Posted on 02/15/2004 10:57:07 PM PST by hotpotato
The invasion of illegal aliens pouring over the borders of the United States is taking an ominous turn. They are not alone! Their bodies may carry Hepatitis A, B & C, tuberculosis, leprosy and Chagas Disease. Chagas is a nasty parasitic bug common in Latin America where 18 million people are infected and 50,000 deaths occur annually.
Illegal aliens, by avoiding health screenings at U.S. borders, carry TB, the most serious being MDR, a multi-drug resistant tuberculosis—with a higher death rate than cancer. MDR-TB occurs when Mycobacterium tuberculosis becomes resistant to at least Isoniazid and Rifampin—the two most powerful TB drugs. According to the New York Academy of Sciences, 2002 update, "Ordinary TB requires a six-month regimen of four drugs for cure. MDR-TB requires up to two years of treatment with a complex regimen of much more expensive drugs to which the patient's TB bacteria are susceptible."
Many of these drugs have toxic side effects. A patient with MDR-TB will infect others with MDR-TB--not ordinary TB. "It has been called "Ebola with Wings," in the chilling book: 'TIME BOMB: THE GLOBAL EPIDEMIC OF MULTI-DRUG RESISTANT TUBERCULOSIS', by Lee B. Reighmann, M.D., M.P.H.
According to the New York Academy of Sciences, Update, January, 2002, "TB bacteria readily fly through the air, as when an afflicted person coughs. It's estimated that each victim will infect 10, 20 or more people--in whom the disease will likely remain latent, creating the potential 'time bomb' effect."
To make matters worse, in excess of 7,000 new cases of leprosy have been diagnosed in the USA in the past three years. Hansen's Disease (leprosy) is now endemic to the Northeastern United States for the first time ever. Ironically, because of First World personal hygiene and sanitation practiced in America, leprosy affected only 900 people in the previous 40 years. However, illegal alien immigrants from India, Brazil, the Caribbean and up through Mexico have fueled the resurgence into the United States.
Chagas, called the kissing bug disease because the parasite favors the face as a route of infection, comes in acute and chronic forms, which can damage your heart and intestines. This parasite now threatens our blood supply, yet no means to test the blood is currently available. Ironically the public health community has been aware of this danger for years. "Hundreds of blood recipients may be silently infected, experts say, and there is no effective treatment for them. After a decade, 10 to 30 percent of them will die when their hearts or intestines, weakened by the disease, explode," according to a New York Times story, November 18, 2003 by Donald G. McNeil, Jr. Three people received Chagas infected organs in 2001, the first such cases reported in the United States ever! Two of those three died.
Dengue Fever, reports of polio, and now, the first case of malaria in Texas trickle into the United States as the invasion of illegal aliens increases in numbers.
Undiagnosed disease due to uncontrolled illegal immigration is not confined to the Border States. This health care crisis spreads daily across the nation. In 2002, Northern Virginia reported a 17 % increase in tuberculosis cases. Prince William County alone reported a staggering 188 % over the previous year. Health officials link immigrants to this outbreak and credit them with introducing the drug resistant strains. In 2001 Marion County experienced an outbreak of Multi-Drug Resistant TB, which was investigated by the Indiana University School of Medicine. Their findings? Mexican Nationals, i.e., illegal aliens, had flooded into the area causing the outbreak.
In Queens, New York the health department found that 81% of new TB cases in 2001 were "immigrants". The CDC reports that last year one-half of all new TB cases were attributed to foreign born people, who have an eight times higher incidence of TB. "Health officials state the rise of TB is largely a consequence of the migration of people from parts of the world where the disease is common. It is thought that two-thirds of the cases of TB brought into the United States originated in three countries: Mexico, the Philippines and Vietnam. Recent outbreaks include Portland, Maine, Del Ray Beach, Florida and Michigan.
In 1999, a health advisory was issued due to a Dengue Fever outbreak along the Mexico (Nuevo Laredo)/ Texas—(Webb County) border. Though not usually fatal, there is a more serious strain called dengue hemorrhagic fever, which CAN kill you.
