the overall pay rate could increase. This is possible because a "surplus of labor" has come over and the corresponding wages have decreased.
In Immigration Realities, by Peter Skerry, one of the major points is that most people in American have a twisted view of immigration. An example of this is that most immigrants do not come here with the intention of staying, but to make enough money to start their own business when they return home. Despite their intentions, however, many do end up rebuilding their lives here.
I have found a lot of articles so far and I can honestly say that I want to continue researching the different views on this topic.
Other articles I found were not as positive. In a student-run independent newsweekly called The UWM Post, it was brought up that it is not legal immigrants that many people have a problem with, but the illegal ones. Illegal immigrants pose all kind of problems for our society, including taking up space in jails and driving without insurance; when an accident occurs, our own government tax dollars pay the expenses. Another interesting point brought up in this newsletter was that if illegal immigrants did not take up unwanted or undesirable jobs, the overall pay rate could increase. This is possible because a "surplus of labor" has come over and the corresponding wages have decreased.
In Immigration Realities, by Peter Skerry, one of the major points is that most people in American have a twisted view of immigration. An example of this is that most immigrants do not come here with the intention of staying, but to make enough money to start their own business when they return home. Despite their intentions, however, many do end up rebuilding their lives here.
I have found a lot of articles so far and I can honestly say that I want to continue researching the different views on this topic.
A New Kind of Theme Park
When I read our assignment I turned first to Wikipedia for its take on illegal immigration. At the top of the page I saw things which looked like warnings saying, "This article may not be compliant with the content policies of Wikipedia. To be compliant, it must be written from a neutral point of view and must not include unverifiable, unsuitable material, or original research," and "This page is currently protected from editing until disputes have been resolved. Please discuss changes on the talk page or request unprotection. (Protection is not an endorsement of the current page version,)" which I thought helped to solidify the fact that this is currently a very large issue. I also found a section called "Terminology in the United States" which discussed different terms used in the United States and which were politically correct and incorrect according to different people. Then I went to NPR and searched for programs on illegal immigration. I chose one and began to listen. I was startled to realize it was a story about a park in Mexico where tourists pay to pretend to be illegal immigrants. At first I thought this was a very strange sort of “vacation” to take, but then something changed my mind. One man who runs this park said, “This is a tribute to our brothers who have migrated and gone after the American Dream. This walk is an act to raise awareness; it is a challenge so you know how the migrants suffer and so you value what you have here.” I thought he had a good point – someone needs to keep the people from crossing the border, and why not do it by simulating the border crossing?
illegal immigration - treason?
http://www.vdare.com/pb/060528_unamerican.htm
http://www.today.ucla.edu/2006/060509voice_immigrants.html
http://tikkun.org/rabbi_lerner/news_item.2006-07-06.3854364776
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so, after reading a few of these crazy articles on illegal immigration, I realised how many stances there really are on this issue. The first article, vdare.com, talked about how some see the illegal immigration problem as un-American. even TREASON. Treason? It's a little extreme. This piece was entirely persuasive and satirical, but it made me think about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and the language it was written in. It was left fairly open, to many interpretations, which has already led to a debate for the issues of: gay/lesbian marriage, abortion, racism, etc. All of the modern issues we have today are not completely addressed by the Constitution, so our government, in it's "infinite wisdom" tells what they really mean.
Mmkay. Second article: a one page, not even one page, kind of a quickie on a metaphor that I saw a lot, but the articles were locked away so I couldn't read them. In the media, immigrants are most often metaphorically imaged as animals. Think about this phrase: "The truthis, employers hungering for really cheap labor hunt out the foreign workers." (UCLA Today, Faulty Discourse on 'illegal immigrants'). It may be unintentional, but these kinds of images and this type of language really plays a part in the bias of a dispute.
