Immigration season strikes again


If it's April or May, guess who is gunning for the spotlight
Yep, it's that time of year again. Between the first of April and the end of May, immigration stories hit the media full stride. Of course it's timed to Cinco de Mayo.

I agree with the late Milton Friedman, you can't have open immigration reform without having welfare reform. As long as we have a strong welfare state, we're discouraging people from taking responsibility for themselves.

That same welfare state spills over on the rest of us too, even if it is un-PC to admit it. Government subsidies have driven the cost of basic medical care up while shuffling most of the costs to the insurance companies and hospitals. Since more people use the emergency room as their doctor and emergency rooms can't refuse to treat people, many hospitals won't treat anyone unless they are physically in the building. Some hospitals are closing their emergency rooms entirely. And hospitals in border cities and towns are practically overwhelmed.

Then there are draconian laws and sporadic enforcement. Despite the "law and order" bunch in legislatures, many police agencies won't enforce existing laws if illegals are involved. Not because they are bad cops who ignore the law, but because they can't afford the political costs. It is not unusual for some illegal immigrants who break non-immigration laws to have several offenses before anyone bothers to prosecute them.

In all fairness, that is not limited to illegal immigrants. Many inner city police avoid minority crime unless it is high profile for the same reasons. No one wants to deal with televised demonstration and celebrity dabblers.

Then add the cities who have expanded the sanctuary movement so that immigration laws aren't enforced within their borders.

Bottom line, police often look the other way when non-citizens commit crimes, and some are capitalizing on that.

So citizens get frustrated.

That leads to the show raids and deportations.

Which helps trigger the whole cycle all over again.

There is no easy answer here for immigration reform.

At the very least, it would have to start with the elimination of most government welfare.

Then we need to do away with the draconian laws that are already on the books.

Reserve the harshest penalties and deportations for the non-citizens who commit other crimes while inside the United States.

Then open the borders.

That would be a start.

— NeoWayland

Posted: Sat - April 14, 2007 at 05:28 AM  Tag


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