A Debate to Define Who We Are

[Adam's Apple]

The Language Battle
By Cal Thomas
May 5, 2006

I travel frequently to the United Kingdom. The stamp the immigration officer puts on my passport says, "Leave to enter for six months. Employment and recourse to public funds prohibited." I can't hold a job and I can't apply for welfare or other benefits paid for by the heavily taxed citizens of the U.K. But I am told by the "immigrants rights" crowd in my own country that not only should I welcome illegal aliens here, I should willingly pay for the education of their children in public schools, their emergency medical care and any additional benefits they might require. Does this make sense? Why aren't they working to improve their lot and economy in their native countries instead of piggybacking on what we have already built here?

One of the fictions masquerading as fact is that these illegals do work Americans don't want to do. There is not a shortage of American workers. But there is a shortage of American employers willing to pay competitive wages. The jobs many illegals take are jobs Americans used to do, but too many won't do them now because they pay less than they once did. Illegals have demonstrated they will work for less than American citizens. Many employers, seeking to improve their profit margins, are willing to let them.

This is one of the changes real immigration reform must address. Permanent low wages create a new underclass with no hope of advancement. Between exporting jobs to China and India and importing low-skilled workers at low wages, we are competing against our long-term interests. America is more than an economy. It is supposed to be "one nation." By continuing to allow illegals to enter the United States, or to stay on expired permits and visas, we risk ceasing to become one nation. When that happens, we will no longer be united.

Words have meaning. This debate is about who we are. This is the United States of America. We speak English. Citizens must obey the laws. Anyone who comes here should do the same.

for full article:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/commentary/cthomas.htm

 

[insein]

Great summary. I basically feel exactly this way.

 

[Adam's Apple]

I really like to read Cal Thomas' columns. He knows what he believes in, and he is very good at making strong cases in print.

 

[ScreamingEagle]

I really like to read Cal Thomas' columns. He knows what he believes in, and he is very good at making strong cases in print.

Yes, good article.

I'm sure it's also hard for an illegal to identify as an American citizen when he's sending his earnings back to his family still living in Mexico. They can live in much better style in Mexico with a U.S. paycheck than here under typical U.S. living costs. Many just come here to make a pile for themselves and then go back. They don't want to be American citizens any more than we want them to be.

 

[William Joyce]

This is the United States of America. We speak English. Citizens must obey the laws. Anyone who comes here should do the same.

Makes perfect sense. Which is exactly why our political class will never go for it.