THIRD ARTICLE!! This article brought up the point of how we don't really have an illegal immigration problem. No, not at all. Our problem is... ILLEGAL EMPLOYERS. Who'da thunk it? That's right. And this article isn't just all opinion. It states fact and uses laws to back up it's point - specifically, that Republicans in 1980 and now hide the fact that they actually promote illegal employment. In 1986 Reagan's amnesty program, it basically told employers and non citizens that there would be "few penalties and many reqards to increasing the US labor pool with undcoumented immigrants." (Immigration: The Issue Republicans Are Using).
so, those are basic summaries of my 3 articles. :) ummmm.. I guess we'll be talking about it in about half an hour!!
http://www.today.ucla.edu/2006/060509voice_immigrants.html
http://tikkun.org/rabbi_lerner/news_item.2006-07-06.3854364776
----------------------------------------------------------------------
so, after reading a few of these crazy articles on illegal immigration, I realised how many stances there really are on this issue. The first article, vdare.com, talked about how some see the illegal immigration problem as un-American. even TREASON. Treason? It's a little extreme. This piece was entirely persuasive and satirical, but it made me think about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and the language it was written in. It was left fairly open, to many interpretations, which has already led to a debate for the issues of: gay/lesbian marriage, abortion, racism, etc. All of the modern issues we have today are not completely addressed by the Constitution, so our government, in it's "infinite wisdom" tells what they really mean.
Mmkay. Second article: a one page, not even one page, kind of a quickie on a metaphor that I saw a lot, but the articles were locked away so I couldn't read them. In the media, immigrants are most often metaphorically imaged as animals. Think about this phrase: "The truthis, employers hungering for really cheap labor hunt out the foreign workers." (UCLA Today, Faulty Discourse on 'illegal immigrants'). It may be unintentional, but these kinds of images and this type of language really plays a part in the bias of a dispute.
THIRD ARTICLE!! This article brought up the point of how we don't really have an illegal immigration problem. No, not at all. Our problem is... ILLEGAL EMPLOYERS. Who'da thunk it? That's right. And this article isn't just all opinion. It states fact and uses laws to back up it's point - specifically, that Republicans in 1980 and now hide the fact that they actually promote illegal employment. In 1986 Reagan's amnesty program, it basically told employers and non citizens that there would be "few penalties and many reqards to increasing the US labor pool with undcoumented immigrants." (Immigration: The Issue Republicans Are Using).
so, those are basic summaries of my 3 articles. :) ummmm.. I guess we'll be talking about it in about half an hour!!
<non-offensive adjective meaning illegal> immigration
Two Kinds of Immigration published by the Boston Globe, is a politically correct article emphasizing the distinction between the pros and cons of "unauthorized" or "undocumented" immigration. The authors refused to repeat that one specific word, however, if they could help it. Instead they jumped through hoops, and probably wasted hours in a thesaurus comming up with alternative, unassuming words to replace it. Why? I have no clue. It's unnecessary in the extreme. Call it undocumented, unauthorized, unofficial, or ever so slightly unbeknown to the governemnt, and it's all the same. These people are here, and they are not here legally. When you do something that is not legal, we have recently invented a new word especially for that, and it's called "illegal". You can come up with euphemizations for me punching someone in the face on my way to class, but, at the end of the day from a legal perspective, it's assualt. Period. No way around it. Just like these immigrants. They're here, and they're not supposed to be. That's illegal. The article points out that between 2000 and 2005, persons over the age of 16 lost 4.8 million jobs. The number of immigrants who claimed to have found jobs in that time interval, was 4.13 million. About 2/3 of those immigrants are calculated to be here illegally. So, what's that about them not taking jobs? Immigrant workers ate 86% of those lost jobs. In an interesting paragraph, the article explains that migrant workers make remodeling, lawn care, housecleaning, and child care easier for wealtheir families. I can't believe such vivid and succinct stereotypical ideologies could possibly have been published in the Globe. My respect for that paper has now gone down two full notches with the reading of this one article. And, at the end, they even go on to say that in "future debates" we "need to clearly distinguish between the economic benefits and costs of legal and illegal immigration." What? I'm sorry... what happened to "principle over property"? Is that what our country is comming to? "Well, who gives a <place crude & derogatory term here> about what's right, or about what SHOULD happen, let's just go with what will benefit the economy here and now. Holy freakin God... I can't believe people can be so shortsighted. Okay, I need to calm down... I'm done for now.
