***America Must Choose: Open Borders Or Civil Liberties***

Eagle Forum ^ | Oct. 30, 2002 | Phyllis Schlafly

[madfly]

	America Must Choose: Open Borders Or Civil Liberties
	Oct. 30, 2002 "They are coming after us, they want to execute attacks. ... The threat environment today is as bad as it was the summer before Sept. 11." In his appearance before the congressional joint intelligence committees, CIA Director George J. Tenet asserted that prior to 9/11 he was convinced that Osama bin Laden was planning to kill Americans, "and we reported these threats urgently." But to whom did he report these alerts? Apparently, not to the agencies that were admitting undesirable aliens by the planeload, boatload and truckload: the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the State Department that was indiscriminately granting visas in countries that sponsor terrorism, or the border patrol charged with the duty of keeping illegals out of the country. The admission of aliens into the United States is not merely a policy or political issue. It is a vital issue of both national security and civil liberties. It is the job of our government to keep out of our country all carriers of hate, terrorism and disease (even if that means excluding a lot of others who mean no harm) and to deport such persons who were allowed to enter. Unfortunately, the government is doing little to close our borders to a new crop of terrorists while using terrorism as an excuse to monitor the daily lives and interfere with the civil liberties of law-abiding U.S. citizens. The Center for Immigration Studies reported that of the 48 foreign-born, radical Muslims who have been charged, convicted or admitted involvement in terrorism in the United States since 1993, one- third were on temporary visas, one third were lawful permanent residents or naturalized U.S. citizens, one fourth were illegal aliens, and three had applied for asylum. Six experts who analyzed the visa applications of 15 of the 19 9/11 hijackers (the other 4 were not available) concluded that all should have been denied visas under then-existing law. For example, the visas impudently listed such non-specific addresses as "California," "New York," or "Hotel." Why haven't the U.S. bureaucrats who admitted these terrorists been punished or fired, and why haven't we plugged the loopholes in our borders and visa-granting system that allowed these fatal mistakes? Instead of taking immediate and vigorous steps to exclude, locate and deport the undesirables, the government is moving forward with surveillance of all Americans, pretending that law-abiding citizens are all suspect. Instead of closing our borders to aliens until we have a system to require visa applications to comply with the law, track the travels of aliens and deport them when their visas expire, we hear increased pressure to force all Americans to carry an I.D. card and/or to federalize state driver's licenses. Forcing us all to carry machine- readable identification would give government (and anyone else with a card reader) access to enormous personal information about health, lifestyle, travels, and finances. Families are being disrupted all over the country as National Guardsmen are called up and shipped out to fight terrorism thousands of miles away. Meanwhile, thousands of miles of our northern and southern borders are left frighteningly unmanned. The American public is constantly unnerved by red and yellow alerts and dire warnings about anthrax, smallpox, and sleeper cells waiting for the moment to strike. Some are forecasting a future with video cameras on every street corner, microchips implanted in children's arms, and further encroachments on medical and financial privacy. The Transportation Security Administration has already spent millions of taxpayer dollars to develop a secret system to profile all Americans known as CAPPS II (Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System, second generation). The goal is to create an automated system to integrate and analyze numerous databases from both government and the private sector in order to make a "threat risk assessment on every airline passenger." Israel takes 20 to 30 minutes to interview foreigners upon arrival, while the United States takes only 2 to 3 minutes. Meanwhile, American citizens are subjected to petty harassments that cost each of us at least an extra 30 minutes for each plane trip. What steps have our government taken to keep out the exotic diseases and new strains of old diseases brought in by aliens? Outbreaks of malaria, West Nile disease, and tuberculosis have popped up all over the country and the New England Journal of Medicine reported a link between West Nile virus and new polio cases, which we thought was eradicated decades ago. Instead of stopping Third World diseases at our borders, the response has been to try to push through 50 state legislatures a bill proposed in the guise of fighting anthrax or smallpox terrorism, but whose powers can be invoked in the absence of terrorism. Versions of the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act passed by some states give unelected officials the power to forcibly medicate individuals under threat of quarantine or criminal charge, and to confiscate private property including guns. A Zogby opinion poll reported that 58 percent of Americans want annual immigration numbers reduced to "more historic levels." A Fox News poll said 65 percent of Americans favored stopping all immigration during the war on terror. Are the politicians listening? Phyllis Schlafly column 10-30-02

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[FITZ]

It doesn't make sense that the borders are kept open for anyone to come into the US, and in fact will be opened further with more trucks coming into the US without any checks done on them or their cargo and we're supposedly at war.

