| THE
BLUE RED
COLUMN
The Mountain Press
Immigration and Guest Workers | |
| By: JIM ANDERSON September 11, 2001. Nineteen foreign terrorists hijacked four U.S. planes and murdered thousands of innocent civilians. How many terrorists entered our country illegally? Answer: None. They all entered on temporary visas. They were “illegals” only after over-staying. Some appeared on a terrorist watch list, too. But no one in authority apparently knew or cared. For decades, our Government failed miserably to enforce our immigration laws. Today, we have 11 to 20 million illegal immigrants. Yet, with 5.5 million employers, only THREE fines were issued in 2004 for hiring illegal aliens. In a guest worker program, non-citizen workers enter a country legally, as temporary “guests.” After a time, guests are expected to leave. Yet, frequently, workers over-stay. Illegals join an exploited under-class, working for sub-standard wages and serving a drag on the country's medical and social services. Certain companies win “cheap labor,” but society loses. President Bush's plan, “Pathway to Citizenship,” is not amnesty. It asks immigrants to jump hurdles: Enroll in the program, pay a stiff penalty, work in a job for years, pay taxes, learn English, and-after all that-apply for citizenship, with no guarantee of success. A guest worker program may help our immigration problems and should be adopted. But, only if the Government learns to be competent. Six months after 9/11, new student visas were mailed to Florida for two dead hijackers, Mohamed Atta and Marwan Al-Shehhi, for extra flight training. Right now, the biggest danger for the United States is not illegal immigrants, Iran or Korea, bird flu, nor even al Qaeda. Our biggest danger is self-serving politicians-of all parties--whose only agenda is to get re-elected. They rage and bluster, distracting us with symbolic issues, while serious, real issues-like immigration, health care, and global warming--go unresolved and get worse. Americans deserve better. -Jim Anderson is president of the Sevier County Democratic Club (www.sevierdemocrats.com). ©The Mountain Press 2006 |
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