[clawrence3]

What say you?

[teenyelliott]

BTW, I never answered your original question.

I have many friends who are immigrants, and most are citizens now. Some from Lebanon, tons from Vietnam, a couple from Greece, etc.

Allowing the current tidal wave of illegals to slide through to citizendom without having to go through all the retarded hoops and fees and tests that all of my friends, and all of the legal immigrants I don't know, is insulting.

Why follow the rules if others get to cheat and get the same result, with the blessing of the gubmint?

So, my answer, even though you might think it less than honest, is that legal immigration, good. Illegal immigration, bad. For many, many, many reasons.

[redgirlinabluestate]

As a first generation American I am rather partial to LEGAL immigration. My family members came here through Ellis Island in the 1950's and are proud American citizens. I think legal immigration works provided we put a higher emphasis on patriotic assimilation, speaking English and becoming an American in the truest sense of the word. I would cut off all federal funds for bilingual education, multicultural education, bilingual ballots etc. I'd insist on vigorous “Americanization.”

Bilingual education and the liberal obsession with multiculturalism has not been good for us. Immigration was much more successful when we were known as a melting pot instead of a salad bar or buffet.

[dangus]

It depends:

Anchor Babies: Stop.
H-1 visa shenanigans: Stop.
Study visas: Depends on the course of study, the usefulness of the content for anti-American purposes, and the need for technological supremacy in the content area. But reforms are needed, and it's ridiculous that University departments get Affirmative Action for hiring unintelligible foreign-born grad students.
Citizenship for spouses: OK
Political refugees and victims of disaster: It's a moral imperitive we accept them.
"Economic" refugees and immivaders: It's a "grave sin that cries out to the Heavens for justice" (Rerum Novarum) to import immigrants for the purpose of suppressing wages.
Lotteries: an outrage.
Family reunification: only if the family member who already has citizenship earned citizenship through the ways considered valid above, and only if the relationship suggests an economic dependence (i.e., young children, incapacitated parents, spouses).

[rmlew]

We should
1. Protect our borders
2. Create punishments and incentives for illegals to leave
3. Dramatically slash our immigration levels to only include certain family reunions and those foreigners who would provide useful skills.
4. We would set up a system for refugees, who would be closely monitered and not go to the front of the line in petitioning to immigrate.
5. We would end the purposeful misreading of the 14th Ammendment which has thrust the offspring of invaders upon us as equals. However, those who have grown up here, speak english, and have no criminal history can stay for an extended period of time, during which they could petition for citizenship. I believe that some form of national service tied into an Americanization program would be useful.
6.Create a national Americanization program to teach immigrants English, teach them American values and proper history, and ensure that they have basic skills.

Perhaps in a generation or two, we can return to a more liberalized immigration program, so long as our culture remains secure and our national interest is put first and formost.

[samcgwire]

I would like to start with OBLers - make the American Traitors dig the footings for the new Freedom Wall from the Gulf to the Pacific.

[Clemenza]

No.

1. Many of the most entrepreneurial folks I know are legal immigrants. Such folks start businesses and create jobs and services.

2. The best and the brightest leave places like Eastern Europe, India, China, Korea and even Latin America to come here legally.

3. I have too many friends who have been put through HELL by INS/ICE simply for trying to do it legally.

The only "legal" immigrants I have a problem with are those from Muslim countries, although I can't think of a way to legally single them out for prohibition of entrance to this country. Besides, you do have folks like my Iranian ex-girlfriend who HATE Islamism and come to the west to get away from it.

[CyberAnt]

LEGAL immigration has built America. But .. people came here not to build their own little empire .. they came here to be AMERICANS. America is a unique and amazing place - and it's inhabited by some of the most courageous, kind, loving, smart, dedicated, committed, talented people in the world.

When immigrants come here - they don't have to abandon their culture or celebrate their holidays - but to throw that stuff in my face and say that my culture or my holidays no longer matter - THAT IS JUST WRONG.

People should want to come here to be AN AMERICAN! We are a different breed alltogether .. and most Americans like it that way.

If people don't want to be an American - then they should just stay where they are.

[curiosity]

I don't want it stopped, but I want it changed. It should be strictly limited (~400K/year), and prioirty given to highly skilled individuals in fields where their labor is in high demand: nurses, accountants, scientists, etc.

No more family reunification visas. No more visa lottery. Just skill based immigration.