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April 10, 2006
Illegal Immigration and Entitlements
Mark Krikorian makes a couple interesting points related to the current illegal immigration debate, which both touch on the "wisdom" of the so-called "elite." First:
...our elite has so completely erased the distinction between citizens and foreigners, devaluing the meaning of Americanness to merely working and paying taxes on American territory, that the illegals (and legal non-citizens) actually have come to believe [that they're Americans] -- and are simply demanding the fulfillment of what they consider to already have been promised. Obviously, the point is not to excuse the foreigners' will to power, but rather that you teach people how to treat you -- and we've taught foreigners to make these aggressive demands against us.Second:
Just as illegals are marching in the streets demanding not just amnesty but, let's face it, open borders, the intellectual elite is increasingly coming to consensus that mass immigration is bad for America's poor. After Bob Samuelson and Paul Krugman recently came out of the closet, Nicholas Kristof did the same in yesterday's N.Y. Times:This last is a compelling argument. Of course, what do we mean by "poverty" in contemporary America? Also, if there was more incentivizing on both the worker end and the employer end to help employ more of our poor citizens in those jobs that "only" illegals would do, I'd be more willing to accept this liberal argument.An influx of hundreds of thousands more unskilled laborers would impoverish them [America's poor] further -- and to me, that does not feel like compassion.
Many anti-poverty groups are quite "inclusive" in their championing of the poor (public health care for illegal immigrant children) and walk hand-in-hand with "immigration" advocacy groups (they never say they're "illegal" immigration advocacy groups) that help illegal immigrants get public aid.
Thus, the liberal groups have it right: the public entitlement debate (welfare reform, social security reform) is intertwined with the illegal immigrant debate. I don't think that an attempt by liberal "elites" to draw a distinction between American poor and the poor in America will be very attractive to their otherwise fellow-traveller, pro-illegal immigrant and redistributionist, anti-poverty brethren.
Finally, (and I shouldn't have to say it) I'm not "for" poverty and don't want to see poor kids abandoned on the streets, but more tax dollars money for more programs isn't the answer. I think we Rhode Islanders can atest that the easier we make it for people to live with the help of public "assistance" the more people we'll find doing just that, whether they're American citizens or not.
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Illegals are marching in the streets, not demanding, they are asking for a reform.
They don’t want to be treated like criminals because they don't have a green card.
Did the native Americans asked your relatives for a green card when they came to America? Why are we different?
They did't know the language, they were poor too.
Maybe you don't want to know but Illegals are paying taxes already!!
YES, They need a number to work, fake or real so they are already giving something back to the country. Also, for your information, they are not abusing the system because they can apply for public assistance. You forgot the fact that they don't have ANY benefits.
You are right about illegals being bad for America's poor because they are the poor, they are the bad. You also forgot to mention that they are good for the rich and that's ok for many people. As long as illegals don't ask for anything back, they are welcomed.
Posted by: Mayra at May 2, 2006 12:34 PMI'm a US citizen but I’m not feeling proud about it.
The day America rejects hard working individuals is the day the American dream dies.
Illegals are marching in the streets, not demanding, they are asking for a reform.
They don’t want to be treated like criminals because they don't have a green card.
Did the native Americans asked your relatives for a green card when they came to America? Why are we different?
They did't know the language, they were poor too.
Maybe you don't want to know but Illegals are paying taxes already!!
YES, They need a number to work, fake or real so they are already giving something back to the country. Also, for your information, they are not abusing the system because they can apply for public assistance. You forgot the fact that they don't have ANY benefits.
You are right about illegals being bad for America's poor because they are the poor, they are the bad. You also forgot to mention that they are good for the rich and that's ok for many people. As long as illegals don't ask for anything back, they are welcomed.
Posted by: Mayra at May 2, 2006 12:34 PMI'm a US citizen but I’m not feeling proud about it.
The day America rejects hard working individuals is the day the American dream dies.
Illegals are marching in the streets, not demanding, they are asking for a reform.
They don’t want to be treated like criminals because they don't have a green card.
Did the native Americans asked your relatives for a green card when they came to America? Why are we different?
They did't know the language, they were poor too.
Maybe you don't want to know but Illegals are paying taxes already!!
YES, They need a number to work, fake or real so they are already giving something back to the country. Also, for your information, they are not abusing the system because they can apply for public assistance. You forgot the fact that they don't have ANY benefits.
You are right about illegals being bad for America's poor because they are the poor, they are the bad. You also forgot to mention that they are good for the rich and that's ok for many people. As long as illegals don't ask for anything back, they are welcomed.
Posted by: Mayra at May 2, 2006 12:35 PMI'm a US citizen but I’m not feeling proud about it.
The day America rejects hard working individuals is the day the American dream dies.