Posted on 05/20/2007 2:45:36 AM PDT by Zakeet
Are you a fine upstanding member of the Undocumented-American community? That's to say, are you (if you'll forgive the expression) an illegal immigrant?
Great news! Being illegal is now perfectly legal! Just for being one of the circa 12 million people who shouldn't be here, you can now be here indefinitely! If you were living and working in America illegally before Jan. 1, 2007, you're now entitled to one of the new Z-1 "probationary" visas. And your parents and spouses are entitled to one of the new Z-2 visas, and your children to the new Z-3 visas.
Don't worry: It's not an "amnesty." Every politician in America is opposed to amnesty -- if not the concept, then at least the word.
[Snip]
As for the notion that dumping a population the size of four mid-size European Union nations into the lap of America's arthritic "legal immigration" (please, no tittering; apparently, there is still such a thing) bureaucracy will lead to tougher enforcement and rigorous scrutiny and lots of other butch-sounding stuff, well, if that were the case, there wouldn't be a problem in the first place. You can declare that "illegal" now mean "legal" very easily; to mandate that "incompetent" now means "competent" is a tougher proposition.
But, as John McCain declared, "This is what the legislative process is all about" -- and in the sense that it's a sloppily drafted bottomless pit of unintended consequences on a potentially cosmic scale whose sweeping "reforms" will inevitably require even more sweeping reforms of the reforms in a year or two's time, he's quite right. Also, as Senator McCain says, "This is what bipartisanship is all about."
(Excerpt) Read more at suntimes.com ...
bump
I like the plan, though.
What is immigration for?
Simple, yet prudent question
His answer:
a dependence on it is a sign of profound structural weakness, and, when all the self-congratulation about celebrating diversity has died down, that weakness ought to be understood as such. The unspoken premise behind this bill is that the socioeconomic order in America is now so dependent on the vast apparatus of a giant shadow state of illegal immigrants that it cannot be dismantled but only legitimized and thereby expanded. If that is true, that is a basic structural defect that should be addressed honestly.
I promise you folks , that 12 million figure is a real low ball figure. we can’t just argue immigration here we must DO SOMETHING. Write call , email , tell all your friends to do so as well . the politicians on both sides are telling us they don’t give 2 sh*ts we WE THE PEOPLE WANT concerning immigration. If necessary we have to take this one to the streets. I’m serious .
The more I read this, the more I get mad.
El Presidente and our feckless, gutless Congress critters actual don't have any faith in the American people
I better shut up before I get banned, if I typed what was really on my mind
I propose enforcing the law as it stands . Severe punishment for the employer who hires an illegal . Cut off all the free bees and they will return on their own . I guess you figure if you cant enforce a law just make whatever it is legal and thats a solution .
It’s a pity that Mark Steyn can’t be our President - WHAT A MIND!!!
The politicians do not want to control immigration , that is obvious . They want as much cheap labor as they can to flood this country , it keeps overhead down for their big business buddies . Remember all these politicians are multi millionaires they won’t ever have to live near these scumbags who jump the boarder. I’m sure Bush’s billionaire oil buddies urges him to let the illegals come , it’s great for their business. I say we fight and if need be revolt .. I WANT MY DAMN COUNTRY BACK .
“Isn’t there a provision that punishes employers who hire illegals? If they can’t work, they may take this law seriously.”
How very like the liberal solution to gun control.
We can’t punish the law breakers, so we will CREATE a class
of lawbreakers we CAN punish.
It’s all nonsense, round them up and send them home.
Most if not all of the gang maembers in my community are illegals . Lock them up , send them back . SIMPLE
Let's get our facts straight. 1. Groceries and everything else were indeed marketed in foreign langauges during earlier waves -- look at pictures of the Lower East Side (Yiddish), Milwaukee (German), Little Italys all over, etc. That's capitalism. And lots of people complained about it then -- read the press of the day, or the cartoons of Thomas Nast.
2. Schools (though not public, usually), were indeed held in other langauges. Most German catholics in the midwest, at least in the early days, went to German schools. IN some rural areas, even public schools, but not many.
3. People were indeed encouraged to learn english -- no bilingual ballots, though plenty of bilingual campaigining (See the Musical, "Fiorello"). But lots still didn't. Almost every immigrant family has a story of Uncle Yankel or Aunt Rosa or whatever that never learned it very well. The 2d and 3d generation is what is key.
4. However -- there was little or no welfare -- nobody came for the benefits. Many did go back, but it wasn't as easy to go back and forth as it is now. (However, I know a prominent, now deceased Italian politician, who was the 11th of 11, and the ONLY one born in Italy, because his parents did go back late in life!)
So -- let's focus on the things that are really different, and not idealize how different our noble ancestors were.
And, BTW, most were legal (the laws were pretty lax then), but plenty were not -- the old congresses passed bushels of special laws to legalize particular illegals. (Look up "An Act for the relief of .....").
None of this is to say it's a good bill -- I think it's a lousy bill, but let's keep our arguments true.
I WANT MY DAMN COUNTRY BACK!
I’ll second that.
Schools (though not public, usually),
Thats a HUGE difference right there pal . They also would send you back if you were sick in any way at all ..We have TB on the rise here. We are talking about people who are walking right into this country and demanding that WE not them change . THATS the MAJOR difference !
The bottom line within all of that gobbledegook is that once an applicant turns in his Z1 (or Z2 or Z3) paperwork, and is fingerprinted by DHS, he/she is, “by the end of the next business day”, a legitimate Z1 (Z2, Z3) U.S. resident. Even without further documentation from DHS/CIS.
It is pretty much standard practice that if an immigrant has supplied DHS/CIS with responsive and appropriate paperwork/applications/fees in a timely manner, that immigrant is completely in the clear legally.
I went through this with my wife. So long as we sent her paperwork certified return recipt and had made copies of the paperwork and any checks or fees, she was legally clear. If you can prove you met the obligation, the burden is on CIS.
But DHS/CIS is such an incompetent organization that you must approach it believing that they will lose or misplace anything you provide to them.
They “lost” a 60 page folio of financial documents, original affidavits, and other materials just before my wife’s naturalization interview. Fortunately I had made duplicate original affidavits and copies of every single page in the folio, along with the certified mail receipts used to send it to DHS/CIS. That got her over the hump.
Great Steyn on the abortion that is being called Comprehensive Immigration Reform. A pox on any representative's house that supports this abomination.
They do need this employer verification system, tamper proof Soical Security cards, and provisions in the billl that lets enforcement officials use the social
Security payment records and laws enforcement records. I see no need for amnesty. In fact, I think that will just encourage more to come, illegally. Build the fence. Improve workplace enforcement and many will self deport.
Grumbling here on FR will do nothing . We ALL must call , write , email , whatever and tell these politicians that IF they support this immigration bill we WILL vote them out of office no matter what it takes. Say in in no uncertain terms. It’s up to US to force the politicians to recognize the will of the people for once.
The illegals already have proven that they have no regard for the law , just by the fact that they are here ILLEGALLY .What in the name of God would make anyone believe they would comply with a new and more complex immigration law? The government cant/won’t enforce the present immigration laws, what makes anyone think they will enforce a new one ?
anyone know of any attempt to organize a protest rally against this bill ? thanks
Steyn for President!
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