EDITOR:
I have been listening to the foray over immigration from legal to illegal. Just recently the state of Arizona passed a law to help them deal with the overwhelming ordeal of illegal immigrants and the drugs and crime that follows them. The federal government keeps saying they are, or have done their part to secure the border and control the illegal problem.
Congress says we need a guest worker program, and comprehensive immigration laws to maintain people's rights.
There has been a guest worker program in this country for decades, but no one follows the program. People just pour over the border and make it to somewhere that looks friendly and set up housekeeping and get a job. No matter what people say, there are businesses out there that hire illegal and undocumented workers.
We may need comprehensive immigration reform, but what good are new laws when no one enforces the ones that are on the books? If the old laws are not enforced then the new ones will go unheeded for the same reason.
People who cross over our border illegally have broken the law, no ifs, ands, or buts about it.
Last is the cost of supporting the people and families of the illegal immigrant. When a family member gets hurt or sick and has to go to the hospital, they usually have no money to pay for this visit so the county indigent fund ends up paying for the visit.
That comes out of our tax money we pay. If they have children who are either born here or brought here illegally and then attend school, they usually need an interpreter for the student and also for the parents when they have to deal with the school teachers or staff members.
Books and tests have to be written in other languages which puts a pressure on our tax dollar.
When you are a criminal you cannot be part of the population and do what they normally do without apprehension and fear. If you have to show proof of citizenship or legality to vote you cannot vote.
If you have to show proof of legality to get a driver's license you have to drive without one. Therefore, you drive without insurance, which is breaking the law. That, in my math, makes at least three laws that get broken.
Don't get me wrong, for we had a close family member who emigrated from Mexico as a child. He became a citizen, served in the U.S. Army during WWII and worked and paid his taxes and lived the American dream - the legal way. Yes, he was a Democrat, but he certainly did not agree with the illegal border jumpers taking this country, his country, for a ride.
In my title I used the word de-bunk for a reason. De-bunk means, doubt or sentimental occurrences. This, in my opinion, is what has happened within this country with the illegal immigrants. There are a lot of sentimental feelings for what they go through in their own country, and then they get here and have children who become citizens automatically. Now, they have compounded their, and our, problem. Stop the illegal flow and you stop the problem.
William Sweetwood
Carson City
