Posted on 08/22/2005 1:10:58 PM PDT by bayourod
Illegal immigration is a complex national problem.
It won’t be solved by piecemeal attacks such as that of GOP gubernatorial hopeful Jerry Kilgore in opposing a day laborer site in Herndon.
Such tactics fuel anti-immigrant prejudices while skipping the hard part, acknowledging the broad tradeoffs and difficult compromises necessary for a permanent solution.
If exploitation of nativist emotion isn’t Kilgore’s intention, then he should pull the plug on this line of campaigning.
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At issue is the proposal of a coalition of community organizations to open a day laborer site in a soon-to-be abandoned police station straddling the Herndon-Loudoun County line. Currently, scores of men gather daily at a nearby convenience store to await the arrival of private employers who hire them for day labor in construction, yard work, and the like.
Kilgore joined critics calling the proposed site a haven for illegal immigrants and a breeding ground for illegal activity.
But others argue convincingly that an official site, including a police or security presence, would more likely contain bad behavior while serving both small-time employers and legal workers. The Herndon council validated that view with a 5-2 vote Wednesday to open the center.
No doubt, some illegals will turn up there. But frustration with U.S. failure to stem the flow of illegal immigration ought to be directed toward Congress, the immigration service or others with an opportunity to make a real difference.
Virginians who grouse about illegal immigrants should open their eyes and see who’s really tending their lawns, putting new shingles on their roofs, cleaning toilets in their office building and hotels. Illegal immigrants are doing the dirty jobs that Virginians don’t want.
Kilgore characterized the problem in Herndon as one of illegals taking “hard-earned dollars from law-abiding citizens.”
In fact, the issue there and elsewhere wouldn’t exist except for America’s addiction to cheap labor. Undocumented workers sustain many of the services and prices Americans have come to expect.
Politicians as diverse as President George Bush, GOP Sen. John McCain and Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy acknowledge that a much-expanded temporary worker program, combined with some form of enforceable amnesty for illegals with long tenure here, is the only hope for getting a handle on the problem.
Name-calling about undocumented workers who supposedly leach the system dry might win votes. But it won’t make the problem go away.
I'm not saying it is not, however, it is the law that employers have to carry workers comp.
Few people actually see that problem directly. It's too abstract, except for a few people living in border areas.
And how dare I criticize your sacred cow, workers comp, which for the most part is fraud central, that puts many hardships on business.
BS
Show me an illegal that gets 24/hr for construction
Mr and Mrs Quisling on the same thread.
Imagine that.
"Prices for such things as construction, produce, building cleaning, meat, landscaping etc. would go up if illegals did not perform such jobs."
The prices for taxes have gone up billions and billions of dollars to support the results of their illegal behavior.
1/3 of the Federal Prison Population are illegals. Do the math.
Most prisons are loaded with illegals: Do the math
Emergency Rooms in major cities are loaded with illegals: Do the math
Schools educating kids of illegals who pay no taxes costs billions: Do the math.
Etc etc etc.
Partly the high school kids, who are now OSHA'ed, work-permitted, limited-houred, and Child Labored out of just about any useful job involving moving machinery (lawn mowers, chain saws, tractors, balers, ___ pickers, etc), chemicals (weed spray, fertilizer, commercial cleaning products, etc) long hours, and other age-related restrictions, unless it is on a family owned & operated farm.
Wonder which groups & lobbies benefit?
I've worked with many white Americans and they are some of the hardest working, most family oriented people I have ever met.
There was an article about some Guatemaleans who work construction in the DC area and getting $24 an hour.
You see those evil contractors aren't looking for "slave' labor or whatever leftist term you throw about. They are looking for good and reliable workers so they can make some money.
"Illegal immigration "
An oxymoron.
Immigrants by definition can't be "illegal".
Invaders are "illegal". This is an illegal invader issue, not an immigration issue.
As usual, the politically correct crowd are trying to win the argument by twisting the terminology.
They are getting 8-10 hr cash. $24/hour is what the prevailing wage dictates, but trust me from experience dealing with contractors, they rarely ever pay the prevailing wage.
I was driving through the barrio about 7:30 Saturday evening, and there they were - los vatos setting and standing right on their spots like they do all day even though it was getting dark. Now, I know they weren't going to get picked up for day labor jobs at that time of night. Whadd'ya spose they were waiting for?
May I make a suggestion? How about totaling the amount spent to house crimaliens and imposing a tax on out-of-country wire transfers to those countries that are exporting their criminals here? Think the crimaliens would hang around the US if there were a 40-50% surcharge on money transfers?
He's fighting a straw man. NOBODY criticizes immigrants. It's the criminals who BREAK the immigration laws that need to be controlled.
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