The Misplaced Immigration Debate

Its high time the immigration debate received an overdue overhaul.  The raving liberals pride themselves on being "for illegal immigration (or excuse me, undocumented citizens)," while the crazy conservatives cry out at the injustice of not forcibly deporting 20 million people.  The sad thing about the whole debate is that if people just stopped yelling at each other for 2 seconds they would realize they have a lot more in common than they realize.  They would realize that a solution is within reach.  They would realize that they can enforce the law and be humane at the same time.

The liberals are for illegal immigration.  Thats retarded, being for illegal anything is retarded.  That is not a political position.  It would be more honest to say that they are for treating illegals humanely.  That does no mean you are for an illegal act.  You might say you are for open borders all you want, but I guarantee you at some point you would want restrictions.  If the U.S. actually had completely open borders, people would be flooding this country like there is no tomorrow.  Why? its simple, over 3 billion live on less than  $2.50 a day.  Meanwhile, the minimum wage is 7.25/hour.  It does not take rocket science to see why people will want to move here.  However, obviously the U.S. cannot take in 3 billion people (If you cannot understand why you are hopeless).  I know I am exaggerating, but even if only 100 million wanted to move (which is easily plausible), then America would have horrid problems trying to accommodate them all.  Perhaps we would eventually adjust, but particularly in this recession there is no reason to be enthusiastic about letting in immigrants.  All this to say, that America needs some restrictions on immigration.  It cannot be a free-for-all.  

I can't understand why anyone would wish this on
20 million people simply for wanting
to live here, many of whom have lived here
for a very long time.

Then, the question becomes not a question of being for or against illegal immigration, but of what the immigration laws should be, what the quotas should be, and what the penalties should be for entering illegally.  Here the conservatives are at least willing to acknowledge that illegal immigration is not acceptable, just as breaking any law is not acceptable.  Where they drift off into lala land is when they advocate deporting 20 million people.  If having the government deporting 20 million human beings does not strike you as wrong, I do not know what will.  Imagine, 20 million dumped at the border to fend for themselves.  Indeed, I am sure all the drug Cartels in Mexico would have a field day.  Not to mention how many families will be torn apart, along with how many children would be left parentless, and how many productive workers would be gone. 

 It would make much more sense to institute a minor penalty, such as a fine and registering them all with guest worker permits.  In addition, perhaps allow a gradated system in terms of how long they have been here.  If they have been living here a long time, then simply fine them.  If they have come here recently, then track them and ask them to leave on their own volition within a few years, fining them progressively more for each year they do not leave.  A gradated system would force new entrants to think twice, while older entrants would not be forced to play by rules they never had to play before.  However, ultimately I do not believe the punishment aspect is the major part of the debate, though it is the only one most ever focus on.

This is when President Johnson signed the 1964
Immigration Act

In my opinion, the major problem comes from two sources.  First, the immigration quota system itself.  It is based off the 1964 Immigration Act.  The criteria are based off of your family connections (to members living in the U.S.), and your education.  The reason all your doctors are foreign is because our immigration system heavily favors educated people.  All the Asians in the U.S. are smart because the only Asians that can get into the U.S. are the smart ones.  However, the bizarre fact of the matter is that the immigration system reflects what type of people the U.S. wants to enter, it does not reflect the reality of who wants to enter the U.S.  Two times the law has been modified to include more Latin Americans into the quota.  Yet, of course, it has not been enough.  That is because the system has not been altered to favor where the demand comes from, it has only been tweaked.  

In my opinion, the whole system should be reset to a simple first come first serve basis.  In addition the overall number allowed in should be expanded.  Yes, we want educated workers, but why not educate the ones we already have?  Why must we rely on foreign brains?  I will tell you why, to cover up our broken education system.  Yet that is another subject for another time.  Until our immigration system caters to where the demand actually is, we will continue to have horrific problems with illegal immigration.

Redeploying military bases along the border would
be one easy way to help enforce the border.

The second source is the unenforced border.  It really makes no sense to have an unenforced border if one is going to enforce an Immigration policy.  We have already settled that having an Immigration policy is a necessity.  Therefore, I think it should not be too hard to realize that enforcing the border is a logically step in that process.  Since even if you reform the immigration laws the way I proposed, many more will want to come.  Some will resort to trying to come here illegally.  It is best to stop that before they get in, not after.  Then one will not have to deal with the moral problems of forcing people out of their homes.  It is much simpler.  In addition, there are other side benefits.  Drugs now days come mostly to the U.S. through the Mexican border.  If that border was actually guarded efficiently, then the drug problem will disappear quickly.  Not to mention that the drug Cartels in Mexico would soon see their coffers dry up, allowing the Mexican government to finally assert itself and establish law and order.  In addition, American guns are shipped to Mexico through the border, contributing to the violence.  Efficiently guarding the border will end this as well.  The benefits of a secure border are obvious.  We have already secured our ports (which are borders), its absurd that anyone would think that a land border is not as important to secure as a sea border.  

The problem has logically causes and a logical solution.  If both political parties stopped bickering for two seconds they would realize a solution was quite reachable.  However, it will require both sides to stop damning the others' opinion simply because it is the others' opinion.  It will take cooperation on a scale we have not seen in decades.  The answer lays clearly in front of us.  The democrats have been right to point out the need to be humane.  The Republicans likewise have been right to point out the need to enforce the law.  Therefore, make a solution that combines these.  Make a solution that will make legal immigration more accessible, illegal immigration less desirable, and illegal immigration less doable.  Its time to fix our immigration system.