It gets worse. The U.S. government, which is sworn to protect American citizens, is in reality, aiding and abetting this health care crisis. Quoting a Fox News Report from April 4, 2003, Miguel, an illegal alien who worked construction on a subway renovation project for months, was able to change his status to legal permanent alien. Unfortunately, Miguel was infected with tuberculosis. This did not stop the federal government from issuing Miguel a health waiver under the Immigration and Nationality Act, a waiver that permits him a green card, even though his disease made him inadmissible for the waiver. Miguel is now legally free to move about the country—and is, at this moment.
What does this mean to American citizens? Does it take the immediacy of a SARS or tuberculosis epidemic to force our Congress and president into action? After the fact? After the deaths of dozens or thousands of innocent citizens? What does it require for them to take action as this 'silent invasion' crosses into our country? Our borders are as porous today as they were on 9/11. But this terror is a silent invasion--a deadly, growing, ticking 'Time Bomb'.
It means your children are at risk when attending school or going to the movies. It means that when a classmate from a foreign country sneezes or coughs, your child may be at risk for any number of diseases. If you eat at a fast food restaurant, a person infected with hepatitis could prepare your food. If you need a blood transfusion, the blood could be infected with Chagas Disease.
What can you do? You may visit the principal of your school and insist that every child pass a complete health screening, especially for tuberculosis and hepatitis. You may ask local health inspectors to check restaurants in your community to see that all employees are legal residents or American citizens and have been health screened. For all these undetectable diseases, you may call your senator or representative, 800-648-3516 and demand they secure the U.S. border with Mexico to stop illegal immigration by whatever means you deem necessary, i.e., US troops, National Guardsmen, mass deportations and arrests of employers who hire illegal aliens. Make the punishment worse than their profit.
Bush has a real proposal worth trying.
That is a bogus argument.
All President Bush has to do is announce publicly that starting as of now, any employer found using illegal aliens as employees will be fined one million dollars per illegal.
Then start a very aggressive enforcement campaign in major cities across the country.
The illegals that are here will go home by themselves if there are no jobs to be had and the huge number of million dollar fines can be used to beef up the Border Patrol.
Of course President Bush and the GOP would never dream of doing something like this because they like their low paid illegal Mexican lackeys serving them drinks at the country club and keeping their mansions and swimming pools clean.
It also depresses the wages of those uppity middle-class Americans, another bonus to the GOP.
While doing all that, Bush has merged the INS to the Department of Homeland Security and reorganized the intelligence agencies to work more cooperatively.
I have to say I'm pretty satisfied with the results so far... I lost neighbors in 9/11 and I haven't lost any neighbors since, thank you President Bush.
"How less urgent of a priority was control of the borders prior to September the 11th, 2001?" See post # 19
Bush has a proposal and you are too closed minded to even see if it works, the fear mongering of the left has robbed you of commonsense... that is too bad.
Is that what you think it boils down too?? Seriously, if he forces business to increase wages to minimum, what incentive does a business have to hire an illegal alien who doesn't speak English? NONE. There is no incentive, I know you will say something incoherent next, "babble, babble, babble" save it, you are wrong.
A thoughtful point. However, with regards to TB, a healthy individual can be exposed to TB, be a carrier but not yet "infected" and, therefore not infect others (the immune system of a healthy person will surround the TB cell preventing it from multiplying until such time that individual's immune system fails). The problem with those who have active TB, is that they can infect many while the American visitor to Mexico, who may be exposed but is healthy, will return and not infect others. However, they have acquired a possible "ticking time bomb"... which may never activate. Unfortunately, there is now a form of TB that is resistant to drugs.
If anything, this article presents an even stronger argument for Bush's proposal... the more that people are documented as they come across our border, the more likely that illnesses or exposure to such will be screened properly.
Remember, this article was written before Bush laid out his proposal. It did not take that into account. The concern was immigrants, legal and not, entering the country without screening. In Bush's proposal, would screening taking place with documented immigrants/workers? I saw no mention of it.
I support a worker's program. My concern is screening. And I wish I had more information about just how valid the concern is. The statistics from both articles are pretty scary.
Before you continue blowing smoke and looking foolish, are you aware that the new budget doesn't contain a one dime increase for the Border Patrol?
My memory is getting pretty bad but, when did Proposition #187 pass? Incidentally, by a majority.
Would it make sense to close the borders so that when someone is deported they stay deported? Now, in 24 hours or less, they are back in the US!
News Flash: Bonesman Bush ain't no good ol' boy.
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