...between this class and Geography, college is killing my ink supply. (aka. Printed articles.)
As I'm searching for immigration articles, it's easy to tell that the loudest voices tend to be the ones opposed. In fact, I do have a few of those, since they're easy to find.
There are some others, though, that are interesting. One is from Mexidata.info, entitled "Mexico and the US to Share a 'Wall of Shame'", which is much more sympathetic to the immigrants--as many come from Mexico, and that's worth looking at. A valid opinion from Hispanics doesn't appear quite as much. Maybe it makes us look weak? I'm not sure.
Also, I have an article from... Vail, Colorado that is interviewing candidates on that topic, which brings in the politics of how one answers the question of what to do and get elected. You know that's an issue. Everything is brought up in politics here. Immigration and what to do with it isn't politics in itself, but that is a factor....I know what I mean, really!
Finally, after all of these that separate the population on this issue, I found one that takes the middle ground, talking about how immigration is important and what we could do to make it more legal without hurting the economy. It's... refreshing to see something that isn't polarizing. Maybe that's how life really is, but it doesn't really show in the news. That wouldn't be shocking, after all, and would sell less papers. ...profit is a factor in media, though I doubt they'd admit it.
I'll probably need to find more stuff, but this covers a good, basic range.
There are some others, though, that are interesting. One is from Mexidata.info, entitled "Mexico and the US to Share a 'Wall of Shame'", which is much more sympathetic to the immigrants--as many come from Mexico, and that's worth looking at. A valid opinion from Hispanics doesn't appear quite as much. Maybe it makes us look weak? I'm not sure.
Also, I have an article from... Vail, Colorado that is interviewing candidates on that topic, which brings in the politics of how one answers the question of what to do and get elected. You know that's an issue. Everything is brought up in politics here. Immigration and what to do with it isn't politics in itself, but that is a factor.
Finally, after all of these that separate the population on this issue, I found one that takes the middle ground, talking about how immigration is important and what we could do to make it more legal without hurting the economy. It's... refreshing to see something that isn't polarizing. Maybe that's how life really is, but it doesn't really show in the news. That wouldn't be shocking, after all, and would sell less papers. ...profit is a factor in media, though I doubt they'd admit it.
I'll probably need to find more stuff, but this covers a good, basic range.
"Let the choas begin"
(I found a few articles to work with and I read them and noted the important parts and I still have a mixed view for this topic, so I’m probably going to contradict myself quite a few times throughout this blog, so just go with it and yell at me later.)
The first article I found, “An immigration parable” written by Pat Boone had some valid points, but had inaccurate information (at least some of it seemed that way). The article called a parable “virtually the same thing” as a fable; however, (having just learned this last chapter in my library science class called resources for children and as honors comp takes place in the same room as this class I decided to note the inaccuracy) a fable has “animal characters that talk and act like humans to indicate a moral lesson or satirize human conduct.” A parable on the other hand, (according to Merriam-Webster online) is a “fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or religious principle.” These two are not similar and the story that the writer tells seems to be more of an extended metaphor and includes lots of hyperbole. This makes is hard to consider much of the information in the article as fact, such as the amount of “illegal immigrants” seems higher than other sources approximate it at (12 – 14 million people). The way that the “parable” criticizes the “guest worker” program shows some valid points, such as the way the program is structured and the chaos that may ensue if such a program is put into place. However, the argument was looked at form one side only (a very Republican side too), nothing was presented as a possible alternative; the articles sole purpose was the say to just get the illegal immigrants out. However, this is the view of many Americans, especially considering that the “parable” was quoted form someone else before it was printed.
After reading the second article I noticed that we are only looking at immigration from Mexico in this issue and disregarding the bigger picture with immigration from other countries too. The is currently a case going on that deals with a “Chinese asylum claim” to decide whether we should provide asylum for Chinese families that have more than one child and aren’t in the farming industry. The article talks about Jian Hui Shao who has been living in the United States about four years. This case is currently in the Appeals Court and relates greatly to the part Mexican part of the immigration issue. Should families that are seeking “asylum” or basically all of them be allowed to stay in the United States? This article also proves that it isn’t just Mexican immigrants that are crossing borders illegally; people of other nationality have also done this. This case is actually going to the Supreme Court; this is what the Board of Immigration Appeals decided.
