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Who Grew Your Tree? [libertarian Reason Magazine promotes open borders again]
Reason Magazine ^ | 12/22/05 | Nick Gillespie and Jesse James DeConto

Posted on 12/22/2005 11:07:33 AM PST by lonewacko_dot_com

`Tis the season for Christmas trees and immigration reform, two issues that are rarely considered in the same thought. But they are intricately interconnected in important ways: As with most agricultural products, growers rely heavily on immigrant labor to bring the trees to market...

...While politicians put presents under their trees they should think about workers such as Buca, a 35-year-old Mexican immigrant who works in North Carolina, where one out of every five Christmas trees sold in the United States is grown. It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money...

...There is something not simply wrong but immoral with an immigration policy that does not make full room for workers such as Buca.

One promising, if incremental, reform was last year's Agricultural Job Opportunity, Benefits and Security Act, which was endorsed by the National Christmas Tree Association and various labor unions...

...As politicians gather around Christmas trees for photo-ops and family gatherings, they should take a minute to reflect on who grows those great symbols of generosity and brotherhood. After the holidays, they should craft a policy that welcomes all hard-working Americans, regardless of their country of origin.

(Excerpt) Read more at reason.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption
KEYWORDS: immigrantlist; liberalitarians; libertarian; reasonmagazine
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You can comment on this article here. Please do so.

Please also monitor Hit & Run occasionally and respond to their inevitable future posts promoting massive immigration.

1 posted on 12/22/2005 11:07:35 AM PST by lonewacko_dot_com
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money...

I suspect if the pay rate was $1000 per hour, the line would stretch over the horizon. I know I'd be in it.

Now that we've established that there's at least one lie in the story, read on.

2 posted on 12/22/2005 11:12:30 AM PST by DuncanWaring (The Lord uses the good ones; the bad ones use the Lord.)
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To: lonewacko_dot_com

"It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money..."

Apparently the laws of economics have been repealed then? Why wasn't I told?!


3 posted on 12/22/2005 11:12:48 AM PST by Pessimist
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
"After the holidays, they should craft a policy that welcomes all hard-working Americans"

Of course all hard-working, law-abiding Americans are welcome -- they already Americans. It's the illegals that aren't welcome.

4 posted on 12/22/2005 11:15:24 AM PST by Mr. Mojo
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money...

These guys need to take their nose out of the magazine Tuesdays at 9PM. Discorvery runs a series called Dirty Jobs that are done by Americans.

5 posted on 12/22/2005 11:16:11 AM PST by edpc
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money.

That line is so tired. ....and so wrong.

6 posted on 12/22/2005 11:17:01 AM PST by Mr. Mojo
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To: DuncanWaring

I doubt they would be selling many Christmas trees then so it wouldn't matter.


7 posted on 12/22/2005 11:22:32 AM PST by mlc9852
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To: Mr. Mojo

If we ended the nanny state and our choices were...work, or starve...many current welfare recipients would be spreading pine straw in the South.


8 posted on 12/22/2005 11:23:41 AM PST by jess35
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To: jess35

Exactly. ....and if anyone should be aware of that fact it's the libertarians at Reason Mag.


9 posted on 12/22/2005 11:25:55 AM PST by Mr. Mojo
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To: lonewacko_dot_com

I grow my own tree. It's agin my upfetchin to buy somethin that grows for free.


10 posted on 12/22/2005 11:29:23 AM PST by Past Your Eyes (Some people are too stupid to be ashamed.)
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Comment #11 Removed by Moderator

To: jess35
Immigration is one of the few issues I disagree with the Libertarians on.

However, please keep in mind that Libertarians also advocate eliminating the welfare state and the regulatory state that forces businesses to hire cheap labor. Plus, whatever public benefits available would be denied to illegals, which would discourage most illegals from coming here in the first place.

I do disagree with them that the border should remain wide open. This is just foolhardy.