[junta]

Our borders are an illusion in the same mold that life in the movie "The Matrix" was. The BS that is fed to us everyday by the media both Left and Right is beginning to look dangerous to the masses instead of its desired affect of numbing the minds with utopian propaganda.

[Jake0001]

But what would shutting our borders accomplish? It would eliminate all tourism revenue and make our international reputation even worse. And who will be the ones that do manage to sneak in? It'll become a bidding war and I can guarantee you that the well-heeled and well-financed terrorists will be the ones who will get in - despite our best efforts.

Plus it does nothing to stop domestic psychos like the DC sniper (Mohommad) or McVeigh. And what would stop al Qaeda from recruiting Americans (such as Mohammad or "the dirty bomber") to do its dirty work here? Is step two going to be cutting off all cross-border communications?

And seal our borders - easier said than done. We've got thousands of miles of physical border and coastline - even without consideration for Alaska, Hawaii and our protectorates. To top off that we import hundreds of billions of dollars worth of cargo each year. Are we going to inspect each ship and container or are we going to stop imports altogether. Don't forget the thousands of fishing and pleasure vessels that enter international waters and return everyday. Who is going to pay for all these inspections? Who is going to pay for the monitoring?

Life has inherent risk. It is unfortunate that much of it is artificially created by our fellow man - crime, terrorism, war, phsyical abuse, negligence, car accidents, pollution, etc... In my opinion nature does quite well enough by itself with hurricanes, drought, tornados, volcanoes, disease, insects, vicious animals and earthquakes.

There is nothing humanly possible to guarantee safety from any of these things. It is laughable to suggest that stifling freedom stops crime: look at China or the former USSR (crime free paradises they are/were - NOT!!!!) Stifling freedom for the sake of terrorism/crime is a stupid knee-jerk reaction by stupid politicians wanting to prove how "tough" they are.

It is a fallasy to contend that we have to make such a choice. Losing our freedoms and closing our borders are both unaccceptable and counter-productive. Take away the rights from the citizenry - they will revolt (thus domestic terrorism). Close our borders - the terrorists will only become more determined and eventually succeed. They will be aided by a even more severe domestic shortage of speakers of their languages and fewer friends of the US abroad.

I suppose a lot of people will disagree with me on this point but it is my contention that this is a false choice.

[MissAmericanPie]

This is why I will not fly anywhere. I will walk if needs be. I refuse to frequent a liberty trampling business where blue haired ancient ladies are stripped searched and Middle Eastern men in their twenties are waved thru.

If there is never another plane in the air that would be just fine with me. When a business cannot be touched by a boycott, or enlisted to use their clout with government on behalf of civil liberties, because they can force the taxpayer to pull their bottom line out of the fire, it's time for that business to close it's doors. The airline industry has allowed itself to become a bigger threat to civil liberties than a convienient means of transportation.

[madfly]

Bump #2

[ijcr]

Absolutely correct analysis! The solution is simple and cost free.....The INS should focus on the employers of illegal aliens...There are adequate punishments on the books including forfieture of company and personal assets,5-10 yrs imprisonment and heavy fines for the hiring of illegals.

It is like fighting fire, one can remove either the fuel,heat, or oxygen...for illegal immigration, the oxygen is the Americans who hire them.

[hedgetrimmer]

Keep the pressure up!

[madfly]

Bump to that!

[madfly]

ping

[madfly]

ping

[A2J]

Definitely not something that libertarians want to hear.

[Joe Hadenuf]

Why haven't the U.S. bureaucrats who admitted these terrorists been punished or fired, and why haven't we plugged the loopholes in our borders and visa-granting system that allowed these fatal mistakes? Instead of taking immediate and vigorous steps to exclude, locate and deport the undesirables, the government is moving forward with surveillance of all Americans, pretending that law-abiding citizens are all suspect.