The third article that I read was about comments that Gov Schwarzenegger made about immigration. These articles bring up one we discussed in class about asslimation. Should immigration take on American culture, keep there own entirely, or maybe mix the two together. Schwarzenegger said, “They try to stay Mexican but try to be in America.” I’m not sure how I feel about this statement; I can see some truth in it, but I’m still wondering if this is technically an issue or just a group of people holding on to their culture. The governor made other generalizations about learning or not learning a language which caused controversy with many citizens and the California Democratic Party had a field day. I'm unsure about this article as a whole, so i'll continue to think about it until class.
p.s. It's Ellie's birthday today!!!
The first article I found, “An immigration parable” written by Pat Boone had some valid points, but had inaccurate information (at least some of it seemed that way). The article called a parable “virtually the same thing” as a fable; however, (having just learned this last chapter in my library science class called resources for children and as honors comp takes place in the same room as this class I decided to note the inaccuracy) a fable has “animal characters that talk and act like humans to indicate a moral lesson or satirize human conduct.” A parable on the other hand, (according to Merriam-Webster online) is a “fictitious story that illustrates a moral attitude or religious principle.” These two are not similar and the story that the writer tells seems to be more of an extended metaphor and includes lots of hyperbole. This makes is hard to consider much of the information in the article as fact, such as the amount of “illegal immigrants” seems higher than other sources approximate it at (12 – 14 million people). The way that the “parable” criticizes the “guest worker” program shows some valid points, such as the way the program is structured and the chaos that may ensue if such a program is put into place. However, the argument was looked at form one side only (a very Republican side too), nothing was presented as a possible alternative; the articles sole purpose was the say to just get the illegal immigrants out. However, this is the view of many Americans, especially considering that the “parable” was quoted form someone else before it was printed.
After reading the second article I noticed that we are only looking at immigration from Mexico in this issue and disregarding the bigger picture with immigration from other countries too. The is currently a case going on that deals with a “Chinese asylum claim” to decide whether we should provide asylum for Chinese families that have more than one child and aren’t in the farming industry. The article talks about Jian Hui Shao who has been living in the United States about four years. This case is currently in the Appeals Court and relates greatly to the part Mexican part of the immigration issue. Should families that are seeking “asylum” or basically all of them be allowed to stay in the United States? This article also proves that it isn’t just Mexican immigrants that are crossing borders illegally; people of other nationality have also done this. This case is actually going to the Supreme Court; this is what the Board of Immigration Appeals decided.
The third article that I read was about comments that Gov Schwarzenegger made about immigration. These articles bring up one we discussed in class about asslimation. Should immigration take on American culture, keep there own entirely, or maybe mix the two together. Schwarzenegger said, “They try to stay Mexican but try to be in America.” I’m not sure how I feel about this statement; I can see some truth in it, but I’m still wondering if this is technically an issue or just a group of people holding on to their culture. The governor made other generalizations about learning or not learning a language which caused controversy with many citizens and the California Democratic Party had a field day. I'm unsure about this article as a whole, so i'll continue to think about it until class.
p.s. It's Ellie's birthday today!!!
I couldn't think of a title...
The topic of immigration rages on in the United States. Declared by many, next to the war in Iraq, to be the hot button issue of elections, at the local and national level, for several years. In the political arena the issue is painted as black and white with no gray area in between, you either support or oppose illegal immigration. The reality though, is that the answer o the illegal immigration debate lies in the middle, and several sources I found support the same view.
