A clinical psychologist and expert in addiction has written to the paper about our cause. We appreciate his free diagnosis that we are manipulators, opportunists or haters. I suppose the diagnosis is worth what we paid for it.
But he is obviously a well-read, logical fellow with some common ideas about the current immigration problem. I’d like to address some of them here.
As to “immigrant fears” he is trying to paint this problem as xenophobia. Not so. Elgin has been tolerant to a fault with the influx of Laotians and Hispanics. The manipulators, opportunists and haters would have bubbled to the surface long ago.
What has happened of late is a realization that a large segment of the foreign-born population is here illegally. And the growth rate of illegals is staggering. Even by Pew Hispanic Centers “soft” numbers 850,000 per year are entering illegally, up from 180,000 per year in the 1980s. Taking into consideration previous amnesty programs and the current wave of "undocumented", nearly half of the foreign-born in the United States either are now, or once were, illegal aliens. That is unprecedented.
This isn’t just like the immigrant wave of a century ago. It is very different in these key respects:
*LEGAL immigration is dominated by Hispanics; 30% from Mexico alone. Never before has one nation dominated the immigration scene. Diversity? I don’t think so!
*Our nation now funds a social services network not seen during the last wave of immigrants. Translation: We, the taxpayers are subsidizing their presence. Having worked for a United Way agency, the good doctor should know that. You've cashed your share of government checks over at Renz.
*Immigration dominated by unskilled, Third World immigrants, with all their extra needs related to education and health care. And with all their Third World habits.
Now, the doctor didn’t talk much about ethnic enclaves. Elgin IS one, you know. Enclaves slow assimilation by clinging to the language and customs of the homeland. Surely the doctor knows how that impacts DUIs, graduation rates and domestic violence. If not, we’d be glad to share the data with him.
He mentioned gangs. Perhaps he could get a grant and study anchor babies. Or perhaps he could study the foreign-born population and their involvement in gangs. Or maybe look at the census map of the high concentration of foreign-born and overlay that on the map of gang shootings in Elgin. We make no claim about the impact of illegal aliens on the gang problem in Elgin, but we’d sure like to find out.
As for terrorism, we can show him a government report that explains not only the possibility of terrorists coming through the Mexican border but actual evidence they have done so. But that isn’t the point. Were we talking about terrorists in Elgin? I don’t think so.
We certainly hope that the citizens of Elgin can see that this is not just another wave of immigration. There are distinct differences not only in the demographics, but also in the society receiving them. And there are clear differences in the magnitude and attitude of those here illegally.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Thanks, Doc
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As to “immigrant fears” he is trying to paint this problem as xenophobia. Not so. Elgin has been tolerant to a fault with the influx of Laotians and Hispanics.
ReplyDeleteUm, Elgin certainly has been "tolerant", whatever that means, but it seems some people haven't exactly rolled out the welcome mat...
The manipulators, opportunists and haters would have bubbled to the surface long ago.
Oh, they have been there all along...it's just not frowned upon as much anymore to hate ethnic groups publicly as long as you use "illegal" somewhere while you rant about them.
Never before has one nation dominated the immigration scene.
In 1860, 1,855,827 of 5,567,229 non-native born residents of this country were from Northern Ireland...that's 33% of all foreigners at the time (with similar statistics for the 1870s). Interestingly enough, the Irish at that time (just like the Germans earlier and the Italians afterwards) were mocked and ridiculed the same way Hispanics are being demonized nowadays.
Translation: We, the taxpayers are subsidizing their presence.
Let's see some facts and statistics from non-advocacy groups that prove this. As the Wall Street Journal has pointed out:
"more than half and up to three-quarters of illegal immigrants in the U.S. are working "on the books," which means they're paying federal and state income taxes, just like the rest of us. They are also paying Social Security and Medicare taxes, even though undocumented immigrants are ineligible to receive benefits from either program. In testimony before the Senate Finance Committee last year, the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration noted that between 1937 and 2003, contributions to Social Security from unauthorized workers totaled an estimated $520 billion. But even illegals working in the cash economy can't avoid paying consumption taxes, which are levied on the purchase of goods and services. Nor can they duck property taxes, even if they're renting."
So I'm curious to see where you get your stats from.
He mentioned gangs. Perhaps he could get a grant and study anchor babies.
"gangs" are a part of American culture, always have been...and have nothing to do with "illegal immigration." I'd like to see what percentage of illegal aliens are actually in gangs. For illegal's children, if they are US Citizens, too bad if you don't like that. If the child is a US Citizen, then the child is a US citizen. Everyone praises legal immigrants and badmouths the children who are US citizens. Can't have it both ways. The child is a citizen? Go pick on somebody else.
*Tolerance Level*
ReplyDeleteAbout our tolerance level, I missed the point. Are you saying we weren’t tolerant in the past? I’d have to see some proof of that.
*Dominance of immigrants from Mexico*
About the dominance of immigration from one nation, you’re right there. I should have said “in this century” or “during the great migration a hundred years ago.” But that allows me to explain that during the great migration NO TWO COUNTRIES COMBINED TOTALLED 30% OF THE GREAT MIGRATION.
Back to the point, are you denying that the current situation is dominated by Mexican immigrants? Or are we supposed to chase your red herring?
Oh, and when you add the 6.2 MILLION illegal aliens from Mexico to the 30% legal immigrants from Mexico, the 33% Irish of 1860 pale in comparison. And providing for the aliens with tax money is a new phenomenon, unheard of prior to the Great Society.
*We are subsidizing illegal aliens*
It is foolish to believe that we are not subsidizing the presence of illegal aliens. Here are links to a few studies:
http://www.state.mn.us/mn/externalDocs/Administration/Report_The_Impact_of_Illegal_Immigration_on_Minnesota_120805035315_Illegal%20Immigration%20Brief%2026.pdf
http://www.fairus.org/site/DocServer/Illinois_Cost_Study.pdf?docID=1521
http://www.bearstearns.com/bscportal/pdfs/underground.pdf
http://www.le.state.ut.us/audit/07_07rpt.pdf
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/87xx/doc8711/12-6-Immigration.pdf
There are many more. I agree that making sense of the numbers is difficult. Illegals don’t exactly register that way, you know. Are there 12 million, 20 million, or 38 million? A good case could be made for all three numbers. One thing is for certain, government hasn’t bothered to check.
FYI, The Wall Street Journal has a history of being pro-illegal. It helps make labor cheaper. They are by no means a reliable source of unbiased information on the subject.
*Anchor babies*
Make no mistake; anchor babies are part of the problem and the current interpretation of the law needs to be changed. It is one more magnet that drives illegals across the border. See our “Classroom” section for a treatment of the history of the problem.