[MD_Willington_1976]

So is it ok for me to stay since I have been living here for 3 years, pay my taxes, obey the law, have an American born son, would put my life on the line to defend this country and work for a company that provides the means to keep the electrical power system of this country operating ??

I do not agree with illegals or illegal activity, I am thoroughly unimpressed with those haitians that hit the beach in floriduh the other day...

I have been going through a lot of crap everytime I have to justify to a free trade officer why he, a lowly peon that earns a wage from my tax buck, should let me back into the country when my employer has already cleared my position at work with a government agency.

I believe that the immigration services has there focus somewhere else other than guarding the country.

Why punish a minority of good people who want to work and live in the USA for the misbehaviour of a majority..

I am getting to the point where I hope they start chipping immigrants, at least that way maybe my family and myself wil not get dumped on...

Enough ranting now.. I have to go and keep your power on.

[bc2]

I concur completely.

[Viva Le Dissention]

Your contentions are completely without merit.

I support totally open borders, and I see no reason why this has to conflict with a concept of civil liberties for people here in the United States.

Checking your five categories:

1. I don't hate the United States, but I am somewhat indifferent towards it. Whether it exists or doesn't, eh. I don't support anything that actively works to oppress its subjects. U.S. falls into that category.

2. Not involved with illegal drugs. Although, if they legalized drugs, we sure would solve a lot of problems in this country, let alone freeing up a lot of money in the budget for actually useful things. But that's another rant.

3. Bribed or blackmailed? Huh? Now you're just not making sense.

4. I'm not deluded, confused, or of low IQ. From a purely economic standpoint, the benefits of immigration clearly outweigh any negatives. From a social or philosophical standpoint, we have a duty not to turn away people that are further oppressed or seeking to improve their quality of living. If you can get here, congratulations. Welcome. Now go pick fruit, start a business, whatever. I'll give you a loan.

5. I don't have a vested economic interest, other than the obvious interest that immigration benefits everyone in the United States by adding to the consumer base, filling gaps in the low wage job market, prop up other US businesses by offering low cost labor, etc.

As far as I'm concerned, anyone that wants to come here should be able to. Open up the doors, let 'em in, give them a slap on the back and a few words of encouragement, and we're on our way to a better place.

We need not be worried that open borders erode civil liberties; we simply instruct the government no to infringe on our rights as "free" people (although admittedly, most people hav a real problem with that). Some terrorists came in--fine. That's life, it happens. Stop the problem at the source (and the source is NOT immigration) and you have a solution to your problem--a lot cheaper, and a lot more workable.

[antisocial]

Jake, did you even read the article? The main thrust of it was the fact that the agencies involved are doing a very poor job of screening those that are coming into this country. That along with the millions of ILLEGALS coming across our borders is a danger to all of us. We need to try to stop as much of the ILLEGAL immigration as possible while
perfecting the screening processes of all those that are being granted various visas. Maybe a moritorium on all new citizenship would be a good thing until we can gain better control over the ILLEGAL immigration mess.
Do you think we should not even make the effort to slow illegal immigration and scrutinize closely all those that are admitted legally?

[meenie]

One reason we have such a problem is the neglect that has been given our borders for years. For that neglect we cannot count on our neighbors to be law abiding citizens. Lawlessness is out of control due to every illegal alien being a criminal as he crosses the border. This tends to start him on the road to criminality because breaking the law once encourages more transgressions.

We are approaching the time rapidly when the majority in some areas will be illegals. Before being deported they will insist on forming their own political entity. The time is approaching when we see a Hispanic Kosovo and drives for secession. When this happens our central government will be forced to abandon any pretense of democracy or split off other regions of ethnic and ideological groups.

[blackie]

Stop All Illegal Immigrant's !!

Death To all Muslim Extremist's !!

Snuff Saddam, NOW !!

The RATS Are In Disarray...Eradicate The Rodents !!

Fire Democrats, Hire Republicans !!

GWB Is The Man !!

The Second Amendment...
America's Original Homeland Security !!

Freedom Is Worth Fighting For !!

Let's Roll !!

Molon Labe !!

[Luis Gonzalez]

"A Fox News poll said 65 percent of Americans favored stopping all immigration during the war on terror. Are the politicians listening?"

Great! We FReep polls to slant them our way, and then try using them as proof of an "unbiased" opinion.