The first article “A surge in immigration is spawning a backlash” http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/15767256.html was published in the Philadelphia Inquirer and deals with the immigration debate in Charlotte, North Carolina. In North Carolina, the foreign born population has increased by over 400 percent, with the foreign born population in Charlotte increasing by almost 700 percent. Mecklenburg County Sheriff Jim Pendergraph, the local sheriff, has proposed a solution to the illegal immigration in the area, which is to invoke a federal law created in 1996 under the Immigration and Nationality Act by section 286(g), which allows for the deportation of illegal immigrants found guilty of crimes in the United States. I found this solution to be an interesting twist on the issues raised in the articles on Hazleton, where the issue of illegal immigration and crime led to a totalitarian approach to dealing with illegal immigrants. Instead, Charlotte only processes and deports those actually found guilty of crime, taking irresponsible and dangerous criminals off the streets and processing them or deportation.
Another article “Two kinds of immigration,” http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/10/16/two_kinds_of_immigration/
published in the Boston Globe, explored the economic implications of immigration on the workforce of the United States. One of the most interesting aspects is that immigrants accounted for 86 percent of employment in the minor employment force in the last 5 years while minors who reported being employed fell by almost 4.2 million in the same time frame. As has been explored before, in an effort to keep costs down, many employers are turning to the immigrant workforce to maximize their profits and statistics prove that it isn’t just jobs that no one wants that are being filled. The growth of illegal immigrants in the labor force is a double-sided sword. On one hand, the cheaper labor keeps commercial costs down and according to Harry L. Jones of Charlotte is a net gain in terms of diversity as well as economic opportunities. On the other hand however, illegal immigrations create a deficit because they do not pay as much taxes as others.
Police, the President, and the Law
While in the process of researching the topic of the immigration debate, a window popped up on my screen. It offered you the chance to win a green card to the United States just by filling out a few simple pieces of information, as long as the task was completed with the 5 minute time-frame. I found this to be ironic, especially with all the controversy about who should be allowed into our country.
I looked mainly at three different articles. One, entitled "Houston Police Department Revises Immigration Policy after Officer’s Death," (http://www.blogger.com/(http://www.officer.com/article.jsp?siteSection=1&id=32866) discusses how the death of a police officer, at the hands of an immigrant who had already been deported once due to having previously entered illegally. This event rekindled the flames of a heated debate on tightening immigration checks and consequences for "illegals" on a local level.
There have been several revisions to their procedural methods since this event. Fingerprinting and background checks will be used as a way of determining citizenship, as well as "detention of illegal immigrants who returned to the country after deportation for criminal convictions and detention of people who have previous deportation orders." Like the seatbelt regulations however, being an "illegal" is a secondary offense, and police do not in most cases have the authority to detain someone simply on suspicions of these grounds.
Secondly, an article called simply "Faulty Discourse on ‘illegal immigrants’,"(http://www.today.ucla.edu/2006/060509voice_immigrants.html) is similar to those which we have already looked at. It merely shows the many ways in which immigrants are depicted by completely negative and degrading images such as "overgrown weeds and invading soldiers." It also touches on the use of "illegal immigrant" vs "undocumented immigrant," and how those who stand up for these people are often less respected, such as President Bush when he said, "Immigrants are hard-working, decent human beings."
The third is an unbiased, purely informative piece, called "The Immigration Debate: How This Issue Could Affect Your Household." (http://www.blogger.com/(http://research.lawyers.com/The-Immigration-Debate.html?SPC-CNN). It deal largely with immigration law and how it is applied, especially in regard to home-employed immigrants.
Overall, these three pieces present three different, though not completely opposing views on immigration: pro-immigrant right, toughened regulations, and the law. Together, these can be used to gather a more complete picture of how immigration is affecting our nation.
I looked mainly at three different articles. One, entitled "Houston Police Department Revises Immigration Policy after Officer’s Death," (http://www.blogger.com/(http://www.officer.com/article.jsp?siteSection=1&id=32866) discusses how the death of a police officer, at the hands of an immigrant who had already been deported once due to having previously entered illegally. This event rekindled the flames of a heated debate on tightening immigration checks and consequences for "illegals" on a local level.
There have been several revisions to their procedural methods since this event. Fingerprinting and background checks will be used as a way of determining citizenship, as well as "detention of illegal immigrants who returned to the country after deportation for criminal convictions and detention of people who have previous deportation orders." Like the seatbelt regulations however, being an "illegal" is a secondary offense, and police do not in most cases have the authority to detain someone simply on suspicions of these grounds.