12 posted on 12/22/2005 11:31:58 AM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist (None genuine without my signature)
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
one out of every five Christmas trees sold in the United States is grown. It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money...

What a pants load

Here in north central WI we have been growing Christmas trees for many generations

Back breaking work?...bwahahahaha

Working 14 hr days as a human cuber in a concrete block factory next to the kilns...might qualify but not cutting,pruning,bundling and selling Christmas trees

My boy scout troop and high school conservation class did this work to raise money for our community...and did it in below zero weather some years...

In central WI..high school kids and college kids have always done this work during the summer and Christmas vacations.

This open borders scam is simply about cheap labor and getting other working class Americans to pay the down side costs

And doing it with lies,lies and more lies.. and to the detriment of our nation as a whole

Greed is not good...Gordon Gecko is a villain

imo

13 posted on 12/22/2005 11:34:18 AM PST by joesnuffy (I salute PETA and Greenie left wingers with my 'organically raised' finger......)
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To: Extremely Extreme Extremist
Immigration is one of the few issues I disagree with the Libertarians on.

And even libertarians disagree with other libertarians on the issue.

However, please keep in mind that Libertarians also advocate eliminating the welfare state and the regulatory state that forces businesses to hire cheap labor. Plus, whatever public benefits available would be denied to illegals, which would discourage most illegals from coming here in the first place.

Right. Libertarians are very much like conservatives/republicans on this.

14 posted on 12/22/2005 11:45:04 AM PST by mc6809e
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To: mc6809e

"Right. Libertarians are very much like conservatives/republicans on this."

Yeah. Plus, if you want some advice on Linux, you can ask any libertarian. They're all Linux consultants.


15 posted on 12/22/2005 11:51:33 AM PST by MineralMan (godless atheist)
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To: joesnuffy
As a high-schooler, I worked summer vacations in North Dakota's sugar beet fields.
Half-mile rows, no shade, nothing but a hat, a hoe, and a pair of leather work gloves, for 8 - 10 hours a day..
IIRC, we got something like $1.50 an hour.. ( '63, '64..)
16 posted on 12/22/2005 11:59:51 AM PST by Drammach (Freedom; not just a job, it's an adventure..)
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
It is grueling, backbreaking work, the sort that most of us born in the United States would never do, for any amount of money.

Speak for yourselves, Gillespie and DeConto! Just because you guys were born with silver spoons in your mouths doesn't mean we all were. I've worked crappy, backbreaking manual labor jobs for lousy pay in the past, as have most other people in this country at some point in their lives.

17 posted on 12/22/2005 12:00:30 PM PST by jpl
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To: All
grueling, backbreaking work

As valuable as migrant labor is ("undocumented workers") businessmen should not stop at five-dollar-an-hour Hispanic migrant labor. It is well documented that Chinese workers are hard workers and very economical labor.

Red China has 800 million peasant citizens many of whom would work here unlimited hours for a dollar an hour and a clean place to sleep on the premises.

Why do the authors favor such uneconomical Hispanic labor? Are they bigoted against Asians? Clearly economics demands the most economical labor -- and the Chi-coms would be happy so send 10 million or so to help their good friends in the U.S. of A. (Need 50 million? 100 million? Just ask.)

18 posted on 12/22/2005 12:03:52 PM PST by WilliamofCarmichael (Hillary is the she in shenanigans.)
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To: lonewacko_dot_com
I love what libertarians stand for.. but two issues drives me nuts about the party ... their ideas on immigration and their willingness to turn us into an isolationist state.

i prefer libertarians over republicans because of some of repubs issues are based soley on religion.
19 posted on 12/22/2005 12:10:40 PM PST by Element187
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To: lonewacko_dot_com

That's funny. I buy my tree from a local producer who grows his own trees with the help of his family and some hired hands, all caucasian.

Not an illegal alien in sight.

This article is a crock of bleep.


20 posted on 12/22/2005 12:12:10 PM PST by bordergal
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