Secondly, an article called simply "Faulty Discourse on ‘illegal immigrants’,"(http://www.today.ucla.edu/2006/060509voice_immigrants.html) is similar to those which we have already looked at. It merely shows the many ways in which immigrants are depicted by completely negative and degrading images such as "overgrown weeds and invading soldiers." It also touches on the use of "illegal immigrant" vs "undocumented immigrant," and how those who stand up for these people are often less respected, such as President Bush when he said, "Immigrants are hard-working, decent human beings."
The third is an unbiased, purely informative piece, called "The Immigration Debate: How This Issue Could Affect Your Household." (http://www.blogger.com/(http://research.lawyers.com/The-Immigration-Debate.html?SPC-CNN). It deal largely with immigration law and how it is applied, especially in regard to home-employed immigrants.
Overall, these three pieces present three different, though not completely opposing views on immigration: pro-immigrant right, toughened regulations, and the law. Together, these can be used to gather a more complete picture of how immigration is affecting our nation.
"The gay-lesbian marriage of this election"
The mexican immigration debate is becoming a huge issue politically. It is going to be the "gay-lesbian marriage of this election", according to Angeles Ortega-Moore, director of the Latin American Coalition in Charlotte, N.C.. People are already touting this as "going to be the hottest issue, maybe next to Iraq, in the presidential election in two years." There are two problems with illegal immigration: the huge amount of illegal immigrants already in the U.S., and securing the Mexican-American border to prevent more from entering in the future. At the moment our federal government has only taken steps to secure the border, which some think will not stop illegal immigration at all. The problem is becoming more political than anything else in the eyes of some. Meanwhile others recognize the complexity of the situation and the sensitivity that must be used when making decisions concering illegal immigrants, since the U.S. is affected so directly by the immigrant population already in the U.S.
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/15767256.htm
http://www.10news.com/news/10024681/detail.html
http://www.themonitor.com/SiteProcessor.cfm?Template=/GlobalTemplates/Details.cfm&StoryID=15909&Section=Opinion
http://www.mexidata.info/id1070.html
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/15767256.htm
http://www.10news.com/news/10024681/detail.html
http://www.themonitor.com/SiteProcessor.cfm?Template=/GlobalTemplates/Details.cfm&StoryID=15909&Section=Opinion
http://www.mexidata.info/id1070.html
Illegals--Who's Right, Who's Wrong?
Illegal immigration--an issue swirling with myths, facts--truths and lies. Protests and mudslinging, amongst the illegals themselves, as well as the public, politicians, and classrooms. Who is right in this debate? From the "vigilantes" in a group known as the Minuteman Project to the open, warm (yet still conservative) state of Utah, it seems no one can escape the topic.
Millions have come in legally--so why the influx of illegals? With them they bring crime, gangs--They "steal" jobs from Americans. They don't bother learning the language, they "drape themselves in Mexican flags..." and disrupt "the very country they claim to love." The issue is huge in the race for the Senate, with Republican Rick Santorum airing a commercial featuring his father and grandfather's emigration contrasted with those who have "more sinister intentions." But what of those who believe illegals have pure intentions? There are some who insist the immigrants can help the economy, making our country "richer in every sense of the word." We've welcomed them in the past, why not now? The state of Utah is the perfect example--the once 98% white state is changing, evolving, becoming more and more diverse. The acceptance and compassion that the Mormon faith was founded on is now the excuse to accept illegal immigrants. They insisist you can be "conservative yet compassionate..."
Yeah, right. So why is this significant? It's an issue that isn't going to go away until the American public sees some kind of resolution--maybe we're just waiting for something, anything to give us the illusion of "problem solved." English-only, billion dollar fences, politician's promises--I'll take it.
How about you?
Millions have come in legally--so why the influx of illegals? With them they bring crime, gangs--They "steal" jobs from Americans. They don't bother learning the language, they "drape themselves in Mexican flags..." and disrupt "the very country they claim to love." The issue is huge in the race for the Senate, with Republican Rick Santorum airing a commercial featuring his father and grandfather's emigration contrasted with those who have "more sinister intentions." But what of those who believe illegals have pure intentions? There are some who insist the immigrants can help the economy, making our country "richer in every sense of the word." We've welcomed them in the past, why not now? The state of Utah is the perfect example--the once 98% white state is changing, evolving, becoming more and more diverse. The acceptance and compassion that the Mormon faith was founded on is now the excuse to accept illegal immigrants. They insisist you can be "conservative yet compassionate..."
Yeah, right. So why is this significant? It's an issue that isn't going to go away until the American public sees some kind of resolution--maybe we're just waiting for something, anything to give us the illusion of "problem solved." English-only, billion dollar fences, politician's promises--I'll take it.
How about you?
i hate immigration...i also hate santa clause and puppy dogs
hello everyone. first of all i must say that regardless of the cold it is a beautiful day...a day we may have trouble enjoying because of our frozen pupils...but nonetheless a beautiful day.
I have read three articles for our assignment that i would link at the bottom of this page if i wasnt a complete dumbass with computers. im not entirely sure how to go about doing this so i will just take a whack at it.
Over the course of my various readings regarding the immigration debate, i found myself questioning many things that i believe and do not believe. When it comes to a largely publicized debate such as illegal immigration, i believe people truly need to examine each side of the argument instead of accepting only what they believe in as truth. Through the scheme of things, in the direct division of people through country and state borders, we manage to get lost in this rhelm of identity. We identify ourselves as the country we live in, or the state we are from. We divide ourselves into Mexicans, Americans, and Canadians, leaving out the most important group of all; that we are all humans. Regardless of where we are from we are all of the same race. We are all related in some way, we all feel, we all have the same intentions as our lives first begin; they simply change based on our environment and our circumstances. The division of life that takes place everyday is appauling and depressing. We are ALL americans, except we are from the united states part and they are from the mexican part, however more importantly we are all humans. This is why each of owes it to one another, to hear their story.
I have read three articles for our assignment that i would link at the bottom of this page if i wasnt a complete dumbass with computers. im not entirely sure how to go about doing this so i will just take a whack at it.
Over the course of my various readings regarding the immigration debate, i found myself questioning many things that i believe and do not believe. When it comes to a largely publicized debate such as illegal immigration, i believe people truly need to examine each side of the argument instead of accepting only what they believe in as truth. Through the scheme of things, in the direct division of people through country and state borders, we manage to get lost in this rhelm of identity. We identify ourselves as the country we live in, or the state we are from. We divide ourselves into Mexicans, Americans, and Canadians, leaving out the most important group of all; that we are all humans. Regardless of where we are from we are all of the same race. We are all related in some way, we all feel, we all have the same intentions as our lives first begin; they simply change based on our environment and our circumstances. The division of life that takes place everyday is appauling and depressing. We are ALL americans, except we are from the united states part and they are from the mexican part, however more importantly we are all humans. This is why each of owes it to one another, to hear their story.
Immigration Debate
When it comes to immigration, this country seems to be greatly divided. Everyone has different opinions on the issue and everyone thinks their solution is the best one. If there is one uniting factor in this debate, it's that mostly everyone agrees that something needs to be done. Immigration can't be ignored.
This debate is a main focus for upcoming elections with candidates trying to perfect their resolutions in order to win votes. The main aspect of the debate that people seem to be focusing on is what immigration does to the American people living here legally. Does it take away their jobs? Does it make the country less secure? Do immigrants take away services that should go to taxpaying Americans?
The immigration issue seems more like a competition between politicians. Instead of thinking about how immigrants are really affected, it's like they want their plan to be the one chosen in order to win.
This debate is a main focus for upcoming elections with candidates trying to perfect their resolutions in order to win votes. The main aspect of the debate that people seem to be focusing on is what immigration does to the American people living here legally. Does it take away their jobs? Does it make the country less secure? Do immigrants take away services that should go to taxpaying Americans?
The immigration issue seems more like a competition between politicians. Instead of thinking about how immigrants are really affected, it's like they want their plan to be the one chosen in order to win.
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